Which country should we move to?

Question

My girlfriend and I are desperate to change our lives and move out of England. (I am English, she is from Finland). We want to go in about 12 months from now.

We considered Canada but processing times are 3 years. New Zealand/Oz is too far from our families.

We have been looking at Holland as we love the country. Taxes are high though and rents seem ridiculous. The weather won't be much of an improvement from rainy Manchester. My girlfriend could get a decent job there though with her language skills but Im a bit nervous about getting a job. I don't mind working in a call centre or something. Could handle the weather as the place is damn cool.

We've been looking into Malta as the weather is good, its a cheap country, taxes are low, and the job opportunities seem pretty good. We wouldn't like the "Brits Abroad", beer swilling, tourists though.

We are really confused at the mo. Any advice would be welcome. Any other suggestions of where we could move?

Additional Details

We would never move to the U.S. Despite the fact its nearly impossible to get in, we would never consider it. Id rather stay in Manchester. Or move to Siberia.

Sorry.

But the issues of moving to Netherlands would be the same as moving to Austria or Switzerland wouldn't they? Expensive, high taxes, not a massive need for English only speaking workers, variable weather...

Thanks. I have worked in telecoms for around 5 years but am also currently studying a part time BA in Intertive Media annnnnnnd Photography which will finish next June.

I don't mind doing some customer service/call centre work at all if I can have time to work on personal, creative projects. I am realistic that it may take a few years to establish myslef as a photographer in a different country.

So you think I would in all likelyhood, be able to get a call centre type job to pay the bills within, say 4 months of moving? We plan on having money to last us 6 months without work. (Although my gf should get something pretty quickly)

Thanks for your responses.

(We are thinking of Utrecht as a base btw)

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker

Yes the issues of high tax/rent would be the same for Switzerland as they would in Austria

However it is all relative to be honest. I've lived in the UK, Norway (which is has a very high cost of living) and the Netherlands. The cost of living is relative to the salaries so if you are living and working in a country then your disposable income is pretty much similar at the end of the day

Starting with Malta, I know little about it, but I did have some friends who moved there (the weather being a big plus) and then moved back about 1.5 years later because they could not find jobs throughout the year, and also found it little "island" mentality (their words not mine!),

So moving to the Netherlands. Well there are jobs as long as you are not expecting to earn large salaries. There are English speaking jobs in areas such as call centres, order processing etc. However the biggest issue is location. The majority of international companies are located in & around Amsterdam, Amstelveen, Hoofddorp, & Schiphol. Then there are also ones around Den Haag & Rotterdam, plus of course international organisations (such as the UN) based in Den Haag.

So there are cheaper places to live e.g. the North and East, but you would struggle to find jobs there. So this is why rentals are high in the Amsterdam<>Den Haag<>Rotterdam<>Utrecht area.

You could try to live somewhere outside of the cities and then it becomes cheaper, but then you would have to travel, and traffic is also a problem as well due to the population density and people all moving in the same hours. Public transport is good enough and not as expensive as the UK.

If I were you, then I would start calling some job agencies in the Netherlands, explain you and your gf's situation, experience, education etc and get their advice on how viable it would be to find jobs Here are some links http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;…

Alternately you could also look at moving within the UK of course - less hassle, no language problems, less moving costs and non of the "foreigner" problems. There is something to be said for it of course :0)

Good luck with your decision

Asker's Rating:

Asker's Comment:

Thanks. I think we will probably stick with The Netherlands. Ive lived in Finland with its population of 5 million and managed to find work within a few months so Im sure Id be ok in Utrecht/Holland. We are not bothered about making tons of money. We just want to start again somewhere else.

Answer 2

Move into the united states! There are varieties of different cultures and environments!

Source(s):

me

Answer 3

Holland is great! You may consider Germany, Austria or Switzerland.

Answer 4

Greece is a developed country, a member of the European Union since 1981. Athens is the capital; Thessaloniki, Patras, Heraklion, Larissa, Volos, Ioannina, Kavala, Rhodes and Serres are some of the country's other major cities.Greece has an abundance of resources that tourists with ecological and cultural interests will find attractive. The wealth of cultural as well as ecological resources, both biotic and abiotic, constitute a special comparative advantage of the country for those interested in the conservation of cultural diversity, bio-diversity and eco-systems. These resources are marked by their wide variety, rareness and distinctiveness and are found in areas many of which have already been placed under special protection.

Source(s):

http://www.visitgreece.gr/pages.php?pageID=3&langID=2
http://www.booking.com/destination/country/gr.html?aid=313633;label=gog235jc;sid=cf19872ab47e47683ad9f7c97b48b882

Answer 5

OK, move to Holland - Why would they give somebody who can't speak Dutch a job? Possibly because they are highly skilled IT professional, or a qualified English teacher ... but honestly opportunities are going to be slim.

Why not save enough to live on for 12 months and simply move, why not try Malta - Life's a journey not a destination.

Source(s):

English and abroad.

Answer 6

there's lots of english people moving to spain. you might want to consider going there.

Answer 7

Having lived in the Netherlands, it really depends on where you want to live there. The Randstad area (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht) is expensive, but there are other places which are cheaper.

The thing is, with the technology that's available today, it doesn't really matter where you live if you have good language skills.

I'd go with Malta, myself. And let us know who you get on.