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We are making the move! It has been a long plan in the making, and we are ready to make our move.
We live in the US, my wife is a permanent Green Card holder, a Norwegian citizen, though she has never lived in Norway, nor can speak the language. I am a dual citizen, US and Mexico. Our children also are dual citizens, Norway and US. We are all fluent in English and Spanish, both reading and writing.
We have a fewer hurdles than most in regards to moving to Europe due to the Norwegian citizenship. Basically my wife and kids can live, work, or study in Europe, Scandinavia and Switzerland without residence permits, or visas, though they will still need to register, but so does everyone else. As a spouse, I am also entitled to the same benefits.
I am 11 years older than my wife, and we are fortunate that I can retire early at 55, so I will not be seeking employment once I quit my job of 37 years in the US. My wife still wants to work, and we also need to contribute to the healthcare system. Purchasing health insurance outright is also an option, but if we can get it subsidized by the employer as we do in the US, that is the route we'd like to choose.
We have decided to be somewhere central so we can take trips to other countries, and Germany fits that perfectly. I'm sure some will ask 'why not Spain', well, to be honest, there are not many job opportunities in Spain as there are in the northern countries.
My wife will be quitting her job in a couple weeks and do her job searching in Germany as opposed from the US. She'll be free from the kids (and me) for two months to concentrate on the job search, and house hunting. She's an account with an MBA and is fluent in English and Spanish. She'll return towards the end of July, and then the kids and I will join her and go to Germany. I will return as I need to sell all of our belongs, ship some items, and lease out the house. We are not 100% sure we will stay permanently, so to keep our options open, we'll keep the house.
I am fully aware of our tax obligations to the US and filing returns on time, etc. However, I have read on all the horror stories about US citizens being turned away, nor not being able to bank because the European banks don't want to hassle with the US government. They've closed many accounts from US citizens because of the burden of complying with the US laws. I don't blame them.
So, I am wondering if there is any benefit to using my second nationality when "starting new" in Europe? For example, should I use my Mexican passport for opening up bank accounts, internet service, utilities, renting, etc? Should my wife do it all with her Norwegian credentials? Also, are there any pros, or cons on using US credentials, or NOT using US credentials? Should I keep quiet about my US citizenship, or Mexican citizenship?
I am sure those of you reading this will understand these questions, but friends and relatives think these are weird questions to ask. Thank you for any input you may have.
I would suggest some of the Nordic Countries as a base camp, as your wife is automatically insured and entitled to social security when establishing her permanent residence. Your wife has also a tremendous benefit having a Norwegian passport while seeking for a job. If you move to for example Spain, she will not have that benefit.
OP, pardon me for perhaps bursting your bubble, but if your wife is going to seek employment in Germany, wouldn't she need to be able to speak at least basic German? I'm sure Germany has plenty of accountants. Why would they hire a foreigner who doesn't speak German? Or is she planning on targeting foreign companies who function in English to a great extent? As you've been forming this plan for a while now, it sounds like, why wouldn't she have taken a class in elementary German, at least? Same for you.
There seems to be a hole in your plan, but please feel free to explain.
If local banks deny you a bank account, use you mexican citizenship by all means. I would be more concern about the ability to speak the local language though.
OP, pardon me for perhaps bursting your bubble, but if your wife is going to seek employment in Germany, wouldn't she need to be able to speak at least basic German? I'm sure Germany has plenty of accountants. Why would they hire a foreigner who doesn't speak German? Or is she planning on targeting foreign companies who function in English to a great extent? As you've been forming this plan for a while now, it sounds like, why wouldn't she have taken a class in elementary German, at least? Same for you.
There seems to be a hole in your plan, but please feel free to explain.
We've been taking German lessons for 9 months now, and start again in two weeks to complete a year.
We've been taking German lessons for 9 months now, and start again in two weeks to complete a year.
Ah, that's the missing piece in your OP. Thank you! We tend to get a lot of people, many quite young, who don't realize that they can't breeze into a job in continental Europe on English language only. (To say nothing of the visa issues involved.) Some Americans take a lot for granted.
P.S. After German, you'd find Norwegian to be a lot of fun. Just saying.
Why not wait until she is eligible for US citizenship?
Hi there Threestep, I am not sure what you mean here. My wife does not want US citizenship. In Norway, you cannot have dual citizenship (normally), so she already has a permanent green card for the US, so giving her Norwegian citizenship up for US citizenship did not interest her, there really is no incentive this day and age. She will eventually lose her green card, but that is something we thought about and are okay with it.
We've been taking German lessons for 9 months now, and start again in two weeks to complete a year.
Taking German lessons is great, but I doubt if anyone would be fluent enough for a job. But there are American companies who would prefer english speakers. Good luck in your adventure.Germany is in a great spot to explore most of Europe.
Ah, that's the missing piece in your OP. Thank you! We tend to get a lot of people, many quite young, who don't realize that they can't breeze into a job in continental Europe on English language only. (To say nothing of the visa issues involved.) Some Americans take a lot for granted.
P.S. After German, you'd find Norwegian to be a lot of fun. Just saying.
I understand completely. I told my wife that I did not want to be 'that family' who comes in and refuses to assimilate, or learn the language. At the very least of decency and respect, people should learn the basic language, and we have doing that. As people say all the time, the children pick it up easily, and ours have. We were quite surprised at how further along they are than us. Our instructor has told us we are beyond A1, but we have not taken the test yet, but we will have taken the A1 and A2 by August.
Our circumstances are also different; we are not the "young" couple, far from it. Our original plan was to just retire in Spain, but that would require us to live off of savings for five years before I can begin to withdraw from my retirement accounts, and we would have to purchase insurance. We don't want to burn through savings and also have to purchase insurance, so my wife wants to work at least a few years and contribute to the healthcare system at the same time.
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My wife still wants to work, and we also need to contribute to the healthcare system. Purchasing health insurance outright is also an option, but if we can get it subsidized by the employer as we do in the US, that is the route we'd like to choose.
German
We tend to get a lot of people, many quite young, who don't realize that they can't breeze into a job in continental Europe on English language only. (To say nothing of the visa issues involved.) Some Americans take a lot for granted.
