acrylicus

Hey Guys,

You guys won't know me at all, but I used to semi-frequent the Canada board here (as, until recently, I lived in Canada!).

Now I am back in miserable England and already need a change of scenery.

I kept my Canadian job, they are letting me work from home, so they should be fine with me moving to to another country (I'll just take a weeks vacation to get things set up). I work in IT and have 3 and a half years experience in the field.

I wanted to make sure of a couple things:

- Can I just pick up my stuff and move to NL? I.e. if I starting renting, I would not any immigration paperwork?
- I plan on getting a new job once I am settled out there, I have heard stories that it isn't as easy as other places due to bureaucratic reasons, is this correct?
- I do not speak any Dutch at all, how much will this affect me?
- Is there any good reason I should not do this?

I am very much in the conceptual stages here, so complete transparency is appreciated!

Also, some bonus questions:

- I am going completely alone, do not know a single person there, am I going to be able to make friends OK? (considering I do not speak Dutch)
- Amsterdam, Rotterdam or The Hague? What is your favourite?

Casa Santo Estevo

Q1) Can I just pick up my stuff and move to NL? I.e. if I starting renting, I would not any immigration paperwork?
A1) Depends. What passport do you hold?

Q2) I plan on getting a new job once I am settled out there, I have heard stories that it isn't as easy as other places due to bureaucratic reasons, is this correct?
A2)But you say you are working from home. What is is it? and working for someone will depend on what passport you hold Q1. One step at a time!

Q3) I do not speak any Dutch at all, how much will this affect me?
A3)Yes read other posts. Without language skills you will have a lot of difficulty. Contacts in Dutch everyday life; like train announcements will be in Dutch.

Q4) Is there any good reason I should not do this?
A4 Sorry only you know the answer to this.

Q5)I am going completely alone, do not know a single person there, am I going to be able to make friends OK? (considering I do not speak Dutch).
A5) again that is down to you. You ability to pick up the language etc

Q6)- Amsterdam, Rotterdam or The Hague? What is your favourite?
A6) again what for? What do you want out of this part of your life? I would personally and have lived in other parts of The NL
Maybe read this thread, written by poster Scot47

acrylicus

Thanks so much! I am from the UK and hold a British passport, it's a tech support role for a company in Canada, all remote work.

I don't speak the language yet, but am more than willing to learn as I had said before, and I have some pretty marketable skills, I work in IT and have diplomas and certifications to back it up, as-well as 4 years experience by the time I move.

Thanks for the help, I think I am going to start learning Dutch ASAP and aim for an April move.

@ Scott, not a troll, not sure why you would think I am.

acrylicus

Not sure why you are being so hostile mate, just came here for advice. I hope the rest of this board is a bit friendlier

Casa Santo Estevo

Form what you have said I do not know if you will have a contract or if you will be employed . You should read through the wiki at the top of this section for more links about living in the NL.

Cynic

Some points for consideration:

On arrival, you get a limited amount of time (7>14 days I think) to register at the Town Hall (gemeente); you must do this to get a BSN number, if you don't do this, you won't be able to register at the doctor, tax office; it's very important you do this.

Finding somewhere to live - many housing agencies need copies of your last 4 Dutch payslips before they'll take you on - try AirBNB.

Health Insurance - you must take this out, you can't use your E111 if you are living/working in Holland.

Finding work - you say you have key skills; so have many locals, you'll need to bring something to the table they don't have. Try some of the headhunters on the Internet before you make a decision.

Language - my opinion - Dutch is absolutely essential unless you get a job with a multinational that work in English, but most of your colleagues will be Dutch. Yes, many Dutch people speak English to varying degrees, but life around you is in Dutch.

Best of luck.

scot47

You are going to work for a Canadian firm but live in the Netherlands ? What about liability for tax and social insurance ?

Or are you going to look in the Netherlands for an employer ?

You seem to be undecided.

I am not being "hostile", just encouraging you and others to look at reality. That can be scary.

acrylicus

I will continue working for my Canadian company, they have a UK payroll so I will continue to be paid to a UK account, I will then transfer money from my UK account as and when needed. This is short time, while I get settled.

Once I am settled I plan on getting a job in The Netherlands, and leaving my Canadian company.

It's OK I appreciate the help Scott. I understand the language may be a problem, so I am willing to learn it, and I have quiet some time to do it (6 months before I plan on going out there, and then up to 12 months before I start to really need a job that isn't the Canadian company).

scot47

You have to consider tax liability. If you are physically resident in the Netherlands while working for a Canadian company, you will be liable to Dutch taxes. How will you deal with that ?

acrylicus

I don't know. Is there anyone I can speak to regarding this?

scot47

The Dutch tax authorities. How good is your Dutch ?

acrylicus

I speak English and minor German, so not very good.

scot47

Living and working in the Netherlands means dealing with the authorities in Dutch. There is the first of many obstacles that you will face. What level of competence in a foreign language is required to deal with taxes and social insurance payments ?

Red_Wine_Fairy

With a UK passport, at the present time, you have the freedom to live and work in Europe in accordance with EU law. Your obligation is to register with the local town hall with your passport within 5 days of signing a rental contract. For this reason, you need to avoid cheap sublets - if it says 'no registration' in the ad, then avoid. Registration will generate your BSN (NI) number which you need to buy compulsory health insurance, and open a Dutch bank account.

If you find an employer who wants you, it's easy. You have the legal right as a UK/EU passport citizen to take up work here.

I would say in IT it's not a problem, but you are 21 years old competing for the absolute starter-level of IT jobs with bi- or multilingual Dutch graduates. If you were 10 years older with a specialism, it would affect you less. As it is, you might get lucky or you might not. Your age is in your favour, but do you have a bachelors degree like your competition for roles will have? Lacking the language will without a doubt hinder any training or promotion opportunities however - how long do you want to be stuck in a dead-end role?

Plenty, but you need to question your real motives for choosing the Netherlands. The work and nightlife culture are different. The weather here isn't much different, you will still get winter blues (in fact it's colder and drier). You are the right age for an adventure and have lived abroad before which is a bonus, but you need to be aware that turning up here is the start of your problems, in a country that will happily tolerate tourists but are less tolerant of immigrants.

Questions you need to be asking include: Will my employer be happy to work via a Dutch payroll company (for tax compliance)? Am I happy to increase the amount of tax I will pay in the Netherlands, more than I ever would in the UK? What will my budget get me in terms of accommodation, and will a landlord accept my foreign employment contract without a heavy security deposit, and will he be ok with payment from a foreign bank account while I get my bank account sorted?

There are meet up groups for young expats: this, and clubs based around sports or hobbies, are your best bet for making friends. You are less likely to join a Dutch-friends-since-school friend circle: these are pretty much impenetrable. Dutch work colleagues would think you are strange for considering meeting outside work hours - they made their friends at school and are sticking with them! Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but their initial approaches which are easy to mistake for friendship are usually just curiosity (along the lines: why on earth would you leave a country like England to come live here?)

Wherever you can find work. Most (multinational) IT jobs seem to be along the Amsterdam-Utrecht-Amersfoort corridor, so anywhere near a good rail link in those cities. The Hague is for oil workers and lawyers.

acrylicus

First of all, thank you so much for your response! I will take all of this into consideration, I was not aware of about 90% of the things you talked about before


I should be able to find a somewhat specialized position, I am specialized in Networking (I have my CCENT exam tomorrow, CCNA a month after). By the time I am looking for a position I should have most of my CCNP, and 4+ years of working in the Networking industry.

If I could get a slightly-above-entry-level Networking position in Holland I would be chuffed, do you think the odds are stacked against me there?

And no, I do not have a bachelors, I have an A-Level in Computing and a BTEC in IT only, I am hoping my Cisco and Microsoft certifications will carry me through.