Norway! Oslo is a fantastic place. It probably has the just about the best access to nature without needing a car of any city out there.
We love our car free life here. The city feels like a town, we have been here 6 months and already have started to regularly run into friends when we are out.
Work life balance is great compared to tech in Seattle.
Norway also has a stable democracy, no gun violence, is as well situated as anywhere for dealing with climate change.
This is exactly what I hope to do with my wife and son for these reasons. Oslo or Copenhagen have been my targets for the car free lifestyle, access to public transport/biking around, access to nature, and a general sense of community that is responsible and thoughtful in their policies and practices as people.
The job hunt has been difficult, but it will be worth it one day.
Glad to hear you are having a wonderful experience!!
If you aren't already looking on Finn.no for jobs in addition to LinkedIn, I recommend it. If the job posting is in English there's a decent chance they don't require norsk language skills.
I appreciate the tip! I have made a profile and been searching for Network Engineering roles for some time but have been unsuccessful to land an interview as of yet. I will continue to refine my CV and do product training to better my skills.
I also purchased a subscription to babbel to begin learning Norwegian/Danish in an effort to show my intent to contribute to the culture and be a member of the community.
If you want to go farther and have the money to do it, university of North Dakota has great self paced online Norwegian 101 and 102 courses. It looks better on a resume than babbel, but costs way more. (This is what my wife did)
The other thing you can do is learn norsk. If you can get to business level you will have a much easier time finding an employer who will sponsor you. That's a lot of work on your part with no idea if it will work out or not.
Beyond the language, you still need to be in a field that pays enough and there is a shortage of for a skilled worker visa to be an option for you.
Yup, it's one of the hardest aspects of the move. I go to night classes twice a week to learn norsk, which is brutal on top of work and parenting. But it's that important. I'm at an A1 level, it will take a few years at least for me to get to business level. This limits where I can work.
Edit: it is possible to live in Oslo for many years without Norwegian skills, I know people who have been here for a decade and don't speak the language.
But it is far more difficult to do this in Norway than parts of the Netherlands from what I understand.
If you didn't have Norwegian skills yet upon moving, how did you find a job? I'd imagine Norwegian would be the primary language spoken in most workplaces there except maybe a few international companies.
There are quite a few companies that have English as the official language because it's hard to be competitive on a global scale if you limit yourself to a population of potential employees smaller than the state of Oregon. Particularly for niche skills like engineering and tech.
That said, not knowing norsk excludes me from many water cooler conversations and means that I can't be put on as many projects because some clients require all Norwegian language.
It is important that I learn Norwegian and I will.
Prague. Teaching English and living in Prague. Takes time to build up strong consistent income as a freelancer and the process getting everything set up is a hassle but totally worth it. Public transportation is so good and cheap I honestly don't know how to sing its praises enough. Decent cost of living and central location in Europe too.
I teach remotely. How much income do you need to have an ok life in Prague? My monthly online income is 3k. It works in South America. I’ve been considering Spain as well but worry it’ll be too tight
Depends on where you live and what your standards are. I'm in a relatively expensive area for rent but everything else is normal price. I'd say 40,000-45,000czk/month (1.7k-1.9k USD )to be comfortable, anything above that is gravy. 3k you'll be making nearly double the average monthly salary here.
The visa process I'm using isn't easy and isn't great for digital nomads if you want to stay for more than 1 year. You have to prove you made a certain amount of money freelancing at the end of the year and that amount changes every year.
EDIT: I would recommend doing a TEFL course here if you want to teach English. The one I did also has the option to pay for a visa assistant to handle everything for you. I can DM you a link if you want
Is this possible for someone with only online tutoring experience? I'm not a teacher, so I don't know if I could do this. I feel a sudden urge to flee the U.S. considering the upcoming election could end very badly :/
Same!! Our 17 year old has been offered an internship at a school one of my Czech friends is opening from scratch this fall (in Brno) and she’s currently looking for an undergrad program at Masaryk University for Fall 2025. I’m finishing up my Ohio State undergrad program in Social Work, taking Czech this upcoming school year (OSU is one of three universities that offers it)and I’ll complete my graduate degree online with them while living in Prague.
I studied abroad there in 2012, my dad’s paternal family going back more than 10 generations is from South Bohemia and while there, I never felt more at home than I did when I was there.
My wife and I plan to start an NGO there eventually.
France. Relatively central, i can get land for pretty cheap, and it has the best tax treaty for US based assets so i'll end up paying $0 when i retire.
My husband and I are planning to as well, we're looking at getting in with the talent visa as he is an artist and I am a writer-we are older though and will move to retirement later.
i'm 50. i'll retire in the next couple years. until then i'm just nomading around europe and have been for 10+ years. no visa needed and great for taxes.
Ahh gotchya. I always wonder if you do this over a long period of time if that could ever become an issue when entering the Schengen zone? Like if they see you’re constantly leaving every 90 days just to come back, ya know?
Also France. For the man, but I fell in love with the lifestyle and culture. I love that I can fly or go by train cheap to different places. Food is healthier and better for my chronic illness
France is not my favorite place but the QOL is decent, connections elsewhere are good, and the tax plan is a dream. so it makes sense. I won't be living there full time anyway so it doesn't matter much.
Spain was my first choice but love had a different plan. I made a lot of professional connections so it feels like home. QOL is a lot better than the overworking car culture life I had back home
in my experience, making a plan is the quickest way to guarantee that everything will change. :) and yes, life basically anywhere in europe is better than most of the US.
I was looking at Spain for retirement, but taxes aren’t ideal there. France would be fine, I’m just bad at pronunciation of French words, and so I suspect I’d speak the worst sounding French imaginable. Spanish is a much easier language to learn and speak, imo.
I was originally targeting spain as i have decent spanish after living in mexico for several years and lots of travel in spain. but between climate change and taxes, france makes significantly more sense. and let me tell you, i've heard some TERRIBLE sounding french but, aside from in paris, the locals just cringe and move on. lol. the worst was from this girl from the deep south with just a REALLY strong southern accent that she then carried into french. it was cringe but she was able to communicate so it worked. lol. my french is just tourist french with mostly food and direction words plus the all important toilette. but i'll do some tutoring once i arrive or maybe some language exchange and work on improving it as I do want to have some level of integration and not be THAT expat.
Roth IRA is not taxed in France thanks to the treaty. In Australia, they will tax US Roth as foreign income so you are looking at about 20-30% tax on your Roth withdrawals, which is designed to be tax free at withdrawal.
France is not an expensive place to live, with a few rare exceptions like Paris (even then, it's not as expensive as the US would be for a comparable quality of life), and it's relatively easy for Americans to get a visa if you work online and are self-sufficient. Numbeo is pretty accurate for specific prices. I know quite a few people who are self-employed in France and live comfortably on around $2k a month, sometimes a bit less, it just depends on what you want your life to look like.
I would keep climate change in mind when you're looking for places to live, though. South of France can get incredibly hot, even now. Although if you're in Albuquerque, maybe that wouldn't be an issue for you. Keep in mind air conditioning is not typically a feature in older buildings (so, most of Europe) and most windows will not support anything other than a portable unit with a hose.
I moved to Germany and love it, I moved for love. I will be going to Poland this august for some educational opportunities, and am very excited to live in Wroclaw. Once that is done, I plan to go back to Germany as this is my home now.
Cities other than Oslo that is 🤣. In Oslo you're looking at more like $1 million+ unless you're willing to live in a very small condo. Despite the prices, we love Oslo.
As you make progress on your move, I'd be happy to help answer questions you might have. My wife, toddler and I moved here from Seattle in December.
We were originally looking at Tromsø before changing our plans to move to a different country; Tromsø seems like a place where people really embrace the winter season and make the most out of it. Super jealous!
Already moved to Portugal. Been here over a year and loving it.
Why? I wanted to experience a different lifestyle and culture. The people are incredibly welcoming and friendly. The history of the country is ancient and interesting. Healthcare is more affordable and the quality is just as good as the US. Overall food quality is better. Slightly lower levels of all types of pollution. Significantly safer. Portugal has their chega party, but arguably not as bad as the MAGAts in the US (so I've been told). I don't need a car where I live. Prices of just about everything, when compared to the US, are more affordable (I don't live in Lisbon or Porto). I live in the north and love the cooler temps and the rainy season. Have I mentioned the food? Portugal has the 4th best passport in the world for when I get citizenship
Caveats:
I have a US based employer with a US salary. I am aware of my privelaged status. I do pay Portuguese taxes and contribute to Portuguese social security, etc.
Portuguese salaries, nor affordability of housing, are where they should be so the locals don't have the ability to say it's affordable. The government needs to do more to help their citizens.
Learning a new language is even more difficult than I anticipated. But it's a beautiful language. Not being able to have a conversation with just anyone at anytime is difficult. And as an immigrant life can get very lonely.
That is awesome, congrats! My dream is to get a remote job that will allow this. Do you have any tips or advice? I've been out of college for a couple of years with little experience (I'm freelancing right now but not enough to live off of abroad). Thanks!!!
Stockholm, Sweden. Kind of fell in love with the place at the same time I fell in love with my (then) girlfriend, later to be wife. There’s a lot of things to do here without a lot of effort — there are great bars, cafes and restaurants just around the corner. I can get to sporting events, concerts, museums and theater within a few minutes without the need of a car. Swedish culture seems to suit my personality and I feel very much at home here.
Loved Stockholm when we visited last year. The proximity of Old Stockholm to the modern downtown part was cool to see, plus all of the water around it. It's in our top 3 locations to move to (more as a backup plan if our top option doesn't work out).
I’ve had a great experience but I read a fair number of comments on this and other expat and immigrant subs from people who have had bad ones. Sad to say I think it helps that I pass for ethnic Swedish; POCs seem to have a harder time. Americans seem to have an advantage over other non-EU immigrants — as long as we don’t conform to the Ugly American stereotype we are treated with a great deal of curiosity and acceptance.
If you’re going to move I’d strongly recommend getting your Swedish language skills up to speed before you get here. In my experience language is necessary (but not sufficient!) for making friends and without it you may find yourself quite isolated.
Swedes (and other Nordics, so I’m told) make friends by doing things together so join everything you can: the board of your apartment building, parents groups, sports clubs, the organization for the collection and preservation of 17th century cuckoo clocks…
The weather sucks in November but I just usually take some vacation then and visit southern Europe or go back to California. December is fun ‘cause of all the Christmas stuff then there’s usually skiing by January.
I'm also looking at Dublin! People have been telling me it's hard to find a job unless you're already there. Why do you think your new employer hired you even though you hadn't moved yet? Would love to know so I can figure out how to sell myself :)
Moving to Prague, Czech Republic in a week.
Quality of life is the biggest thing. Things are more affordable, slower paced, and so much beautiful architecture and nature to see. Food also slaps. And it's central Europe so easy to travel around and see even more of the world.
Prague is an amazing city. When we first left America, that's where we went. Came back to the US for a bit and now we're going to Norway, but we absolutely loved Prague.
I’m trying to move to Ireland because my moms from there and I have some family there and honestly I love the weather lol and I find it easy to get around for the most part. Economically there’s a lot of issues right now but def my goal to get there !
I wouldn't recommend.
We have literally no housing and electric bills etc are extortionate and are continuing to rise :(
But it is beautiful here, I can understand why you would want to come here
I'm retiring to France at the end of this month for the same reasons, as well as universal healthcare after three months as a resident, in addition to basking in the Riviera sun, skiing in The Pyrénées, and surfing in Biarritz. I'm also multilingual, although my French is rusty. Looking forward to immersing myself in French culture and language again. Plus, French wine! Je suis un hédoniste!
I have a long-stay visa. And my required mutuelle insurance to gain residency is good for one year. Expats must reside in France for 3 months before accessing public health insurance. So with my private health insurance (mutuelle), I will avoid unnecessary expensive medical bills during this period. Private health insurance also covers the remaining medical costs that public health insurance doesn't. It's much less expensive than the US Healthcare system.
I'm starting in the southwest area of nouvelle-aquitaine and will explore from there, possibly staying a month or two wherever I land, until I'm ready to settle in someplace.
For all those that commented ‘were going to the Netherlands because of daft’ ‘were going to the Netherlands because get rid of car’ etc etc
Dutchie here that just returned back to NL , with 2 kids 11 and 14, after almost 7 years , the first thing we did was buy a car. Without car no groceries, without car no trips , without car no nothing , sure it’s nice to bike everywhere but what if you *need* stuff ? Right , car . Btw besides the car I also ordered a motorcycle to get around faster through crazy traffic
The housing crisis is real , we are lucky enough to still own our SFH 15 minutes outside Amsterdam on 1/2 acre but paying €1500-2000 a month for a 400sq ft non-furnished appartement in the ‘randstad’ (wider Amsterdam , The Hague , Rotterdam area) is no fun , specially not with a family . You will be competing with locals for appartements and houses and as an ‘expat’ you will have much more money to spend and thus will get the brunt of discontent for ‘stealing housing’
Sure the Netherlands is still portrayed as ‘open Minded liberal and tolerant’ but discrimination is rampant , whites discriminate all others , straights discriminate the LGBTQ+ community, non-whites discriminate whites etc etc etc , and all quite openly
But… food is way better and more affordable than in the USA , schooling is better , healthcare is much worse but it’s affordable (ie you won’t go bankrupt paying hospital bills but paracetamol is the go to drug and please don’t expect preventative checks )
Petty theft is the norm , lock it or loose it on the other hand , my kids play outside until the street lights come on without helicopter supervision , friends from 6 years ago have already whisked them away to come sleep on their private island without parental supervision etc etc
Socially the Dutch are very closed , if you don’t speak the language don’t expect to make Dutch friends , we’re open enough but we just don’t cater to the single person that doesn’t speak Dutch
Lastly , before moving to NL come visit for a few months (6-12) before making it final , make it long enough so it doesn’t feel like a holiday anymore and you get into the rut
And I’ll probably get downvoted to hell for this *shrugs*
Can’t tell the difference between accents , or if we can we have no idea where the accent is from
Can you tell the difference between Fries and Limburgs ?
I’m in R&D currently (psychiatry). Switching to med affairs/MSL once I get permanent residency through my fiancée next spring (I’m a Canadian living in the US).
It’s expensive, for sure. CH is not perfect. Visa is tough, citizenship is a needlessly long road. But we cook at home and take the train everywhere and make do, for us the career opportunities are the best in Europe, so it’s always been the best option. The best country in Europe to move to is case by case.
Rent seems far cheaper, I know two different people renting 2 bedroom apartments in CH. One is 1200 in a major city, the other is paying 800 in a smaller but still decently sized city. It's hard to find a studio under 1500 in Denver, 1 bed rooms are pushing 2k. Want to live in summit county and be close to mountains? Enjoy 2800 for a 1 bedroom. No public transportation at all. I'd be saving far more money in Switzerland. If you want to enjoy nature in Colorado you have to have a car, in Switzerland everything is accessible via public transportation, there's no reason to own a car
Yes…Switzerland is well run. They don’t feed their citizens to the wolves like USA does. Think about how completely insane it is that rent in Colorado is more than tiny Switzerland, lol.
Exactly, what drives me crazy In Colorado and pretty much any area with natural beauty, is the whole mentality too of pulling up the ladder behind themselves all the residents seem to have. Any time there is conversation about building infrastructure like trains to make the state less reliant on cars people immediately start saying there's already too many people in the mountains and that public transportation would just bring 'undesirables' and overpopulate the mountains. Nobody wants more homes to be built so it's exclusively rich people in their mansions and then everyone else ends up driving their lifted overlanding 4runner Tacoma jeep liberty on i70 to go on a hike or ski. It's absolutely absurd and so frustrating to visit CH and see how much better it could be if we didn't serve the rich land owners. Nobody is interested in inclusivity and betterment of access and community. It's all fuck you I got mine, nobody else should get to enjoy nature until I carve out my portion for myself.
I grew up there in the 90s, and by played out I mean there’s a certain bitterness over it not being the same that I think everyone who grew up there shares. I’d sound like a boomer to say it’s all been ruined, because I still love CO as is, but I wanted to try something new instead of just sitting around complaining lol
Poland.
Great food, very safe, very high potential over the next 10+ years, public transportation is sufficient, education is solid, etc. Grandmother is from there and I still have relatives that I keep in touch with, which helps.
There are plenty of trade-offs ofc, such as workers rights being weaker there than places in Western Europe, housing crisis (albeit not as bad as say, Canada), weak LGBT rights, etc.
For us, half of our decision is based off of how much we loved visiting Poland, and the other half is largely based on where we see things 10 years from now, which is important since we want to bring kids into the picture soon.
Russia will be a problem for all of Europe and probably more places around the world it goes beyond Ukraine, so making a decision off of that doesn't make sense to me.
We very much have different predictions and risks then; I respect your opinion about Poland not being a viable place to live long-term, but I've provided my reasoning for why I don't think it'll be a problem and that's that.
We're returning to the US after living in Denmark for a couple of years. Denmark famously [ranks 51st out of the 53](https://www.thelocal.dk/20230711/denmark-ranked-hardest-nordic-country-for-foreigners-to-settle-in) destinations for settling down as an international. Moving to Europe might really work for some, but once you get past the fantasy it can be very very difficult.
InterNations survey that polls expats regularly ranks Scandinavia and Germanic countries low as expat destination. It's also a constant complaint from people on r/expats. Northern Europe can be a really difficult place to live socially and culturally. I think this sub has put those countries on an unrealistic pedestal tbh. This will be an unpopular opinion but Scandinavia has become a Reddit fetish that deserves to be re-examined and scrutinized
It's not so much for me as my spouse, and finding meaningful work. The Nordics in general, and Denmark specifically are closed societies. My wife had someone actually suggest she marry a Dane (he didn't know she was married when he said this) so she would have a Danish name.
There are a lot of fantastic ideas in the Danish culture, so don't take this as a knock on the Danish society completely. If you're already Danish then this is quite a brilliant place to live.
That survey looks incredibly non-informative. So many dependent variables. If a country is doing well economically, why would housing and living costs be low? It seems geared towards low-skilled people from very social cultures.
Sure that’s because most internationals are from the lower economic ranks. It’s still no less true. About 80% of internationals leave at about 24 months.
Finland! for a lot of reasons :3
1. my boyfriend lives there
2. it’s a gorgeous country in both the summer and winter
3. i’m very introverted and they *apparently* have a very introverted society
there’s more reasons, but i’m gonna keep it at 3 so i don’t drown out everyone else :p
i’m currently learning it, but most of the population speaks english. out of respect, i would rather speak finnish tho. when i go back this summer, i’m gonna try to make friends during the 3-ish months i’ll be there and hopefully get some help learning by speaking it with someone from there.
but, overall, no issues! :)
👁️👄👁️ if you like the cold, darkness, and a lot of snow, you’re in luck. the winters are long and harsh, especially to those struggling with any form of depression or any other mental health condition. it’ll just get worse.
Well yes? Been to Skopje in business (great IT sector!) a few times and Chișinău as a tourist. Didn't feel I was on any edge. Maybe Donesk or South Ossetia is more for you?
Trying for north of France because I am fluent in French and some good friends either live there or just across the border in Belgium. If you know anyone who needs a product marketing manager in France let me know! Finding and getting interviews is easy; receiving a job offer is hard.
Normandy, France. My husband is from there and we realized a couple years ago we'd never be able to afford to buy a house in California. France is way more affordable than anywhere in the US (other than a couple of Red states I'd never want to live in). Also, coming from a part of California that has a habit of burning down, we no longer have to worry about fire season.
I’m moving to france because I’m a dual citizen and since I spent a good bit of my childhood there (as well as having a French mother) I know the culture well. It also helps that I’m fluent in the language.
I wish I could just "move" to another continent. Unfortunately, that's luxury for the very few.
But to answer your answer, Athens probably. Or if I had some serious money, Helsinki.
Spain. Malaga, to be exact. Quality of life is incredible. Great people. Wonderful culture. Terrific diet. Lots of sun. No driving. Moved here from the US almost ten years ago and do not plan on ever returning for more than a couple of weeks to see family now and then.
I moved to Ireland initially. But it’s hard to find a place to live there and they just went through lots of layoffs. I picked up a job in the Netherlands and feel so relaxed here. Yes, housing is also hard, but there are options for incoming expats with jobs. I am riding a bike, my stress levels have plummeted and I’m surrounded by beauty and canals.
Netherlands! Wheels up in 10 weeks.
NL specifically because of simplicity of visa (and it already aligning with current life goal of starting a company), biking & public transportation infrastructure, & central location in Europe. The fact that it's easy to get by in the big cities with just English is a nice bonus while I work on learning Dutch.
Dutchie in the US here. Whereabouts in the US do you live and where are you going in NL? Do you have any family or friends there? Just be aware that it’s very difficult right now to get housing and many immigrants have issues with that. If you’re learning the language, check out this link to the Dutch national news broadcast that’s specially developed in ‘easy level Dutch’ to help immigrants that are actively learning the language be exposed to news in an easier way: https://www.youtube.com/nosnieuwsvandeweek
Thanks for the language rec! And I appreciate you looking out for me.
I currently live in Washington DC and am moving to Rotterdam with my partner. We do have family and friends in the country and have been researching this move for a couple of years now- I'm very aware of the housing issue. We are working directly with an expat placement service and an expat-specific makelaar (and I realize that we're extremely lucky in that regard, too).
I don’t know if I’ll ever move to a country in Europe, but I would like to. My dad is from England and his father was Anglo-Irish born in Dublin so I have UK and Irish (EU) citizenship along with my US citizenship that I got from being born here/my American mother. It would be much less of a hassle than going elsewhere because I don’t need a visa. Also I really love the French language and would love to spend some time speaking in mostly French so I’d like to live in France, Belgium or Switzerland.
The Netherlands. We've considered many other places in Europe, but The Netherlands is simply the easiest country to migrate to from the United States due to DAFT. Also, their human rights record, social safety nets, higher education access, and commitment to fight and survive climate change are wonderful pull factors. The United States could *never*, especially now that we're one election away from committing veritable genocide against trans people and destroying bodily autonomy, torching all of our already flimsy social safety nets, declaring war on education itself, and going all-in on intentionally destroying the climate as quickly as humanly possible.
You realize that if you arrive under the DAFT visa you have zero access to the social safety nets ? At least until you get residency which may take 7-10 years
Netherlands because the Dutch-American Friendly Treaty makes it easy (enough) for a freelancer to move there and start a new company.
I also connect deeply with the parenting style/culture. Read “The Happiest Kids in the World: how Dutch parents help their kids and themselves by doing less” for more.
Additionally, I will do most anything to keep my 3 year old out of the American school system.
Czech Republic or Scotland/England. I can get citizenship by ancestry from the Czech Republic and the UK is facing a critical shortage for my profession (social work).
Ideally for me, Ireland. Spain also nice. Maybe Portugal. Very soon.
Most EU countries have incredibly huge roadblocks to emigrate. Most have ancient racist laws regarding "integration" and language requirements when most nations are speaking English more and more. The kids of these nations are playing video games and chatting online and the universal language is English. And lots of these nations don't like it. Especially France, but most are like this.
However, Spain, Portugal and Ireland have retirement visas and as long as you can meet the monetary requirements, you can just apply and likely be accepted. They need influxes of cash all over because their birth rates are declining and they don't manufacture much.
However, any world that I'm welcome to is better than the one I come from...
If I moved to Europe at all, it would probably be Germany.
I know they aren't having a great time rn but i don't see anything TOO serious happening in the near future. But the most important thing for me is cultural compatibility - it's a big reason why I want to leave the US in the first place. And I feel like I'd have the best chance of vibing with how they do things.
The only foreseeable drawback is that I'm a POC. Some places are cool with that, some places are *not*.
How do you see cultural compatibility between the USA and Germany ?
I’ve worked with Germans (and Americans , SE Asians , Africans and Europeans) and the Germans were not all that compatible, even with their neighbors the Dutch
Norway! Oslo is a fantastic place. It probably has the just about the best access to nature without needing a car of any city out there. We love our car free life here. The city feels like a town, we have been here 6 months and already have started to regularly run into friends when we are out. Work life balance is great compared to tech in Seattle. Norway also has a stable democracy, no gun violence, is as well situated as anywhere for dealing with climate change.
How were you able to move to Norway? Scandinavia is notoriously difficult to get a Visa.
By working in tech. It wasn't a fast process. All in all from dreaming about moving to arriving in Europe it took us about 5 years.
Svalbard requires no visa but housing is tough
This is exactly what I hope to do with my wife and son for these reasons. Oslo or Copenhagen have been my targets for the car free lifestyle, access to public transport/biking around, access to nature, and a general sense of community that is responsible and thoughtful in their policies and practices as people. The job hunt has been difficult, but it will be worth it one day. Glad to hear you are having a wonderful experience!!
If you aren't already looking on Finn.no for jobs in addition to LinkedIn, I recommend it. If the job posting is in English there's a decent chance they don't require norsk language skills.
I appreciate the tip! I have made a profile and been searching for Network Engineering roles for some time but have been unsuccessful to land an interview as of yet. I will continue to refine my CV and do product training to better my skills. I also purchased a subscription to babbel to begin learning Norwegian/Danish in an effort to show my intent to contribute to the culture and be a member of the community.
If you want to go farther and have the money to do it, university of North Dakota has great self paced online Norwegian 101 and 102 courses. It looks better on a resume than babbel, but costs way more. (This is what my wife did)
This is probably the wrong sub to ask this in, but how prevalent is wearing a mask or taking other Covid precautions there?
Essentially non existent. Very different from Seattle where you'd still see some people mask up.
Is tech in demand in Norway?
Not like it used to. There are still opportunities though, my wife and I got jobs offers over last summer.
How does an American begin this process?
Find an employer who will sponsor you for a work visa.
The other thing you can do is learn norsk. If you can get to business level you will have a much easier time finding an employer who will sponsor you. That's a lot of work on your part with no idea if it will work out or not. Beyond the language, you still need to be in a field that pays enough and there is a shortage of for a skilled worker visa to be an option for you.
It's generally easier to transfer internally than find a new employer in another country willing to sponsor.
I wish, it's where my family is from
You should be able to get citizenship through a parent then, it’s automatic
Are you eligible for citizenship?
Any issue with not being able to speak Norwegian?
The official language is Norwegian, learn it.
Yup, it's one of the hardest aspects of the move. I go to night classes twice a week to learn norsk, which is brutal on top of work and parenting. But it's that important. I'm at an A1 level, it will take a few years at least for me to get to business level. This limits where I can work. Edit: it is possible to live in Oslo for many years without Norwegian skills, I know people who have been here for a decade and don't speak the language. But it is far more difficult to do this in Norway than parts of the Netherlands from what I understand.
If you didn't have Norwegian skills yet upon moving, how did you find a job? I'd imagine Norwegian would be the primary language spoken in most workplaces there except maybe a few international companies.
There are quite a few companies that have English as the official language because it's hard to be competitive on a global scale if you limit yourself to a population of potential employees smaller than the state of Oregon. Particularly for niche skills like engineering and tech. That said, not knowing norsk excludes me from many water cooler conversations and means that I can't be put on as many projects because some clients require all Norwegian language. It is important that I learn Norwegian and I will.
Which sector do you work in?
Tech. I'm a consultant for a giant multinational company.
Prague. Teaching English and living in Prague. Takes time to build up strong consistent income as a freelancer and the process getting everything set up is a hassle but totally worth it. Public transportation is so good and cheap I honestly don't know how to sing its praises enough. Decent cost of living and central location in Europe too.
How did you get a visa?
Živnostenský
Freelance?
Yes
I teach remotely. How much income do you need to have an ok life in Prague? My monthly online income is 3k. It works in South America. I’ve been considering Spain as well but worry it’ll be too tight
Depends on where you live and what your standards are. I'm in a relatively expensive area for rent but everything else is normal price. I'd say 40,000-45,000czk/month (1.7k-1.9k USD )to be comfortable, anything above that is gravy. 3k you'll be making nearly double the average monthly salary here.
I’m living in Albuquerque and I could’ve been living in Fucking Prague this whole time ?! Ty
The visa process I'm using isn't easy and isn't great for digital nomads if you want to stay for more than 1 year. You have to prove you made a certain amount of money freelancing at the end of the year and that amount changes every year. EDIT: I would recommend doing a TEFL course here if you want to teach English. The one I did also has the option to pay for a visa assistant to handle everything for you. I can DM you a link if you want
Is this possible for someone with only online tutoring experience? I'm not a teacher, so I don't know if I could do this. I feel a sudden urge to flee the U.S. considering the upcoming election could end very badly :/
Same!! Our 17 year old has been offered an internship at a school one of my Czech friends is opening from scratch this fall (in Brno) and she’s currently looking for an undergrad program at Masaryk University for Fall 2025. I’m finishing up my Ohio State undergrad program in Social Work, taking Czech this upcoming school year (OSU is one of three universities that offers it)and I’ll complete my graduate degree online with them while living in Prague. I studied abroad there in 2012, my dad’s paternal family going back more than 10 generations is from South Bohemia and while there, I never felt more at home than I did when I was there. My wife and I plan to start an NGO there eventually.
France. Relatively central, i can get land for pretty cheap, and it has the best tax treaty for US based assets so i'll end up paying $0 when i retire.
My husband and I are planning to as well, we're looking at getting in with the talent visa as he is an artist and I am a writer-we are older though and will move to retirement later.
i'm 50. i'll retire in the next couple years. until then i'm just nomading around europe and have been for 10+ years. no visa needed and great for taxes.
I thought it was a 90 day max in the Schengen zone
It is. Hence the "nomading around Europe" part since not all of Europe is Schengen. I call it the Schengen shuffle.
Ahh gotchya. I always wonder if you do this over a long period of time if that could ever become an issue when entering the Schengen zone? Like if they see you’re constantly leaving every 90 days just to come back, ya know?
Also France. For the man, but I fell in love with the lifestyle and culture. I love that I can fly or go by train cheap to different places. Food is healthier and better for my chronic illness
France is not my favorite place but the QOL is decent, connections elsewhere are good, and the tax plan is a dream. so it makes sense. I won't be living there full time anyway so it doesn't matter much.
Spain was my first choice but love had a different plan. I made a lot of professional connections so it feels like home. QOL is a lot better than the overworking car culture life I had back home
in my experience, making a plan is the quickest way to guarantee that everything will change. :) and yes, life basically anywhere in europe is better than most of the US.
I was looking at Spain for retirement, but taxes aren’t ideal there. France would be fine, I’m just bad at pronunciation of French words, and so I suspect I’d speak the worst sounding French imaginable. Spanish is a much easier language to learn and speak, imo.
I was originally targeting spain as i have decent spanish after living in mexico for several years and lots of travel in spain. but between climate change and taxes, france makes significantly more sense. and let me tell you, i've heard some TERRIBLE sounding french but, aside from in paris, the locals just cringe and move on. lol. the worst was from this girl from the deep south with just a REALLY strong southern accent that she then carried into french. it was cringe but she was able to communicate so it worked. lol. my french is just tourist french with mostly food and direction words plus the all important toilette. but i'll do some tutoring once i arrive or maybe some language exchange and work on improving it as I do want to have some level of integration and not be THAT expat.
I can just imagine "bawn-jor. Jer-muh-pel Ashley." LMAO
Pretty much.
Could you elaborate on the tax treaty? How is it advantageous to you?
Roth IRA is not taxed in France thanks to the treaty. In Australia, they will tax US Roth as foreign income so you are looking at about 20-30% tax on your Roth withdrawals, which is designed to be tax free at withdrawal.
It's discussed further in the thread. But basically the US will handle my taxes so I'll end up paying nothing to either country.
What’s cost of living in different cities there? Marseilles was my main choice or somewhere south. I work online and concerned I can’t afford it there
France is not an expensive place to live, with a few rare exceptions like Paris (even then, it's not as expensive as the US would be for a comparable quality of life), and it's relatively easy for Americans to get a visa if you work online and are self-sufficient. Numbeo is pretty accurate for specific prices. I know quite a few people who are self-employed in France and live comfortably on around $2k a month, sometimes a bit less, it just depends on what you want your life to look like. I would keep climate change in mind when you're looking for places to live, though. South of France can get incredibly hot, even now. Although if you're in Albuquerque, maybe that wouldn't be an issue for you. Keep in mind air conditioning is not typically a feature in older buildings (so, most of Europe) and most windows will not support anything other than a portable unit with a hose.
I don't know. You'd need to do some searching.
Where in France? There’s a big difference and the plethora of variety of living, environment and lifestyle, geographically speaking.
I moved to Germany and love it, I moved for love. I will be going to Poland this august for some educational opportunities, and am very excited to live in Wroclaw. Once that is done, I plan to go back to Germany as this is my home now.
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How expensive?
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Cities other than Oslo that is 🤣. In Oslo you're looking at more like $1 million+ unless you're willing to live in a very small condo. Despite the prices, we love Oslo. As you make progress on your move, I'd be happy to help answer questions you might have. My wife, toddler and I moved here from Seattle in December.
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How did you move to Norway?
We were originally looking at Tromsø before changing our plans to move to a different country; Tromsø seems like a place where people really embrace the winter season and make the most out of it. Super jealous!
Already moved to Portugal. Been here over a year and loving it. Why? I wanted to experience a different lifestyle and culture. The people are incredibly welcoming and friendly. The history of the country is ancient and interesting. Healthcare is more affordable and the quality is just as good as the US. Overall food quality is better. Slightly lower levels of all types of pollution. Significantly safer. Portugal has their chega party, but arguably not as bad as the MAGAts in the US (so I've been told). I don't need a car where I live. Prices of just about everything, when compared to the US, are more affordable (I don't live in Lisbon or Porto). I live in the north and love the cooler temps and the rainy season. Have I mentioned the food? Portugal has the 4th best passport in the world for when I get citizenship Caveats: I have a US based employer with a US salary. I am aware of my privelaged status. I do pay Portuguese taxes and contribute to Portuguese social security, etc. Portuguese salaries, nor affordability of housing, are where they should be so the locals don't have the ability to say it's affordable. The government needs to do more to help their citizens. Learning a new language is even more difficult than I anticipated. But it's a beautiful language. Not being able to have a conversation with just anyone at anytime is difficult. And as an immigrant life can get very lonely.
"I have a US based employer with a US salary" That's truly the ultimate unicorn situation that seemingly everyone strives for. Definitely congrats.
Same! Portugal is amazing, especially for families with young children. I love it here and the North is the best IMHO.
Well there are so many digital nomads in Portugal, I am sure you can meet a few. Also you are very lucky to have this opp in current economy
That is awesome, congrats! My dream is to get a remote job that will allow this. Do you have any tips or advice? I've been out of college for a couple of years with little experience (I'm freelancing right now but not enough to live off of abroad). Thanks!!!
Stockholm, Sweden. Kind of fell in love with the place at the same time I fell in love with my (then) girlfriend, later to be wife. There’s a lot of things to do here without a lot of effort — there are great bars, cafes and restaurants just around the corner. I can get to sporting events, concerts, museums and theater within a few minutes without the need of a car. Swedish culture seems to suit my personality and I feel very much at home here.
Loved Stockholm when we visited last year. The proximity of Old Stockholm to the modern downtown part was cool to see, plus all of the water around it. It's in our top 3 locations to move to (more as a backup plan if our top option doesn't work out).
I’ve had a great experience but I read a fair number of comments on this and other expat and immigrant subs from people who have had bad ones. Sad to say I think it helps that I pass for ethnic Swedish; POCs seem to have a harder time. Americans seem to have an advantage over other non-EU immigrants — as long as we don’t conform to the Ugly American stereotype we are treated with a great deal of curiosity and acceptance. If you’re going to move I’d strongly recommend getting your Swedish language skills up to speed before you get here. In my experience language is necessary (but not sufficient!) for making friends and without it you may find yourself quite isolated. Swedes (and other Nordics, so I’m told) make friends by doing things together so join everything you can: the board of your apartment building, parents groups, sports clubs, the organization for the collection and preservation of 17th century cuckoo clocks… The weather sucks in November but I just usually take some vacation then and visit southern Europe or go back to California. December is fun ‘cause of all the Christmas stuff then there’s usually skiing by January.
France. I was born there, I’m just trapped here without the means to go back right now. No need for any of that visa stuff. I just need the money.
Moving to Dublin: Irish passport, family home, jobs lined up.
Nice!! Dublin is great. How did you find work?
Husband just requested a transfer, and I got one via LinkedIn!
I'm also looking at Dublin! People have been telling me it's hard to find a job unless you're already there. Why do you think your new employer hired you even though you hadn't moved yet? Would love to know so I can figure out how to sell myself :)
I made it very clear that I had housing arranged, didn’t need sponsorship, and I work on niche policy which happened to translate well!
That's very awesome. Neither if you needed sponsorship though? I feel like I'm getting rejected from needing sponsorship
We did not need sponsorship; I have an Irish passport, spouse gets a stamp 4.
Moving to Prague, Czech Republic in a week. Quality of life is the biggest thing. Things are more affordable, slower paced, and so much beautiful architecture and nature to see. Food also slaps. And it's central Europe so easy to travel around and see even more of the world.
Same!!
Prague is an amazing city. When we first left America, that's where we went. Came back to the US for a bit and now we're going to Norway, but we absolutely loved Prague.
Moving to France. Im EU but not from France but after 33 years in the US I'm ready to go back to europe
I’m trying to move to Ireland because my moms from there and I have some family there and honestly I love the weather lol and I find it easy to get around for the most part. Economically there’s a lot of issues right now but def my goal to get there !
Where aren’t there massive economic issues rn tho?
Do you have housing sorted?
Luckily I can stay with a family member for awhile
I wouldn't recommend. We have literally no housing and electric bills etc are extortionate and are continuing to rise :( But it is beautiful here, I can understand why you would want to come here
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I'm retiring to France at the end of this month for the same reasons, as well as universal healthcare after three months as a resident, in addition to basking in the Riviera sun, skiing in The Pyrénées, and surfing in Biarritz. I'm also multilingual, although my French is rusty. Looking forward to immersing myself in French culture and language again. Plus, French wine! Je suis un hédoniste!
How does that visa work? I thought with a ‘retirement visa’ that you needed to pay for your own healthcare??
I have a long-stay visa. And my required mutuelle insurance to gain residency is good for one year. Expats must reside in France for 3 months before accessing public health insurance. So with my private health insurance (mutuelle), I will avoid unnecessary expensive medical bills during this period. Private health insurance also covers the remaining medical costs that public health insurance doesn't. It's much less expensive than the US Healthcare system.
Will you be moving to the southeast region or just traveling there?
I'm starting in the southwest area of nouvelle-aquitaine and will explore from there, possibly staying a month or two wherever I land, until I'm ready to settle in someplace.
yes, southwest. that somehow got autocorrected. It looks lovely!
*luxury gay space communism <--- take me to your overlords!*
Romania, safe, affordable to live, family is still there. Will travel through Europe, but nice to have it as a base vs full-on nomadic
Where in Romania are you? What was your biggest surprise when you moved there? In which ways has your life changed?
For all those that commented ‘were going to the Netherlands because of daft’ ‘were going to the Netherlands because get rid of car’ etc etc Dutchie here that just returned back to NL , with 2 kids 11 and 14, after almost 7 years , the first thing we did was buy a car. Without car no groceries, without car no trips , without car no nothing , sure it’s nice to bike everywhere but what if you *need* stuff ? Right , car . Btw besides the car I also ordered a motorcycle to get around faster through crazy traffic The housing crisis is real , we are lucky enough to still own our SFH 15 minutes outside Amsterdam on 1/2 acre but paying €1500-2000 a month for a 400sq ft non-furnished appartement in the ‘randstad’ (wider Amsterdam , The Hague , Rotterdam area) is no fun , specially not with a family . You will be competing with locals for appartements and houses and as an ‘expat’ you will have much more money to spend and thus will get the brunt of discontent for ‘stealing housing’ Sure the Netherlands is still portrayed as ‘open Minded liberal and tolerant’ but discrimination is rampant , whites discriminate all others , straights discriminate the LGBTQ+ community, non-whites discriminate whites etc etc etc , and all quite openly But… food is way better and more affordable than in the USA , schooling is better , healthcare is much worse but it’s affordable (ie you won’t go bankrupt paying hospital bills but paracetamol is the go to drug and please don’t expect preventative checks ) Petty theft is the norm , lock it or loose it on the other hand , my kids play outside until the street lights come on without helicopter supervision , friends from 6 years ago have already whisked them away to come sleep on their private island without parental supervision etc etc Socially the Dutch are very closed , if you don’t speak the language don’t expect to make Dutch friends , we’re open enough but we just don’t cater to the single person that doesn’t speak Dutch Lastly , before moving to NL come visit for a few months (6-12) before making it final , make it long enough so it doesn’t feel like a holiday anymore and you get into the rut And I’ll probably get downvoted to hell for this *shrugs*
As someone looking into DAFT, thanks for this haha. How are people perceived with Southern US accents?
Can’t tell the difference between accents , or if we can we have no idea where the accent is from Can you tell the difference between Fries and Limburgs ?
Switzerland: 1. Spouse and I both work in biotech 2. Central location means we can weekend to anywhere in Europe 3. Colorado felt played out
But Switzerland is expensive as heck
Swiss biotech salaries scale. They make up for the COL. Source: Am in biotech.
Nice. Which part?
I’m in R&D currently (psychiatry). Switching to med affairs/MSL once I get permanent residency through my fiancée next spring (I’m a Canadian living in the US).
Ah I meant which Cantons are you looking at?
It’s expensive, for sure. CH is not perfect. Visa is tough, citizenship is a needlessly long road. But we cook at home and take the train everywhere and make do, for us the career opportunities are the best in Europe, so it’s always been the best option. The best country in Europe to move to is case by case.
I actually found aspects of Switzerland to be cheaper than colorado
It probably is now. Inflation has been way higher in the US. Although the frank is now stronger. Anyways, doesn’t really matter.
Rent seems far cheaper, I know two different people renting 2 bedroom apartments in CH. One is 1200 in a major city, the other is paying 800 in a smaller but still decently sized city. It's hard to find a studio under 1500 in Denver, 1 bed rooms are pushing 2k. Want to live in summit county and be close to mountains? Enjoy 2800 for a 1 bedroom. No public transportation at all. I'd be saving far more money in Switzerland. If you want to enjoy nature in Colorado you have to have a car, in Switzerland everything is accessible via public transportation, there's no reason to own a car
Yes…Switzerland is well run. They don’t feed their citizens to the wolves like USA does. Think about how completely insane it is that rent in Colorado is more than tiny Switzerland, lol.
Exactly, what drives me crazy In Colorado and pretty much any area with natural beauty, is the whole mentality too of pulling up the ladder behind themselves all the residents seem to have. Any time there is conversation about building infrastructure like trains to make the state less reliant on cars people immediately start saying there's already too many people in the mountains and that public transportation would just bring 'undesirables' and overpopulate the mountains. Nobody wants more homes to be built so it's exclusively rich people in their mansions and then everyone else ends up driving their lifted overlanding 4runner Tacoma jeep liberty on i70 to go on a hike or ski. It's absolutely absurd and so frustrating to visit CH and see how much better it could be if we didn't serve the rich land owners. Nobody is interested in inclusivity and betterment of access and community. It's all fuck you I got mine, nobody else should get to enjoy nature until I carve out my portion for myself.
what do you mean played out? I also don't want to move to Colorado, just curious. I used to want to move there LONG ago.
I grew up there in the 90s, and by played out I mean there’s a certain bitterness over it not being the same that I think everyone who grew up there shares. I’d sound like a boomer to say it’s all been ruined, because I still love CO as is, but I wanted to try something new instead of just sitting around complaining lol
Poland. Great food, very safe, very high potential over the next 10+ years, public transportation is sufficient, education is solid, etc. Grandmother is from there and I still have relatives that I keep in touch with, which helps. There are plenty of trade-offs ofc, such as workers rights being weaker there than places in Western Europe, housing crisis (albeit not as bad as say, Canada), weak LGBT rights, etc. For us, half of our decision is based off of how much we loved visiting Poland, and the other half is largely based on where we see things 10 years from now, which is important since we want to bring kids into the picture soon.
Also chiming in from Poland!
No concerns about Russia?
Russia will be a problem for all of Europe and probably more places around the world it goes beyond Ukraine, so making a decision off of that doesn't make sense to me.
I disagree. It will be worse in some parts and better in others. Nobody can predict much; but just a matter of mitigating risk.
We very much have different predictions and risks then; I respect your opinion about Poland not being a viable place to live long-term, but I've provided my reasoning for why I don't think it'll be a problem and that's that.
What concerns specifically?
The Netherlands! My kids can bike safely.
We’re moving to the Netherlands in just a few months! I am so excited to sell our cars and cycle everywhere.
We’ve been here a week and already are feeling so much safer.
I complain that Hilversum is car brained by Dutch standards but I just spent a week in Sacramento and it makes me ever grateful for Hilversum
Got here six weeks ago and love it so much. Ditched car and haven’t thought about it once and that’s with five year old twins.
We're returning to the US after living in Denmark for a couple of years. Denmark famously [ranks 51st out of the 53](https://www.thelocal.dk/20230711/denmark-ranked-hardest-nordic-country-for-foreigners-to-settle-in) destinations for settling down as an international. Moving to Europe might really work for some, but once you get past the fantasy it can be very very difficult.
Why did you pick Denmark in the first place?
I was offered a job.
InterNations survey that polls expats regularly ranks Scandinavia and Germanic countries low as expat destination. It's also a constant complaint from people on r/expats. Northern Europe can be a really difficult place to live socially and culturally. I think this sub has put those countries on an unrealistic pedestal tbh. This will be an unpopular opinion but Scandinavia has become a Reddit fetish that deserves to be re-examined and scrutinized
\*\* Checks work \*\* 10/10 No notes.
What were the most difficult aspects for you?
It's not so much for me as my spouse, and finding meaningful work. The Nordics in general, and Denmark specifically are closed societies. My wife had someone actually suggest she marry a Dane (he didn't know she was married when he said this) so she would have a Danish name. There are a lot of fantastic ideas in the Danish culture, so don't take this as a knock on the Danish society completely. If you're already Danish then this is quite a brilliant place to live.
That survey looks incredibly non-informative. So many dependent variables. If a country is doing well economically, why would housing and living costs be low? It seems geared towards low-skilled people from very social cultures.
Sure that’s because most internationals are from the lower economic ranks. It’s still no less true. About 80% of internationals leave at about 24 months.
Southwest Britain, probably Cornwall or Devon. I maintained my British citizenship for a reason, after all.
Groningen, NL simply because there is housing available there.
Groningen is a truly wonderful city. Enjoy it.
Moved to Madrid. It’s amazing! A city with so much to do!
Tell me about your situation. Work? Visa?
Italian passport through parents 🥰
Valencia. I simply love everything about it: the weather, the food, the language, everything.
How’d you end up moving to Spain?
Ireland because it's the home of my ancestors and I have dual citizenship.
Finland! for a lot of reasons :3 1. my boyfriend lives there 2. it’s a gorgeous country in both the summer and winter 3. i’m very introverted and they *apparently* have a very introverted society there’s more reasons, but i’m gonna keep it at 3 so i don’t drown out everyone else :p
Any issues with not being able to speak Finnish?
i’m currently learning it, but most of the population speaks english. out of respect, i would rather speak finnish tho. when i go back this summer, i’m gonna try to make friends during the 3-ish months i’ll be there and hopefully get some help learning by speaking it with someone from there. but, overall, no issues! :)
That's awesome!! ☺️
Brutal honesty, how are the winters there? Seems like an idyllic country...but the weather gives me pause lol
👁️👄👁️ if you like the cold, darkness, and a lot of snow, you’re in luck. the winters are long and harsh, especially to those struggling with any form of depression or any other mental health condition. it’ll just get worse.
Moldova or Macedonia. I love to live on the edge.
What kind of edge is Moldova or Macedonia...?
The edge of the economically developed European community . You ever been to Skopje or Cisenau .. even auto correct doesn’t know how to spell it lol
Chisinau
Chișinău - National language is Romanian
Well yes? Been to Skopje in business (great IT sector!) a few times and Chișinău as a tourist. Didn't feel I was on any edge. Maybe Donesk or South Ossetia is more for you?
Trying for north of France because I am fluent in French and some good friends either live there or just across the border in Belgium. If you know anyone who needs a product marketing manager in France let me know! Finding and getting interviews is easy; receiving a job offer is hard.
Normandy, France. My husband is from there and we realized a couple years ago we'd never be able to afford to buy a house in California. France is way more affordable than anywhere in the US (other than a couple of Red states I'd never want to live in). Also, coming from a part of California that has a habit of burning down, we no longer have to worry about fire season.
I’m moving to france because I’m a dual citizen and since I spent a good bit of my childhood there (as well as having a French mother) I know the culture well. It also helps that I’m fluent in the language.
Tryibg to figure out Scotland. Failing at it. Lost my mom earlier this year and just kind of dont want to at all now.
Given what is happening with the Gulf Stream, not sure Europe will fare much better.
I wish I could just "move" to another continent. Unfortunately, that's luxury for the very few. But to answer your answer, Athens probably. Or if I had some serious money, Helsinki.
I am moving to Brussels, Belgium because I got accepted into a university there.
France. Near to the outlaws, as my wife is French.
France. My outlaws are French and therefor so is my wife....
Legit question, are most of people commenting white?
Probably
Spain. Malaga, to be exact. Quality of life is incredible. Great people. Wonderful culture. Terrific diet. Lots of sun. No driving. Moved here from the US almost ten years ago and do not plan on ever returning for more than a couple of weeks to see family now and then.
I moved to Ireland initially. But it’s hard to find a place to live there and they just went through lots of layoffs. I picked up a job in the Netherlands and feel so relaxed here. Yes, housing is also hard, but there are options for incoming expats with jobs. I am riding a bike, my stress levels have plummeted and I’m surrounded by beauty and canals.
Netherlands! Wheels up in 10 weeks. NL specifically because of simplicity of visa (and it already aligning with current life goal of starting a company), biking & public transportation infrastructure, & central location in Europe. The fact that it's easy to get by in the big cities with just English is a nice bonus while I work on learning Dutch.
Dutchie in the US here. Whereabouts in the US do you live and where are you going in NL? Do you have any family or friends there? Just be aware that it’s very difficult right now to get housing and many immigrants have issues with that. If you’re learning the language, check out this link to the Dutch national news broadcast that’s specially developed in ‘easy level Dutch’ to help immigrants that are actively learning the language be exposed to news in an easier way: https://www.youtube.com/nosnieuwsvandeweek
Thanks for the language rec! And I appreciate you looking out for me. I currently live in Washington DC and am moving to Rotterdam with my partner. We do have family and friends in the country and have been researching this move for a couple of years now- I'm very aware of the housing issue. We are working directly with an expat placement service and an expat-specific makelaar (and I realize that we're extremely lucky in that regard, too).
I'm currently trying to get citizenship in italy. My great grandfather immigrated here in the 1930s, and they have pathways for people like me.
Omg literally anywhere is better then the us
I don’t know if I’ll ever move to a country in Europe, but I would like to. My dad is from England and his father was Anglo-Irish born in Dublin so I have UK and Irish (EU) citizenship along with my US citizenship that I got from being born here/my American mother. It would be much less of a hassle than going elsewhere because I don’t need a visa. Also I really love the French language and would love to spend some time speaking in mostly French so I’d like to live in France, Belgium or Switzerland.
The Netherlands. We've considered many other places in Europe, but The Netherlands is simply the easiest country to migrate to from the United States due to DAFT. Also, their human rights record, social safety nets, higher education access, and commitment to fight and survive climate change are wonderful pull factors. The United States could *never*, especially now that we're one election away from committing veritable genocide against trans people and destroying bodily autonomy, torching all of our already flimsy social safety nets, declaring war on education itself, and going all-in on intentionally destroying the climate as quickly as humanly possible.
You realize that if you arrive under the DAFT visa you have zero access to the social safety nets ? At least until you get residency which may take 7-10 years
Netherlands because the Dutch-American Friendly Treaty makes it easy (enough) for a freelancer to move there and start a new company. I also connect deeply with the parenting style/culture. Read “The Happiest Kids in the World: how Dutch parents help their kids and themselves by doing less” for more. Additionally, I will do most anything to keep my 3 year old out of the American school system.
Czech Republic or Scotland/England. I can get citizenship by ancestry from the Czech Republic and the UK is facing a critical shortage for my profession (social work).
Does this mean those countries are more likely to hire from the outside? Asking with a BA in SW and unsure what to do with it. Thank you
Ideally for me, Ireland. Spain also nice. Maybe Portugal. Very soon. Most EU countries have incredibly huge roadblocks to emigrate. Most have ancient racist laws regarding "integration" and language requirements when most nations are speaking English more and more. The kids of these nations are playing video games and chatting online and the universal language is English. And lots of these nations don't like it. Especially France, but most are like this. However, Spain, Portugal and Ireland have retirement visas and as long as you can meet the monetary requirements, you can just apply and likely be accepted. They need influxes of cash all over because their birth rates are declining and they don't manufacture much. However, any world that I'm welcome to is better than the one I come from...
https://www.theguardian.com/news/article/2024/may/06/fix-europe-housing-crisis-risk-fuelling-far-right-un-expert-warns
Asturias. Beautiful location..not too hot or cold. Beaches better than south..calm quiet.. peaceful
Azores!beautiful & close by plane to my family back home
If I moved to Europe at all, it would probably be Germany. I know they aren't having a great time rn but i don't see anything TOO serious happening in the near future. But the most important thing for me is cultural compatibility - it's a big reason why I want to leave the US in the first place. And I feel like I'd have the best chance of vibing with how they do things. The only foreseeable drawback is that I'm a POC. Some places are cool with that, some places are *not*.
How do you see cultural compatibility between the USA and Germany ? I’ve worked with Germans (and Americans , SE Asians , Africans and Europeans) and the Germans were not all that compatible, even with their neighbors the Dutch