We are generally not fans of Summer... while not fans of majorly cold Winters either. Denmark's wiki page says 0.0 °C in winter to 15.7 °C in the summer. That sounds just about ideal for us
I'll do some Germany research.
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Relocating to Denmark?
- Thread starter James Hart
- Start date
We are generally not fans of Summer... while not fans of majorly cold Winters either. Denmark's wiki page says 0.0 °C in winter to 15.7 °C in the summer. That sounds just about ideal for us
I'll do some Germany research.
One of my cousins emigrated to Denmark many years and he has stayed - he has returned for visits though. He loves it as a country and the only thing he mentioned was the high level of tax on luxury goods - so like he was talking about a box of chocolates being very expensive! He also mentioned how beer is hideously expensive!
He went to become and farmer, but ended up in IT!
very cool. The wife and I generally have modest tastes/needs so it might not be bad for us... although the chocolate thing might be a deal breaker
currently we have a boatload of tamil "refugees" being processed in british columbia,that reputedly paid $45,000. each for passage here......
our government admitted publicly that they have been duped similarly in the past,and that these so called refugees travel voluntarily back to the homelands they fled within a year of attaining canook status,to attend weddings,and other family functions.....and to sponsor relatives into canada....
as well the "refugees" came from a third host country,and not the homeland they already fled,having escaped to the third safely ,where they somehow managed to find 45 grand to pay passage here.....
our loosey-goosey policy,and comprehensive social safety net has made canook a destination for many "refugees".....but for some reason we make it very difficult for our american neighbors to even visit here.....go figure...
We are generally not fans of Summer... while not fans of majorly cold Winters either. Denmark's wiki page says 0.0 °C in winter to 15.7 °C in the summer. That sounds just about ideal for us
I'll do some Germany research.
The climate is generally nice - not too hot, not too cold. Tends to rain quite a lot though.
However, you'll be thrown by the change in seasons. In the middle of summer, you have daylight until midnight, and in the winters, the sun doesn't come up until 11am.
You do hear of a lot of people in northern Europe with seasonal affective disorder...
The climate is generally nice - not too hot, not too cold. Tends to rain quite a lot though.
However, you'll be thrown by the change in seasons. In the middle of summer, you have daylight until midnight, and in the winters, the sun doesn't come up until 11am.
I don't mind the rain... but the seasonal thing sounds awesome
I've always wanted to live in Alaska because of that... if it wasn't for the extreme cold.
I'm not from Denmark but I've been there often. It truly is a great country. Well, actually, it's nice country made great by great people. IMO Danes are the most relaxed and easy going people in Scandinavia and it seems to come very naturally for them.
The country is ran pretty much like most Scandinavia; high taxes but it includes health care which works pretty well and decent welfare. And no need to worry, if there is an emergency, it will be treated as such.
And the location is great. If you feel like going to the alps, just hop in the car, and blast through german autobahns and you'll be there quickly. Rest for a night and you'll be in Rome the next day without having to kill yourself driving. Head north from Denmark and you can reach the arctic circle in a day. Also places like Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam and Stockholm are easily reached with a day of driving.
And yes, I've personally played with the idea of relocating myself to Denmark too.
Edit. I completely forgot about the language. It actually shouldn't be too hard. Danish is probably the most difficult to learn of all scandinavian languages because the way it's pronounced (it generally sounds like a person speaking swedish with a hot potato in his mouth) but all scandinavian languages are actually fairly easy to learn for an english speaking person. Everything resembles english and many words ar actually very similar. If you give it some effort, I believe you can easily be able to read well enough to get by in a year or so. And I'm not completely sure about this, but if Danes follow the scandinavian standard on this, you should be able to take classes for free as you please.
The country is ran pretty much like most Scandinavia; high taxes but it includes health care which works pretty well and decent welfare. And no need to worry, if there is an emergency, it will be treated as such.
And the location is great. If you feel like going to the alps, just hop in the car, and blast through german autobahns and you'll be there quickly. Rest for a night and you'll be in Rome the next day without having to kill yourself driving. Head north from Denmark and you can reach the arctic circle in a day. Also places like Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam and Stockholm are easily reached with a day of driving.
And yes, I've personally played with the idea of relocating myself to Denmark too.
Edit. I completely forgot about the language. It actually shouldn't be too hard. Danish is probably the most difficult to learn of all scandinavian languages because the way it's pronounced (it generally sounds like a person speaking swedish with a hot potato in his mouth) but all scandinavian languages are actually fairly easy to learn for an english speaking person. Everything resembles english and many words ar actually very similar. If you give it some effort, I believe you can easily be able to read well enough to get by in a year or so. And I'm not completely sure about this, but if Danes follow the scandinavian standard on this, you should be able to take classes for free as you please.
My wife and I are considering expatriating. Amongst European countries, Malta and Netherlands have risen to the top so far.
looks like 6 month classes will cost us about the equivalent of about $30 USD each... but there are plenty of free online beginner classes linked right from the official Denmark website.
I've been researching the Health/retirement stuff and I don't think it'll be as good for me as an American as it would be for someone from nations closer who relocate.
Also, I'm 42 so my years living/working won't qualify me for a lot that is offered... but I am just starting to get my head around things.
That's pretty much all of Scandinavia for you, IT and generally well-spoken English. Any country would be a good pick, IMO, as the quality of living is very high. If you have kids who are moving with you, the education is great and practically free, and there's usually free adult education, too, with a choice of programs in English. You pay largeish amount of taxes, but then again things like health insurance are covered by the state or the employer.
I've been around the larger cities in Scandinavia, and my favorites at the moment would be Copenhagen in Denmark, Gothenburg in Sweden and Helsinki in Finland. No experience about Norway, though.
In general about living in Scandinavia: services, shopping, etc. tend to be downtown-centered, so I'd pick a largeish city to live in. Downtown areas are usually safe and well maintained, and people with social difficulties are usually located in certain apartment building suburb areas, well away from the city center. Offices and such buildings are usually scattered around the suburbs in small industrial zones. Large flats in townhouses and apartment buildings are pretty usual mid-class way of living, single-family houses can be quite expensive. There usually is a good mass transit system between the city center and the suburbs, and good network of bicycle/walking, that allows commuting without a car, at least during the summer.
VAT in Denmark is, I believe, 25%, which is as high as it gets in Europe. It doesn't apply to everything though - lots of things are exempt or are subject to a lower rate. VAT isn't the same as sales tax though - sales tax is only charged to the end buyer, whereas VAT can be offset through the supply chain and reclaimed in some circumstances. The Wikipedia article explains it quite well.
EDIT: I think you might have been talking about when I said that, once you count in state, local and property taxes, as well as the cost of health insurance, 401K contributions and contributions to a college fund, you're probably paying out a higher percentage of your gross income than someone in Denmark, as the tax they pay covers healthcare, higher education, generous state pension, etc, and there is no property tax there.
not to mention all the great death metal in that area
okay, there is one strike against moving there
My tastes are on the softer side of things... these are 2 musical reasons that might give me motivation to relocate:
Thanks, lots of good info. I'm all for mass transit, I would be using it here in NJ if it made sense. I have to drive 30 minutes east to get to the train when it takes 45 minutes to just drive to the office directly. Plus, my office is about a 15 minute drive from the station... so I'd have to take a cab or bum a ride from there and end up taking 3 times the time of just driving
My wife isn't a fan of crowds, and we both are very American with our love for single family housing and space. Lots of things to weigh in.
While Copenhagen is what info is easiest to get via English web searching... I think I'm focusing my research on the East Jutland metropolitan area for the moment. It looks like we are going to try to vacation in DK this time next year* (I have an extra 2 week 'long time bonus' vacation as a gift for my 5 years with my employer issued Aug 2011) and I picked up the Danish language pack for Rosetta Stone this morning.
* any recommendations from those in the area as to the best time of the year to visit?
I added up just my state and federal income tax, health care, meds, and retirement costs and it's real close to 40%
I just got back from a family trip there, so I hear you on this! I would move there in a heartbeat if I could find a way. I really feel at home there, being Danish and speaking a bit of the language. Try to find a way to go for a visit and check it out, there's lots to see!
Cool, what area did you stay?
As mentioned in my last couple of posts, I'm hoping to take a nice 2-3 week vacation / job hunting trip with the wife in the next year to year and a half.
I spent about an hour today with my new Danish Rosetta Stone program and I just put my CV up on a couple Denmark job sites
Sorry I missed that. I was around KBH and Roskilde, but made my way to Odense and parts of Jutland as well. I have family all over the country. From what I've heard it's very very hard to emigrate there, even if your only a generation or 2 away like me. I really enjoyed a small Danish class at University with about 6 people, it made it much easier to learn.
Cool! I've not researched it fully, but my *assumption* is that if you can do something skilled that Denmark deems needed due to shortage (current or future), then you have a pass.
Luckily for me the IT field is on the "Positive List" and although I'm not that uniquely qualified, my last 4 years have been in VoIP which seems to be a viable (and specialized) market.
I think Skype was invented by a Dane, wasn't it? All my relatives are in IT, architecture, or other highly skilled fields. It's such a wonderful country. Don't forget, near Tivoli gardens is the Ny (new) Carlsberg Glyptotek, you don't want to miss that. Andersen bakery across the street has nice "wienerbrød" for your morning snack as well. I'm getting homesick! : )
