has anybody moved from the US to NL?

[sth]

i am moving to europe next month, more specifically the netherlands   

i'm just wondering about some things, such as paypal (can i use my same account?), costs of various services like mobile and internet, what i should expect for food/goods costs, etc. i know those are vague topics but if you have moved from the US to NL or another EU country maybe you can shed some light on differences I should expect? thanks

[metalliqaz]

Didn't look it up before you decided to move?

[sth]

Didn't look it up before you decided to move?

no i pretty much just threw a dart at a map and then picked a random country because it landed in the indian ocean and i don't want to there

[tipo33]

Internet and phone is CHEAP compared to the U.S.  If you have a GSM phone, get it SIM unlocked before you go.   You will probably want to set up another paypal off of a European e-mail address, so you don't pay the conversion fee from USD to Euro all the time, but it will work.  The Dutch speak English very well.  I moved from Russia to the U.S. and then from the U.S. to Italy.  Pm me if you have any questions.

[sth]

thanks tipo33 i have a cdma iphone 4s but they have international SIM slots so i will probably be able to use it when i move. thanks for the tip on paypal. i guess i'll set up a new one once i get a bank account set up. i just wish i could have one account for everything so i can pay for US netflix and access via VPN. maybe I should just transfer a years worth of netflix subscription at a time to my US paypal

[dragonxx21]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

[sth]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

probably

[demik]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

it's easier if you're white

jk!

why you moving sth? work? or just tired of living here?

[dragonxx21]

I'm sure there's a lot of paperwork you have to go through in order to get a green card or some sort of visa.

[sth]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

it's easier if you're white

jk!

why you moving sth? work? or just tired of living here?

all of the above... i was offered a relocation and i've never been to europe so now i'll be there a couple of years.

[dragonxx21]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

it's easier if you're white

jk!

why you moving sth? work? or just tired of living here?

all of the above... i was offered a relocation and i've never been to europe so now i'll be there a couple of years.

what sort of job do you do that gives you the option of relocation to europe?

[sth]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

it's easier if you're white

jk!

why you moving sth? work? or just tired of living here?

all of the above... i was offered a relocation and i've never been to europe so now i'll be there a couple of years.

what sort of job do you do that gives you the option of relocation to europe?

a little of this, a little of that... mostly turtle repair, pizza combing and a little bit of loafing when i need the cash

[demik]

ah, well good luck.

[Oobly]

For reference, I moved from South Africa to Finland in 2006.

Phone and internet are cheap in Europe (and good quality of service), food is pricey. AFAIK rent and housing prices are higher than in US, depending on the country and city. Overall, living costs are higher.

Salaries are comparable at mid level, minimum wage is higher.

Medical care is very good, but varies with country. Most offer state sponsored health care.

If you are in the country for work purposes (such as a transfer or a job offer from a company inside the country) it's easy enough to get a residence permit / work permit. If you contine to work, you can continue to get permits until you are eligible to apply for citizenship.

Go for it, I have found it gave me a much more rounded perspective on life in general. Great experience.

[SpAmRaY]

How easy is it to just move to another country..? I'm sure there would be a lot of paperwork involved, is there not?

it's easier if you're white

jk!

why you moving sth? work? or just tired of living here?

all of the above... i was offered a relocation and i've never been to europe so now i'll be there a couple of years.

what sort of job do you do that gives you the option of relocation to europe?

Obviously he's going to be an international man of mystery!

[iri]

For reference, I moved from South Africa to Finland in 2006.

now that's a move! across half the planet, to a frozen dark land in the north! do you want to get back?

[Oobly]

For reference, I moved from South Africa to Finland in 2006.

now that's a move! across half the planet, to a frozen dark land in the north! do you want to get back?

Hehe, well I did it for love. Original plan was to work in England for a while before returning. And no, I don't want to go back. To keep to SpamRay's theme: "I love snoow!". And SA is a bit of a mess right now, not the kind of place I want to raise a child, despite the awesome nature and weather.

Finland has free education including university (and the among the best student performance in science and mathematics worldwide , Netherlands is also good in this), state sponsored health care and unemployment insurance, state pension, excellent roads, efficient services, etc. Taxes and living costs are very high, though, and salaries aren't as high as in many other European countries.

As a funny aside, related to the thread topic, I can speak Afrikaans (a distant cousin to Dutch) and find I can understand Dutch pretty well, but Dutch people can't understand me very well when I speak Afrikaans. Possibly a pronunciation thing.