So many would not think twice about getting an opportunity to live and work in Scandinavia. The news out there glorifies how Scandinavian countries rank so high in many aspects such as healthcare, job security, social protection and more. Actually, you may know one or two people who moved to Scandinavia and whatever they say paints the picture of such a dream country. Yes, Scandinavian countries provide people with an opportunity to flourish and be happy. But, the catch comes when cost of living comes to the equation.
An honest immigrant worker in Scandinavia will admit that the cost of living really drains individuals’ paycheck. Employers in Denmark and labor unions really work to deliver welfare for the workers but then all these end up in monies used to pay so many bills. In fact, a lot of people have to take two or even three jobs to at least make some extra money to save or enjoy some reasonable lifestyle.
Ordinarily, a lot of immigrants struggling to maneuver the complex and restrictive immigration policies in Scandinavia have a palpable yearning to prosper. No wonder, a third country national will sacrifice to get that coveted schengen visa and where possible get a permanent residence or citizenship.
Ask any immigrants in Scandinavia and chances are that they will admit to be highly attracted by the prospects of thriving in Scandinavia. In fact, most immigrants not only wish to use their stay to get greener pastures for themselves but also as a chance to change the life of the often many dependents back home. You will hear the talk of black tax on immigrants a lot of times. There is this unwritten expectation that once in Scandinavia, you must in some way remit money to change home.
While a native Scandinavian may not as much be hard pressed to support family members with their earnings, the third country nationals face this a lot. So, before taking a leap and moving to Scandinavia, one has to not only do the math about personal expenses but also remittances abroad. Just know that you will be using Remitly, Wise and other international money transfer services a lot of times. This has a bearing on your overall financial health when living in Scandinavia.
You may be inspired by the lifestyle that people in Scandinavia display and imagine that they have so much to spend at any one time. In fact, without living in the countries, you may get a false impression that Scnaindvians are just super rich going by the cars they drive, houses they live, mobile phone models they use and so on.
Truth be told, Scandinavians have a taste for good things in life. Even as an immigrant, you will often feel lured to buying expensive top brand items. You may find it necessary to belong and end up going for brands like Nike, Apple, Zora and such. Unfortunately for an immigrant worker, checking out money to buy expensive stuff risks making you broke. Actually, chances of living paycheck to paycheck and even having to take payday loans are high.
Most of the time and pushed by the financial realities, an immigrant worker in Scandinavia has to find smart ways to cut one’s expenses. You can’t afford to live your dream life when way too many expenses keep chasing your never growing payslip. This explains why even with a decent job, immigrants may resort to buying from second hand shops.
To remain happy without breaking a bank as an immigrant in Scandinavia, you may choose to take property loans such as car loans or house purchase loans. Companies in Scandinavia also have flexible payment plans for expensive items such as Apple products or other electronics. These would make sense for you to go for instead of solely relying on the salary.
Scandinavian countries offer some of the most competitive salaries one may wish to have. Whether you’re working on an hourly basis or paid on a monthly basis, the salary is good. You’ll notice that the rates per hour will significantly be higher than what people elsewhere receive.
Although the salary one receives when working in Scandinavia depends on so many factors such as the type of job, labor agreements, municipality lived, seniority and such like, it still remains competitive.
The salary scale in Denmark (~DKK 200/hr), Sweden (~SEK 151/hr) and Norway (~NOK 200/hr). This is comparatively higher than most countries in Europe. Although most of the jobs work with collective agreements to determine minimum wage for an industry and packages, they generally allow people to live a meaningful life.
Maybe up to this point, you’re getting all the reasons to chase the jobs in Scandinavia and earn the high wages. Well, that’s just a tip of it. Have in mind that the explanations here should not serve to scare any ambitious person who wants to explore. If anything, we hope to help you make an informed decision.
In most cases, people refer to jobs in Scandinavia as if they attract the same packages, wage rates and packages. Yes, the labor agreements in operation will guarantee favorable employee treatment but then other benefits depend on what kind of job you do.
Some people move to Scandinavia on work permits for factory work, healthcare providers, practitioners in the hotel and hospitality sector, engineers, project managers and more. Also, some come on time limited schemes such as Au pair, research or Post doctoral fellows. All these jobs come with a clearly stated income package.
For a clear understanding, know that your job will fall into any of these categories.
- Unskilled/semi-skilled jobs
- Professional jobs
- Skilled jobs
Just so you know, there are so many barriers to entry into jobs in Scandinavia such as workplace culture and language. So, you must be prepared to learn really quickly to ascend to a job that matches your competencies.
The first few weeks and months of working in Scandinavia may come with its fair share of shocks. Generally the jobs are high paced and experience demands the highest level of efficiency. To an extent, you get this feeling that people do things so fast yet effectively. Its up to you to match up.
You may be interested to explore work related opportunities to go to Scandinavia.
Now we get to the bitter part that not so many may enjoy. But as you know, immigration is an expensive affair. You will be partying with your job at home, breaking away from the long built relationships and heading to an entirely new place.
So that you make an informed decision on your choice to move to Scandinavia, you need the most practical information. A balanced look at what life in Scandinavia means will help you decide.
An smart person would be an expat or immigrant, all you may badly need is to get as much information as possible. Loaded with enough information especially of things that defy popular perceptions, you’re better prepared to sail through the adversities if any.
The mistake most people always make is to look at the salary scales offered in Scandinavia is what they earn at home directly. Maybe what they do is apply the prevailing currency exchange rate and feel thrilled to take up the job abroad.
What often gets lost in the minds of many is that your income has to be largely spent within the country you live in Scandinavia. For instance, you will need to pay utility bills, rent, travels, property loans, and other expenses within the country.
You soon realize that the commodity prices in Scandinavia and cost of services don’t compare to what you pay for the same in your home country. In fact a lot of people spend their initial days in Scandinavia painfully trying to reconcile what they pay for services or items in Scandinavia to the same in their home country.
The commodity and service charges in Scandinavia, just like in any balanced functional economy, responds to the income levels (disposable income). Experts will tell you that the cash flow must be kept at equilibrium to avoid runaway inflation and that’s what will take away your salary.
Be ready that rent alone in Scandinavia will take slightly more than a quarter of your income, other utilities such as internet subscription, house heating, electricity will also take a sizable chunk. If loans also need servicing then your paycheck will drastically thin down.
All that we all need is a good life for ourselves and loved ones. So we often tend to gravitate towards places that have a name for offering the best standards of living and higher incomes. But then, we need to selfishly mind more about the big picture and how such moves affect everything.
- Assess what salary your new job in Scandinavia offers
- Check on statutory deductions and taxes that will be levied on your income
- Carefully calculate how much your typical expenses in the country will be.
- Refocus your attention to what other non-work related benefits will accrue to you by virtue of having a residence and work permit in Scandinavia i.e see what the robust social security system has to offer.
- Put all these together and see whether its really the salary that should be a pull aspect of something else. Follow where reason guides you to.
Final takeaway
Scandinavia is increasingly a magnet that attracts international labor. The salaries that employers there have to offer easily entice many internationals to go work there. The idea for this is the impression that such paychecks way exceed those offered in most countries. So, there’s the tendency for people to fall “head over heels” for the salary alone.
Yes, the salary may be competitive in Scandinavia thats not it all. When the cost of living gets factored in plus other expenses, attention quickly shifts. You will realize that what really makes Scandinavia attractive ought to be in the social security that other popular immigrant destinations like the USA lacks.at least not to the extent that Scandinavia does.
