shirree93

Hi!

Just wondering if there is anywhere outside the UK that would be recommended for a working family to relocate to?

mikelincs

I wouldn't pick any EU country, apart from, possibly Germany, unless you have a shed load of money and jobs to go to and are fluent in the language. The situation is dire over there, and there is no benefit system to fall back on. The USA is almost certainly a no go area as visas are like hens teeth unless you have the shed load of money to buy your way there, and a load more to live. Australia, New Zealand and Canada are a bit easier but you do need to have skills. The advantage to them is that you do not have another language to learn.

shirree93

Thank you for your reply. There is definitely a lot to take into consideration. just completley sick of the UK. I wouldnt go anywhere unless i had secured a job first though.

dmu

Hi again, all three adults would have to secure a job each. As mentioned in your other thread, no one else would be covered healthwise by your friend's possible job, I don't think your mother and brothers would be covered by any job that you might find, which means that your mother would need to work for her and your brothers' healthcare coverage. A daunting prospect...
Then there's the language problem unless you look at Eire, or the Netherlands or one of the Scandinavian countries where most people speak English as a second language, but there's still the problem of Recession and priority for any jobs going would be given to bilingual nationals.
Sorry to be so pessimistic, but I'm being realistic. You should research, research, research on the realities of so many of you moving to a new country to escape the UK....

shirree93

Three of us adults are all willing to work full time so that wouldnt be a problem. Thank you for you comments

mikelincs

Yes, with three adults then all three would need visas for places like Oz, NZ or Canada, and all would need contracted jobs to get healthcare in EU countries or have to pay for private treatment.

dmu

Ready, willing and able, but it has been repeated in these threads that the problem would be FINDING three jobs with salaries high enough for 5 people to live "comfortably". A minimum-wage lowly job each (say about 1000€ per month in France), wouldn't be enough to house (+ Utilities) and feed 5, esp with 2 growing adolescent boys to clothe and pay for school requisites (and certainly not school fees) and social life....
As suggested, you would have to bring over enough savings to last for over a year, and have a Plan B back in the UK if everything goes pear-shaped.
Good luck with your decision, but you should do your homework on the dire employment situation at present in Continental Europe.
P.S. Have just remembered that you've got three dogs. You must make sure they have all their vaccination certificates up to date in their Pet Passports, wherever you decide to go.

mikelincs

Are any of you fluent in any of the European languages in the countries you are interested in. In the majority of cases jobs are going to those people willing to work for very little, or at least being fluent in the local language.

Gordon Barlow

This thread is inactive, and I wonder how the OP got on. Just to expand on dmu's post: most people in Scandinavia do indeed speak English as a second language, but 1) they're not always fluent in it, and 2) English-only won't get you many jobs.

I hope the OP's family did the sensible thing and sent one of their number to go from place to place knocking on doors for jobs, and that he reported back to the family. In a recession, there is absolutely NO substitute for knocking on doors.

dmu

Hi, unfortunately it often happens that posters stop posting on the forum when the advice they receive doesn't correspond to what they want to hear. The OP may have followed my advice in the Cyprus forum to go and discover the Recession for herself, on her own, without disturbing her family's routine, but she hasn't given any update. I only suggested Eire, Netherlands and Scandinavian countries as she didn't give the impression of any one in the family speaking any European language, but I did say any jobs going would be given to bilingual nationals

Gordon Barlow

Thanks for the update. Yes, too many people expect to be able to land jobs from a distance, without actually checking out a place first. Thus, of course, all the families who turn back on the way into town from the airport (on arrival), and report "it just didn't feel right".

The daughter of a friend of ours is here in Cayman at the moment, teaching at a private school, after replacing a woman whose first words on arrival three months ago were "Oh dear. It's a long way from home, isn't it?" Our friend's daughter can't believe her luck!