Tips for moving to Denmark...

I’ve had a few emails from people asking me how they can come and live in Denmark. Just for the record, I’m not an expert. I simply loathe filling in forms and anything requiring such effort on my part completely puts me off.

What I do suggest is you have a good read of the following site:

Work In Denmark

It’s very informative and makes Denmark seem to be about the jolliest places on Earth to live – and, from experience so far, it is. I will point out, however, that next to India, it is undoubtedly one of the most bureaucratic. You are warned!

Once you’re in the WorkInDenmark site, check out the Job List / Positive List section. You never know your luck – you might be one of the preferred professions for which they have a special visa. What’s more, if you are offered a job – any job – with an annual salary of over DKR 450,000, you are immediately eligible for a Job Card. Bear in mind that while DKR 450,000 sounds like you could soon be chinking chardonnay glasses with Helena Christensen, Viggo Mortensen and Prince Frederik in a month, be very aware at least half of that will go in tax. And, once you’ve shopped till you dropped every payday for a year, you can probably take another 25 percent off as well. But, at least you get quite a lot for the privilege of doing so. The Danish Tax Man – or Skat Man as they curiously call him here – hits hard but the landing is somewhat softened.

If your chosen choice of profession doesn’t appear on the Job list, then I suggest you do some job searching on the following sites:

Stepstone

and

Monster

Jobs that are detailed in English usually mean the working language is in English.

The Danish workplace, to me, appears to be very unique.

It’s unlikely in most professions you’ll have to wear a suit (or female equivalent) to work. It’s quite relaxed which, to me, suggests that if people are relaxed in the workplace they’ll be more productive.

Danes take their work very seriously and are very conscious of being efficient. Lunch break tends to be a fairly rushed affair, so if you’re used to long, leisurely lunches, get un-used to them but also be prepared that if you’re child gets sick or you ex-mother-in-law faints at Illum’s Bolighus, you can dash off to go with her in the ambulance to the hospital.

Productivity appears to be the key word. As friends pointed out to me last night, if an employee’s child hurts themselves at school and he or she feels they must go and check, it’s not much use them staying at work because they won’t be productive anyway. That makes sense. But all too often, even in Australia, the undertone granting time off can often be negative, if not “Don’t bother coming in tomorrow”.

Danes work industriously at work but it was very pleasing to me yesterday, while in a meeting, to see father’s rush off to pick up their kids. You’d rarely see that in Australia. There also doesn’t seem to be the expectation that you must work until late evening for appearances, if nothing else. That said, if you do need to stay back to finish something, the job must be done. However, on the whole, they seem to somehow, against all odds, marry the need for productivity with life outside one’s job.

I can’t vouch for other Danish workplaces but mine appears to be very attuned to getting the most out its employees. We’re treated very well, with heavily subsidised lunches and other – quite amazing – perks. I assume this is to imbue a sense of ‘We’ll look after you, so do the right thing by us’, mentality, which seems to work and is very good to see. You certainly don’t come across it often enough in Australia or the US.

Accommodation is very tricky. It came as a great surprise to me to discover that most Danes own their own home. I’d always thought that Australia and the US were the home ownership capitals of the world. Apparently, even people in their’ 20s here take out some kind of mortgage, which means there’s tough competition to find somewhere to rent.

If you’re planning on coming to Denmark to live, check out Copenhagen Post and go to the classifieds, then real estate section. Here you’ll find some companies whose raison d’etre is to list rental properties for expats. However, some of these only rent to companies. My advice, if you’re moving to Copenhagen, as opposed to a smaller town, is to engage a relocation agent. I can’t recommend Hands On Relocation enough. Some companies charge a lot more because they service companies looking for places for their employees, so make sure you check the rates before you sign a contract. More often than not, a lease contract will be written in Danish, so a relocation agent will help.

There are lots of quirky rental arrangements in Denmark that are far beyond my limited ability to digest. For instance, in the place I’ve just rented, I have to arrange for ceiling lights to be installed… So, check exactly what you need before you sign the contract.