culturegirl

Hi everyone! I'm new to the forum. Just joined a few minutes ago.

My lifelong dream has been to live in Italy and although I left my native Canada 11 years ago, I've been to Mexico and Japan and somehow have never gotten there.

I am really wanting to move to Europe. I had an opportunity to move to Como, Cernobbio and work in Switzerland, with a friend a few years back, but I had just signed a contract for Japan.

But this is ultimately what i would love to do. I'm an ESL Teacher and freelance writer. My husband is a freelance nature photographer.
I was looking at VISA options and both Canadians and Brazilians (my hubby) don't need VISAS to visit, but to work is different.

I have my Italian passport (my parents are Sicilian) but my hubby doesn't, so I'm learning through the different sites, it would be much easier for me to find a job and get visa sponsorship.

Can anyone give any advice on how we can do this, where my hubby can continue working as freelance, but we can stay in Italy or Switzerland?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Grazie

clint

I love Switzerland I consider it my 2nd home as I spent all my summers (3months at the time) from age of 10 to 19 in Luzern (German part)at my aunt's house but I guess is one of those places that is not for everyone. Canton Ticino(Italian part) is not as pretty as other parts of Switzerland unless you are anywhere between Lugano and the Italian border. The Bellizona area (north of Lugano going towards the German part) is IMHO many factories etc. Getting a job in Switzerland is not that easy even there the world wide economic crisis is really hitting people hard and my aunt and cousin (born there) say is not the efficient country it used to be and still expensive To work and live there you really need to be offered a job in first place, lots of Italians (frontaglieri) from the Como and Varese area are keen to get jobs in Ticino, with the exchange rate they can earn good money (although since adopting the Euro it is not as good as it once was )but competition for jobs is high.

I don't know much about Como but, in the Varese province generally an expensive area, anywhere near the Swiss border (Ponte Tresa, Luino etc) rents/house prices are more expensive because of the commuting factor and because it is a popular area for Germans to have holiday homes in

culturegirl

Money is a bit of a factor for me. I don't want to get rich. I want to simplify and enjoy life, but I still have bills to pay like everyone else.

37100

Welcome culture girl. You have an Italian passport so you're Italian and you have the right to live here job or no job and hubby can come too. Hope you manage to work things out either here or in Switzerland.

clint

I hope it is ok to post this link to a site that tells you more about working living in Switzerland http://www.bfm.admin.ch/bfm/it/home/...gehoerige.html

culturegirl

Clint, thanks for the site.

I will check it out.

I am hoping it will be easy...:fingerscro ssed:

clint

Good luck