Looking for ExPat advice on moving to Europe from the US

Have you done a forum search yet?

Also, this is a travel forum not an expat forum. That is what you seek. Also look for vloggers on that topic.

If you work in Healthcare, prefer mild weather, and love the great outdoors, New Zealand may be another option:

"Hospitals and medical practices across New Zealand are looking for doctors, nurses, midwives, surgeons, technicians and nearly 20 other healthcare occupations."

"There are very high demands for workers across the health sector. The government recently introduced a fast-track to residency pathway for some specific occupations."

https://www.live-work.immigration.govt.nz/work-in-new-zealand/job-market-key-industries/healthcare

Didn't you post this earlier? That post is gone.

Dammit, Lane. Now I wish I was a healthcare professional so I could move to New Zealand!

My advice is to join some expat FB groups for the cities and countries you are interested in. You will find plenty of groups that will give you an idea of where you want to go.
Your questions are way too general for anyone to be very helpful.

Did you draw any conclusions from the same thread you started earlier or did people who responded basically waste their time?

My suggestion on which country to move to would be Germany.

You would be surprised as to how many non-German, ie international health care professionals work in Germany. I've seen this German TV when the news deals with health care, hospitals, labs, etc. Your children will most definitely benefit from the educational system without going into financial debt after completing higher education at the famous German universities, Heidelberg, Marburg, Goettingen , Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Bonn, Hamburg, etc.

Well this is a travel forum, but here is a few general observations:

• First of all you'll need to be able to speak the local language at C1 level to have a good chance be employed in healthcare. To obtain a level of C1 and take necessary exams takes about three years full time
• US qualifications are not recognised and local qualifications are needed in order for treatments to be recognised and paid for by the healthcare systems.
• You need to be sponsored by a work/resident's permit and the potential employer has to ensure you don't become a burden on the state and with four of you (2 kids) that is a big ask.
• Employers in mainland Europe (EEA) need to demonstrate that they are unable to find an employee in the EEA to take up the position and that you have the appropriate qualifications in order to obtain a permit.

The reality is you don't speak the language, you don't have the qualifications and you have the potential to become a burden on the state and that is not much to offer an employer.

The UK is in pretty dire straights and their healtcare system is short staffed, so may be concentrate your efforts there.

G3rryCee, maybe there's an opportunity for you too!

Explore Visa Options
https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/explore-visa-options

Green List roles
https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/preparing-a-visa-application/working-in-nz/qualifications-for-work/green-list-occupations

Obviously, we are wanting to travel to the suggested areas, first. We have been to Poland and the Czech Republic and we know how different each country can be, and we thought there would be helpful suggestions to narrow down the countries to visit. We enjoy and support Rick Steves travel and knew that this would be a group that has experienced many areas of Europe during every part of the year. Expat forums are mainly retirees who chose one location after visiting there several times and not many other countries. I was trying to think outside the box by posting here. Thank you.

It's not a bad idea to ask here, although people might be a bit reluctant to answer after your last thread was deleted.

Before you start considering what countries you might be interested in, decide what languages you are willing to learn. And use that to narrow down the list.

The US state department has four categories for languages depending on how easy they are to learn for (american) english speakers.

Category I: Languages closely related to English:
Danish, Dutch, French, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish

Category II: Languages that take a little longer to master than Category I languages:
German

Category III: Languages with significant linguistic and/or cultural differences from English:
Albanian, Armenian, Bulgarian, Czech, Estonian, Finnish, Georgian, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Polish, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovak, Slovenian, Turkish, Ukrainian,

(There are no European languages in Category IV.) https://2009-2017.state.gov/m/fsi/sls/orgoverview/languages

Quite right that the acquired language level should be at least C-1 level to have a viable chance for employment, obviously C-2 is even better.

I would suggest not to focus merely on speaking...that's not good enough but give equal effort to writing and reading. If you choose Germany , Austria or France, you have to able to write good grammatically correct German and French. That stands to reason. I agree 3-4 years is minimum . If you're over there, then your language learning efforts have the added advantage of immersion..

That you're "eager to learn the native language" is commendable.....my compliments on this attitude. Language acquisition takes patience and discipline too. You cannot overlearn.

B2 is required for French citizenship or soon will be. It used to be B1.

I place myself at C1. My pronunciation and writing aren’t C2, the highest level. You can barely hear any variation between a native speaker and a C2. As a C1, I understand everything said to me in all situations, even local accents. I not only belong to a French bookclub, but also participate in many activities where I’m the only non-native speaker. Of all the English speakers I have met and the many pouring into my area right now, I know only a handful who can function well in French and move between the French and English -speaking communities. Most studied at the university or have been here many years.

I wonder if Jo has found the same in Germany?

I love Germany and spent 8 years there, but even though it seemed almost everyone spoke English I can't imagine not speaking German in a health care facility. I can speak German just well enough to get around and be polite, but nowhere close to being able to speak fluently regarding the myriad situations involved in health care.

My suggestion is an English speaking country, either the UK or The Land Down Under. If we had to move, and we're not, it would likely be England or Ireland.

Didn't you post this earlier? That post is gone.

Yes but I suspect due to the likely politically motivated use of the phrase "fleeing the US" people interpreted the OP as being refugees and their advice reflected that interpretation.

Now that the revised thread is not so hyperbolic the OP is starting to receive more appropriate advice.

Elizabeth, I can function well in both languages. Though my grammar isn't correct in German, I can make jokes, puns, and understand pretty much anything that is said, including the Frankfurt dialect, humorous situations, health issues, etc. My pronunciation seems to be suffering a bit though lately. Not sure why, but maybe I just don't speak it enough any more. Have never had a test, but guessing at least C-1, though the grammar is a stickler for me. Lack of language school when I first got here meant I would never learn the articles properly, because no one told me I should learn them. When I had enough money to take classes, it was too late, I had been speaking for years already, without thinking about it.

Some people have an ear for language and some countries are more forgiving if you make mistakes. Germany and France aren't forgiving like that.

"Roughly 20.2 million people in Germany in 2022 either moved to the country themselves or were born to two people who moved there."

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-immigrants-made-up-over-18-of-2022-population/a-65383249

The surge of recent refugees and immigrants attracted very few people with fluency in Germany. Many more knew a little English, however.

There is now such a dearth of capable skilled workers in Germany that the government wishes to remedy through adjustments to immigration policy. Source:

https://www.dw.com/en/germany-to-change-immigration-laws-in-attempt-to-attract-skilled-labor/a-65169420

Historically, German immigration policy demanded German language skills. But as one professor explains, in practice, that does not happen, as employers need workers so badly.

"...it's often the case that you don't need any German at all..."

English is widely spoken in Germany. Germans cannot get through college without good English skills. English has been a job requirement for many jobs for a very long time and is commonly, though not universally, used as a lingua franca in the business world:

"English appears to be becoming a more important language in the German job market — especially in big cities like Berlin. The German Startup Association found this year that the proportion of startups in the capital where the working language is English had risen from 42.3% to 55.8%."

My take is that you have huge employment potential, and while learning German is important for full participation in society, there are tons of people working with near-zero German skills already, and that fluent, educated English-speakers have a huge competitive advantage in the employee market place over folks that must be trained/educated AND taught the language skills they need in the workplace. Germans today are getting used to the idea that they now live in a multilingual society and that they will need to use their English more and more to communicate with the masses. Germany would be making a huge error in turning away skilled health professionals with your background. They are probably looking to recruit people justlike you with their policy adjustments. But who knows? Countries do make lots of mistakes.

Hi,

This pertains to language as regards to the wait staff in some restaurants in Berlin, not pertinent to your profession in the health field. I myself have come across and also have been told quite clearly by Germans that restaurants employ (in Berlin) persons able to speak English as part of the wait staff while their German is modest to almost none at all. Of course, these Germans are senior citizens (as I am) unable to speak English. Speak to Germans in big cities Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, etc. working in big firms with a good number of non-speakers of German. Well, you can guess what the lingua franca in the office is....English.

Germans tend not to work in restaurants very often, they are always staffed by other nationalities though they may be "German" now. At the steakhouse I managed with 68 employees, 2 were German. Everyone else was from across the globe.
Surprisingly in Frankfurt, you do find a lot of senior citizens that speak English quite well because they worked for the military that was all over the city. At one time, almost 10% of the population of Frankfurt was American and it left its' mark. I imagine Heidelberg was the same.
Frankfurt is very diverse, with about 53% of the population having some kind of immigration background. About 30% of the city are pure foreign nationals, like me, husband and son.
So, yes, you can get by with living here as a non-German speaker as long as you have someone who can take care of the small stuff, like getting your bank account set up, electricity turned on, etc.

So, yes, you can get by with living here as a non-German speaker as
long as you have someone who can take care of the small stuff, like
getting your bank account set up, electricity turned on, etc.

There are managment companies that will do all of this for you. Even pay the bill. Then as you get acclimated, you take it over to do yourself, a little at a time

Hello All, we are interested in moving to Europe with our two little
ones. We work in Healthcare and we current only speak English, but we
would be eager to learn the native language of the new country. We
don’t love the extreme heat or cold and would love to be near rivers,
lakes and/or mountains. The education system is one of our top
priorities, as well. Thank you for any advice or knowledge you can
pass along.

When one moves within a their own city or state they choose a place that interests them, that they think beautiful or one that they know meets their needs .... actually a little of all of that. Then to say, where in Europe can I, is somewhat the opposite of that attitude. Europe is stunningly diverse and some you may love and a lot you may hate. Best to know before you dive in,

You know different things work out differently for different people, so who knows how it will work out for you. I can say, having done it, that your approach is fine for a one or two year experiment or learning experience but if it worked for any extended period of time it would be blind luck.

My take is that you have huge employment potential, and while learning German is important for full participation in society, there are tons of people working with near-zero German skills already, and that fluent, educated English-speakers have a huge competitive advantage in the employee market place over folks that must be trained/educated AND taught the language skills they need in the workplace.

You are talking nonsense. You have an extremely limited job market if you don't speak German competently. You are competing against people from all over the EEA, who speak English plus a couple of other European languages, have locally recognised qualifications and have priority when it comes to residency and work permits. Germany employers need to show that there is nobody available throughout the EEA to take up a position before they get a permit and the OP has neither the qualifications or the language the chances of an employer even considering applying for a permit are zero.

Simply think what jobs you can do in healthcare in the US with zero English. It's basically the same in other countries.

Very good level of local language is required. Healthcare is not a place for things to get lost in translation, an employee with no or poor language skills would require full time supervision - I wouldn't count on employers willing to allocate resources to that. Also, I wouldn't count on English skills being in top demand in continental Europe. With so much migration within the EEA and from outside, there are other languages that may offer more advantage in healthcare depending on what population it serves.

The rules for employment for foreigners in Germany have been greatly relaxed of late as the country seeks to fill its employment gaps with international recruiting efforts. New conditions went into effect just a few months ago.

SOME areas of work may be "competitive" as Jim says - and still easy to fill - but others are NOT, and the current rules identify areas of work which require either rudimentary German OR intermediate English skills (which I assume you have.)

Applications for work visas with language requirements do not necessarily require proof of language skills (which can be submitted later once your eagerness to learn German has turned into language skills, should they be required.)

We do not know your exact job skills or your willingness to work in some alternative field, if for some reason you do not qualify for work in your desired field. So I do not consider it "nonsense" at all that you should look into Germany as an option. Have a look at the German government's site below to start exploring the idea:

https://www.make-it-in-germany.com/en/working-in-germany

Marianas Islands.

Language acquisition is indeed a commitment, be it Spanish, French, Mandarin, Polish, Japanese, Russian, German, Italian and so on.

It is to this couple's singular credit realising their mono-lingual short-coming that they are willing to undertake this linguistic commitment, thereby showing their determination at this point in life, presumably mid- to late 30s, to put the energy and time into getting the level of German (if that is their final decision) to that of proficiency, if not more.

A cautionary tale:

https://www.cnn.com/travel/us-couple-dream-life-france-became-nightmare/index.html

With great comments.

Interesting CNN piece. Seems to me like a couple that might not know themselves all that well and/or might not be happy/content anwhere, including their hometown, for longer than a vacation period. It's not realistic to expect that hopping out of your own culture and into a new one - especially at their age - will be a snap, just because one's real estate investments have paid off, or just because the political environment back home has changed. They seem shocked that previous vacations in France, spent in nice hotels and restaurants, did not prepare them for the day-to-day challenges of living as the French might live. They seem shocked that the French speak French and don't often speak English all that readily. They seem to have thought that all their basic life skills would transfer, that groceries would be just like those in California, etc. They seem oblivious to the notion that elderly folks like themselves might be set in their ways and resistant to entirely different procedures. Even if they'd moved there 20 years earlier, when they first got married, they'd have struggled mightily to become fluent in French, if they had even tried at all; at 55, unused language-acquisition abilities have faded. This would be a huge undertaking for any two people in their mid-70's. Speaking of which... did they even anticipate having to find a mortuary they like and an English-speaking undertaker?

There are two or three other threads about that video

Although I love, love Munich and Germany, I would never recommend someone come over and work there in the future. Germany is going through a cooling period and the economy has slowed down. Housing still is in short supply and there is HCOL except if you are out in the boonies. And Germany's healthcare system is not great, yes they need more doctors and nurses but only because burnout has been a big factor. Although some people here will say you don't need German to work in the healthcare services, you will be looked down upon by your colleagues and patients. IMO, there are some professions in Germany where English isn't necessary but healthcare is not one of them. An adult learning German-it is not easy. I can learn Spanish and Italian easily but Germany is another language.

I would actually look at NZ as they need medical staff and you already know the language.