I have job offers for both Netherlands and UK as an IT Consultant. I do have plans to migrate to Australia and working on the application (Finalizing the requirements before submission) when these Europe offers came in. I am considering taking it as the waiting period is min. of 15months for the Australia migration. My wife works in ICT industry as a System and network administrator, on his way getting certification for his skills. I would like to ask help on the pros and cons of moving to UK or Netherlands. If I were to move only, I would think that Netherlands would be the best due to the lower cost of living and tax (my employer says that they have the 30% tax benefit, and the remaining 70% would be taxed up to 30% only), compared to UK's 40% and high cost of living. I am primarily worried that as I plan to have my wife come with me, if she could easily get a job in Netherlands. UK may seem to be a better option for us given this scenario. To give you reference, the base salary offered to me for Netherlands is 45K Euro/annum and 48K GBP/annum for UK. Need to make the decision soon. Hope to hear favorable response from you guys. Thanks.
I wonder if this is the right forum .... I know there's a travel forum. I realize this isn't travel, but a lot of well-traveled people hang out there and you might get better answers. Just want to make sure you get some help and I think you'd have better luck in a different forum.
Are you an American? The UK has high tax and a high cost of living, but I can't get over the fact you'd be making significantly more money in the UK - over US$40,000 more. You'd have about US$28,600 of post-taxed income in the Netherlands, but you'd have $56,160 in the UK. Plus while most Dutch speak good English, there will still be a language barrier which could negatively impact your wife's ability to get work. And the visa requirements for the Netherlands are a total dog. That's very basic silly math and I'm British, so I'm biased, but it seems to me like you should take the job that offers a significantly higher salary. I can't imagine the cost of living is so disparate as to eat up all of that income.
My husband had a job possibility in the Netherlands, too. After weighing out comparable salaries and cost of living and tax laws... we stayed put in the US. But it was a heck of a decision for us to make. Good luck with it.
I'm Dutch and have also lived in the UK. I might be a bit biased but I would say that overall the quality of life in Holland is higher, actually come to think of it that isn't biased, it's underscored by comparative global welfare studies. Public services such as transport and the health sector are of a higher quality in Holland, for example. That said, for an American Holland would probably be a bigger culture shock than the UK. Whereabouts in Holland are you considering? As there is a massive difference between say Amsterdam and a village somewhere in the provinces.
For English-speaking people looking for a job in the Netherlands (aka your wife ;-) ) I recommend taking a look at www.undutchables.nl But I agree with Psychedelic celtic. Even though taxation and living costs are higher in the UK, they are not that much higher that the additional money you would earn couldn't compensate that. If you are really interested in the city orf Holland you would end up, I'd go to the Netherlands, but if you don't mind the UK go there, the overall package is better.
RINGO: Sorry about that.. Pretty new here. PsychedelicCeltic: Not American. We're currently based in Singapore as of now. That's why if comparing it to our current place, it's an up professionally and financially. I'm really leaning on the UK side because of its English environment all together. But I'm not sure if that kind of money would be enough to support the two of us. The office is in Berkshire, but I may need to get around as I don't have to go to the office every day. The UK package only covers 2 weeks paid leave (although I've read that its supposed to be 4weeks - still working out) that. Any idea on a good place to live in UK that's out of the hussle of the city life but near? I prefer a quiet area but accessible... and of course, not much expensive considering the small money to work on. johan neeskens: As far as the research I made, netherlands is indeed seemed the more attractive package. Even if I get higher pay, say around 70K Euro, the mere issue for me is the time to get settled in. I have heard that lots of Expats settled nicely in Netherlands, with tax benefits, with definite "better" access to nearby european countries.
£50,000 odd "small money"? Stop taking the mick, its very good money. Berkshire is expensive, but even so, I know people who do fine there on £35,000 odd, so its still good money and I doubt you'd have any problems unless you insist on living in a mansion.
My husband is a British expat and even though we live in a relatively small city, there's quite a big expat community here. They complain about the locals just like all expats wherever they are do, but overall they're quite happy to be here. Money-wise, I know from personal experience that grocery shopping is much, much cheaper in Holland than it is in the UK.
My wife is British, and I was once upon a time Dutch. Both places are a great deal of fun, with cool people. We lived in Swindon and London (Chelsea!) The UK was quite expensive, considering the wages. In London we were spending in pounds for that same items that we were spending in dollars in California. Swindon was slightly cheaper. Other parts of the UK are a bit cheaper, but be prepared to see how quickly your money goes away. The weather can be a drag, if you aren't used to it. But the soccer is better. In the NL, I'm most familiar wtih Eindhoven and Arnhem. I consider those areas a bit provincial. But your money will go a long ways in those towns. And the weather is pretty nice, especially in Costa del Brabant.
oh, you don't have to apologize for anything ... I was just trying to point you in a helpful direction.