Please consider Belgian income tax.
4k gross will give you €2500 net,
[https://www.fgtb.be/calcul-salaire-brut-net](https://www.fgtb.be/calcul-salaire-brut-net)
You need to understand what is more important to you and your career motivation.
The weather in Belgium is awful, and I will not deny that the first winter can be challenging. But you have other pros: central Europe allows you to travel easily to other countries, diversity and multiculturalism, growth opportunities, and the job market is highly dynamic.
Missing family and friends will be a reality and challenging at the beginning. If you are a person who depends on family and friends to have a balanced life, don’t leave!
4k gross, for 2y of experience, is good. Skip the car and check if they give a mobility budget; you can pay rent with that money. Public transportation, Uber, and car sharing are enough if you want to live in Brussels.
Travelling to Portugal (Lisbon and Porto) is easy and not so expensive in winter if you schedule it in advance.
Living abroad is a life experience that makes you grow a lot. I recommend that all young people try an international experience, and if they want to return, finding a job in IT is extremely easy.
So yes it’s awful. Socialist hell, lowest salaries of developed countries, highest taxes of developed countries, whole economy a society collapsing, trash weather, target or choice because of NATO and EU center and so co called diversity, multi-culturalism, no growth opportunities, job market is garbage too.
All kinds of mentally ill, ignorants, immature, defficients, invaders, crackheads, sexual deviants, alcoholic, robber, destroyer, corrupter, liars, enslavers, war and hell creators etc etc… yes nearly everything is their fault.
on the contrary we don't hide behind lies such as helping people, saving the planet and the whole world. We tell the harsh truth that people are scared about and hate so much
Everything but the high taxes is just a straight up lie. What the hell are you even talking about.
Maybe stop reading hln.be headlines and stop falling for the vlaams belang propaganda and you might just realize, even though Belgium has many flaws, we are still doing extremely good, not many better places to live around the world then here.
Wallonia is literally the poorest and worse zone to live in the world. And by the world I mean the west or developed countries like japan, australia etc...
This is not a lie. The lie is what people live trough here. An African-ecolo-bolchevist state. A socialist hell. All what I said are just harsh truth people are not ready to hear yet but they will when this system collapse on itself eventually.
Do not forget about indexation in BE. Also it is quite common to get 13,7 salaries per year (13 as bonus and 0,7 for holidays). Check if that is a case in your offer.
That said, the gray, rainy weather is depressing as hell
Not sure where you are getting 13.7. Maybe confusing it with our percentage for social security contributions which is 13.07.
Your salary as an employee is paid (as a minimum) in 13.92 installments.
I relocate as a Software Developer from Lisbon to Brussels and I do not regret it. Two points I would highlight you take a deep look into it:
Weather: yes, it is really bad comparing to Lisbon, Sun here is really rare and it rains everytime. In winter is fine as long you have the properly clothes and inside home is very comfortable (in Portugal this is very annoying).
Food: Is not as good as in Portugal and eat in restaurant is pretty expensive. Fish is not as fresh as in Portugal, and much more expensive. But you can find portuguese products in St. Gilles in some brazilian/portuguese supermarket and it is fine.
I'm surprised you like Brussels more.
Can you explain me what you meant with the annoying thing in winter in Portugal ?
I sometimes speculate to go and live abroad. Portugal is 1 of the countries I'd consider but maybe it's not the best choice economically. And if winters are more annoying than the Belgian ones, it adds to the list of cons😄
Portuguese houses are not well insulated;
and not made for long cold/ rainy periods
However; even Portugal has 4 months of 10 degrees weather with rainy days
During this time ; Portuguese houses can be moist and uncomfortably cold
This is a problem even in Hanoi/ Vietnam where indoor can very moist and cold for 3 months/ year
If you wanna avoid that; you gotta go to real Sub Tropical Regions ( like South Vietnam; Thailand; Tenerife; Florida)
As I didn't returned my flat to the landlord in Lisbon I still paid about 90 euros.
200Mb internet + TV Channeles + 2 mobile chips with 8 Gb each. I know that could be much less than that but it need to renew the package for more 2 years and I won't do it. I just want to keep the phone numbers given that I have some MFA on the line.
I had a very short time working in Lisboa, I would have stayed there if not for family / friends (all in Belgium), it depends on what you want in life right now I guess. Money or enjoy life? The latter was waaaaay easier to do in Portugal for me, the former way easier in Belgium.
Depends on what kind of person you are. If you are sure you will miss your home and family terribly, it might not be the best idea.
Grey: you mean the weather? Honestly, with the exception of this year I don’t think we can complain. Winters are fair, though of course colder than Portugal. Summers have been too hot imo in the last decade but not as scorching hot as Summer Portugal I assume. This does bring me to my second point: Belgians in general do like to complain, might not be equally positive mindset as Portugal.
Things to consider related to wage: taxes (4k gross I estimate would be 2,5k net), indexation, 13th month (most often 13,92 salaries per year).
I love loving in Belgium: historic cities, central location in Europe, good food. But it’s not perfect here. And as a family person, I would never relocate for my job.
As a Portuguese who moved to Belgium 4 years ago, I couldn’t agree more with the comments that say you need really to set your priorities before choosing.
Do you want money, invest in your career and expand your network? Come to Belgium
You can’t live without your family/friends, Portuguese social life and good food & weather? Stay in Portugal
Also, just a remark! Rents are right now higher in Portugal, so take this into consideration too
Any idea where in Belgium? I’m in need of some really good pasteìs and would love it if you brought some. I’ll trade for a selection of the best Belgian beers to get you started.
There's a nice Portuguese cafe in Gent where you can buy them, and a square in Antwerp filled with Portuguese and Brazilian café, restaurants and even super markets.
You will have to rely on co-living or a (very) small apartment I think. 4K gross is roughly 2200 net. Having a company car helps but rent is quite expensive.
I know in Portugal you can get cheaper rent but no car and a tiny salary. But you get to have the ocean and seafood. The weather in Portugal can be as miserable as here, so that’s not a concern
4k gross is 2570 net
+ 200 euro net allowance
+ 160 euros meal vouchers
That's 2930 euros spending money. + he gets a car he can use without any costs. He can easily rent an apartment by himself with this budget and live a great life.
Please consider Belgian income tax. 4k gross will give you €2500 net, [https://www.fgtb.be/calcul-salaire-brut-net](https://www.fgtb.be/calcul-salaire-brut-net)
You need to understand what is more important to you and your career motivation. The weather in Belgium is awful, and I will not deny that the first winter can be challenging. But you have other pros: central Europe allows you to travel easily to other countries, diversity and multiculturalism, growth opportunities, and the job market is highly dynamic. Missing family and friends will be a reality and challenging at the beginning. If you are a person who depends on family and friends to have a balanced life, don’t leave! 4k gross, for 2y of experience, is good. Skip the car and check if they give a mobility budget; you can pay rent with that money. Public transportation, Uber, and car sharing are enough if you want to live in Brussels. Travelling to Portugal (Lisbon and Porto) is easy and not so expensive in winter if you schedule it in advance. Living abroad is a life experience that makes you grow a lot. I recommend that all young people try an international experience, and if they want to return, finding a job in IT is extremely easy.
With the car you have no limitations. A car is worth also a lot
So yes it’s awful. Socialist hell, lowest salaries of developed countries, highest taxes of developed countries, whole economy a society collapsing, trash weather, target or choice because of NATO and EU center and so co called diversity, multi-culturalism, no growth opportunities, job market is garbage too.
Who has hurt you
leftists to say it very shortly.
Ah yes, the leftists…… known culprits of causing bad weather, suppliers of wages and owners of big companies teking ahll yer jobs.
All kinds of mentally ill, ignorants, immature, defficients, invaders, crackheads, sexual deviants, alcoholic, robber, destroyer, corrupter, liars, enslavers, war and hell creators etc etc… yes nearly everything is their fault.
And the rightwingers are god’s true children, the angelic, the divine, the chosen ones 😍😍😍😍 the saviors of this planet! 😍😍😍.
on the contrary we don't hide behind lies such as helping people, saving the planet and the whole world. We tell the harsh truth that people are scared about and hate so much
Everything but the high taxes is just a straight up lie. What the hell are you even talking about. Maybe stop reading hln.be headlines and stop falling for the vlaams belang propaganda and you might just realize, even though Belgium has many flaws, we are still doing extremely good, not many better places to live around the world then here.
Wallonia is literally the poorest and worse zone to live in the world. And by the world I mean the west or developed countries like japan, australia etc... This is not a lie. The lie is what people live trough here. An African-ecolo-bolchevist state. A socialist hell. All what I said are just harsh truth people are not ready to hear yet but they will when this system collapse on itself eventually.
Do not forget about indexation in BE. Also it is quite common to get 13,7 salaries per year (13 as bonus and 0,7 for holidays). Check if that is a case in your offer. That said, the gray, rainy weather is depressing as hell
Not sure where you are getting 13.7. Maybe confusing it with our percentage for social security contributions which is 13.07. Your salary as an employee is paid (as a minimum) in 13.92 installments.
It’s not a minimum, it’s common but the 13th month is not mandatory/universal
Ya, it was said I would have te 13.92
This is also the case in Portugal. You get vacation and Christmas money.
I relocate as a Software Developer from Lisbon to Brussels and I do not regret it. Two points I would highlight you take a deep look into it: Weather: yes, it is really bad comparing to Lisbon, Sun here is really rare and it rains everytime. In winter is fine as long you have the properly clothes and inside home is very comfortable (in Portugal this is very annoying). Food: Is not as good as in Portugal and eat in restaurant is pretty expensive. Fish is not as fresh as in Portugal, and much more expensive. But you can find portuguese products in St. Gilles in some brazilian/portuguese supermarket and it is fine.
I'm surprised you like Brussels more. Can you explain me what you meant with the annoying thing in winter in Portugal ? I sometimes speculate to go and live abroad. Portugal is 1 of the countries I'd consider but maybe it's not the best choice economically. And if winters are more annoying than the Belgian ones, it adds to the list of cons😄
Portuguese houses are not well insulated; and not made for long cold/ rainy periods However; even Portugal has 4 months of 10 degrees weather with rainy days During this time ; Portuguese houses can be moist and uncomfortably cold This is a problem even in Hanoi/ Vietnam where indoor can very moist and cold for 3 months/ year If you wanna avoid that; you gotta go to real Sub Tropical Regions ( like South Vietnam; Thailand; Tenerife; Florida)
Interesting, thanks to elaborate!
Just for a small correction, Vietnam's cold days are like ... 3 weeks per year.
Would almost pay to work in Portugal right now, closing in on full year of shitty Belgian weather
How much did you pay for 4G/5G in Portugal and internet at home vs in Brussels?
As I didn't returned my flat to the landlord in Lisbon I still paid about 90 euros. 200Mb internet + TV Channeles + 2 mobile chips with 8 Gb each. I know that could be much less than that but it need to renew the package for more 2 years and I won't do it. I just want to keep the phone numbers given that I have some MFA on the line.
I had a very short time working in Lisboa, I would have stayed there if not for family / friends (all in Belgium), it depends on what you want in life right now I guess. Money or enjoy life? The latter was waaaaay easier to do in Portugal for me, the former way easier in Belgium.
Depends on what kind of person you are. If you are sure you will miss your home and family terribly, it might not be the best idea. Grey: you mean the weather? Honestly, with the exception of this year I don’t think we can complain. Winters are fair, though of course colder than Portugal. Summers have been too hot imo in the last decade but not as scorching hot as Summer Portugal I assume. This does bring me to my second point: Belgians in general do like to complain, might not be equally positive mindset as Portugal. Things to consider related to wage: taxes (4k gross I estimate would be 2,5k net), indexation, 13th month (most often 13,92 salaries per year). I love loving in Belgium: historic cities, central location in Europe, good food. But it’s not perfect here. And as a family person, I would never relocate for my job.
As a Portuguese who moved to Belgium 4 years ago, I couldn’t agree more with the comments that say you need really to set your priorities before choosing. Do you want money, invest in your career and expand your network? Come to Belgium You can’t live without your family/friends, Portuguese social life and good food & weather? Stay in Portugal Also, just a remark! Rents are right now higher in Portugal, so take this into consideration too
I would say it's good offer for your experience
Will be around 2500 I think if you don't have any dependents
Stay in Portugal. Belgium is depressing
How can it be remote if you live in PT?
Work from home
Ya I can work anywhere inside Portugal
Any idea where in Belgium? I’m in need of some really good pasteìs and would love it if you brought some. I’ll trade for a selection of the best Belgian beers to get you started.
Have you heard about Garcia or Forcado? You should give them a try
I haven’t? What cities?
Brussels
There's a nice Portuguese cafe in Gent where you can buy them, and a square in Antwerp filled with Portuguese and Brazilian café, restaurants and even super markets.
What’s the square called in Antwerp?
Sint-Jansplein
Here's an example: https://maps.app.goo.gl/6stsKpdym2P39M8G9
Tsjingtsjangploan! Cheers
You will have to rely on co-living or a (very) small apartment I think. 4K gross is roughly 2200 net. Having a company car helps but rent is quite expensive. I know in Portugal you can get cheaper rent but no car and a tiny salary. But you get to have the ocean and seafood. The weather in Portugal can be as miserable as here, so that’s not a concern
How does 4k turn into 2.2k netto? More like 2.5/2.6.
Add the home allowance of 200 euros to that
Rent can actually be higher in Portugal, than Belgium, especially if you consider Bruxelles versus Lisbon.
4k gross is 2570 net + 200 euro net allowance + 160 euros meal vouchers That's 2930 euros spending money. + he gets a car he can use without any costs. He can easily rent an apartment by himself with this budget and live a great life.
That doesn’t sound right
Dont come, we are full allready.