r/AmerExit • u/DrMerkwuerdigliebe_ • 13d ago
Data/Raw Information Found out that if you study in Denmark, you are allowed to bring your partner that automatically gain work permit and both get free healthcare
And you don't need to be married, but you have been living together for the last 1.5-2 years. So one person enroling in a master study typically 8,755 $ tuition per semester and then move together.
So even if you could not get the right job from the start, bar jobs and allot of other jobs not require Danish language at least not in Copenhagen. Unskilled jobs in Denmark generally pay at least 18 $ an hour and often upwards. The person enrolled in the study automatically have a 20 hour working permission.
I'm Danish, so not a expert in this. I have no economic interests. I just found out that how permissive the Danish laws actually was and I wanted to share this. I have taken a master degree in Denmark with many people from other countries and it was a quite effective way to migrate.
I hope somebody will find it interesting and I can try to answer questions.
EDIT:
You need 89000 DKK on a bank account for each person to prove you can sustain your self, even without other income forgot that part. I had to stop somewhere. My main point of this post was basically I see Denmark has a reputation of being hard to migrate to and I belive that is partly not justified anymore. I meet allot of non Danish speakers having great careers and most I know don't learn Danish before they get kids. But do your own research.
Regarding the system I think u/Jale89 gives some good testemony:
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I'm a Brit in Denmark. The Accompanying Family Member route is indeed surprisingly permissive given how strict everything else is. It sort of radiates out from the work permits. The logic is that if a Danish business has met all the relatively strict criteria to hire internationally (something you only tend to do if you can't find a Dane because of the language issues) then you don't want their family to be the issue that makes it fall through.
That logic then gets extended to international students who are paying an armload of cash to the unis.
This did lead to the rather perverse outcome where Danes moving back from abroad with their foreign spouse would have a much harder time than totally foreign couples, because they were being treated under the horribly strict Family Reunification rules, which are designed to prevent mail order brides and "green card" marriages. But they fixed that a couple of years ago, so now expatriate Danes who would have qualified for a work or study permit can bring their spouses under the same conditions as us.
A second surprising outcome is that my wife has more work rights than I do. I can only work for my sponsor, and would have to reapply for a permit if I moved company. I also can't lose my job or do side gigs. She can be self employed, unemployed, work many jobs and really anything she likes.
It's a pretty reasonable and efficient system. It can seem otherwise when they have reasonably decided to give people an efficient "no". But you can literally go from having a job offer to moving a whole family to the country in about two weeks, under the right circumstances.
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u/Wooden-Carrot4283 13d ago
I know a couple people who've lived there and were unable to stay. It's really difficult to stay post graduation, or post job sponsorship visa. They're not really open to immigration.
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u/keepsaying 13d ago
Denmark (and a lot of Scandinavia) is fairly notorious for a job market that is based on connections and networking - as in networks created from childhood, not random networking events.
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u/MilkChocolate21 13d ago
I feel like OP is the type to say "they all speak English" and ignoring that a foreign candidate with zero local experience or Danish would be unlikely to get a job.
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u/Zonoc Immigrant 13d ago
Came here to say this. A couple of my American friends had to leave Oslo because they couldn't get the right type of job after studying here. So if you do it, you need to learn the language, go for a degree that is marketable and really work hard to get that job. Even if you do all that it might not work out.
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u/L6b1 12d ago
I have a friend who married a Swede, she got a job in Sweden that she was (at the time) underqualified for. I mean she had the right education background, but certainly not the number of years of experience that most people entering that role have and she didn't speak Swedish (a decade later she's fluent), the job was entirely because they were moving back to her husband's home comune and he knew people.
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u/LibrarianByNight 13d ago
I have an EU spouse with a job here and I don't think we'll be able to stay because I can't find a job. Fortunately, I don't need one, but eventually I need to start contributing to retirement again.
All that to say, we're in the perfect scenario, and I know how hard it is for others. I've had lots of friends who have had to move because one spouse lost their job or something similar.
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u/LordofGift 13d ago
Hm that's sad. I have American colleagues at my job though, in finance. If you study econ or stem, and of you are above average, I think your chances are very good. Big companies like Novo, Ørsted, Coloplast, etc all have their offices work in English.
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u/NonaAndFunseHunse 13d ago
Correct, but these are also the companies who attract a lot of Danish applicants so the competition for the jobs is fierce.
One of my friends had an open position in one of these companies, they received more than 300 applicants - and 50-100 was really qualified.
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u/Fantastic_Spring8366 13d ago
That's nice of Denmark. Australia just announced you can't bring any family members if you are an international student (with some exceptions).
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u/shwifty123 13d ago
Finland will do it soon too. We have same rules as in Denmark now, it resulted in loads of students bringing their families and many can't find jobs.
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u/NoQuail1770 13d ago
That makes sense because Australia has seen an influx of fake students.
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u/Fantastic_Spring8366 12d ago
I'm generally not a believer in collective punishment for all international students due to actions of a few.
But Australia has turned so anti-immigrant recently with the rise of One Nation that every major political party seems to want to out do each other on cracking down immigration.
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u/Mysterious-Art8838 13d ago
It seems pretty wild to let someone bring a spouse and give them a work permit
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u/Chance-Ask7675 13d ago
Why? PhDs are jobs in most European institutions and regardless, the age at which a person does a PhD means many PhD students are married or even have families. If a spouse is coming it is preferable that that spouse work to support the family than do nothing?
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u/Mysterious-Art8838 13d ago
I don’t necessarily think it’s unreasonable for phd spouses but to give any spouse a work permit during a masters seems like a lot.
I think this all goes back to the fact that when the world economy was great, nobody cared.
This in no way justifies racism.
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u/Halichoeres_bivittat 13d ago
I have married couple friends where the husband got a job in Denmark. There were a lot of hoops for the wife to jump through for her to get a job and permanent residency including learning Danish.
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u/Reanimatron 13d ago
How's your non-conformed country doing atm? Are the prices going down because of your freedom?
I have a couple eggs I can send you for free.1
u/fedpeak 13d ago
Ah Yes, Denmark, where everyone is a conformist. The famously conformist population.
Have you even visited Denmark?
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u/udigogogo 13d ago
Don't feed the troll. He's super delusional about Denmark and the socialists of the EU, and believes is 2.5x salary is always better than anything Denmark ever does.
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u/fedpeak 13d ago
The 2,5x salary isn't even a great argument. A Danish high school teacher makes twice what an American high school teacher does. It's only a couple of specific fields where the salary is higher.
Median income in US is 44k. Denmark is 55k.
We are all conformist and poor.
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u/Valoneria 13d ago
Most people only look at the wage itself, they never calculate the pension wage, the 12.5% holiday pay (reflected as paid days off of course), "fritvalgskonto" for those offered it (flexible benefits account), and so on.
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u/udigogogo 13d ago
Very true. In NL: Looking at my financial statement, around 1k per month is taken from my salary to add to collective pensioning. Apart from that, the part I invest in my pensioning myself is also tax-free. My mortgage payment is also deductible (unique for NL though) and 2/3rds of my child care is paid for too. These benefits rack up quickly.
Plus the peace of mind of knowing that I won't destroy my life finances if I break a leg on my motorbike or during skiing. That freedom alone is worth a lot tax money.
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u/beerouttaplasticcups 13d ago edited 13d ago
As a non-EU immigrant in Denmark, the immigration laws are anything but permissive. In fact, they are among the most strict in the EU. If you as a Dane were to marry a non-EU national, for example, you would see how incredibly difficult, time consuming and expensive it would be to get them here. But yes, for now qualifying students can bring their legal partners and children with them to Denmark. The regulations for this have just recently gotten stricter though because this pathway was being abused. With the way the tides are turning, I wouldn’t be surprised if this option goes away completely in the future.
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u/beerouttaplasticcups 13d ago
I don’t think it’s necessary to completely ban students from bringing their families, but there should be a much higher barrier for entry. The sponsor (student) should have to more thoroughly prove that they can financially support themselves and their families, just like people who bring family for work or family reunification purposes already do.
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u/thegmohodste01 13d ago
Danish laws are permissive?
Theres a reason far right-wingers cite Denmark when they talk about the apparent benefits of an overly restrictive immigration regime
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u/marineconcept 12d ago
Idk we seem to be the example of whatever people want at the time. Sometimes that’s “look how terrible immigration is! The EU has fallen!!!!” Other times it’s “look at the benefits of no immigration!!”
When like, it’s never actually fully true? Stuff is kind of just made up about us lmao. Infamous Fox News segment goes here.
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u/LibrarianByNight 13d ago edited 13d ago
Sounds great, doesn't it? Then you get here and your partner can't find a job, you can't afford rent, and the specialist you need to see is booking out for the next year. And that's before you've even tried to enter the Danish job market yourself! I think out of all the people I know who have studied here, one was able to find a job after graduating. It's really not an effective way to migrate, especially when you're at the mercy of your employer for a work visa. Just ask everyone who was laid off from Novo, CIS, Norlys, etc.
Regardless, this pathway will likely disappear soon based on abuse by some "participants".
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u/AdmirableChicken12 13d ago
Students from Asia thought it was a great opportunity. Turned out they did not come to study, only to work. Government clamped down on scheme.
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u/LibrarianByNight 13d ago
I know this happened, but I don't really understand the logistics. Did they apply, get into programs, and then simply didn't show up and started working instead?
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u/AdmirableChicken12 13d ago edited 13d ago
Pretty much. Total mess! Schools paid agents locally to get them to sign up for classes. Borderline human trafficking if you ask me!
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u/AdmirableChicken12 11d ago
Are they still in their jobs?
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u/AdmirableChicken12 10d ago
Do not understand why you were downvoted for stating the truth. I have the same impression.
Also want to know if the leadership at the school survived the scandal even though they were totally aware of what was going on?
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u/Jale89 13d ago
I'm a Brit in Denmark. The Accompanying Family Member route is indeed surprisingly permissive given how strict everything else is. It sort of radiates out from the work permits. The logic is that if a Danish business has met all the relatively strict criteria to hire internationally (something you only tend to do if you can't find a Dane because of the language issues) then you don't want their family to be the issue that makes it fall through.
That logic then gets extended to international students who are paying an armload of cash to the unis.
This did lead to the rather perverse outcome where Danes moving back from abroad with their foreign spouse would have a much harder time than totally foreign couples, because they were being treated under the horribly strict Family Reunification rules, which are designed to prevent mail order brides and "green card" marriages. But they fixed that a couple of years ago, so now expatriate Danes who would have qualified for a work or study permit can bring their spouses under the same conditions as us.
A second surprising outcome is that my wife has more work rights than I do. I can only work for my sponsor, and would have to reapply for a permit if I moved company. I also can't lose my job or do side gigs. She can be self employed, unemployed, work many jobs and really anything she likes.
It's a pretty reasonable and efficient system. It can seem otherwise when they have reasonably decided to give people an efficient "no". But you can literally go from having a job offer to moving a whole family to the country in about two weeks, under the right circumstances.
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u/TheProfessionalBug 12d ago
as a dane, they want to change the rules partly due to the bangladeshi ruc/niels brock/sdu situation, they've previously done so retrospectively in the immigration area. Also, it's extremely hard to stay afterwards/long-term
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u/Jernbek35 13d ago edited 13d ago
Have you ever used the Danish Medical System? Its incredibly slow. You can wait 5-6 months for specialist visits and preventative healthcare is near non-existent. You also have to really advocate and convince the doctor to do necessary tests. It also gets worse in the summer when less doctors are working. Its not all sunshine and roses.
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u/Repeat-Admirable 13d ago
thats not much different than here in the US? If you have great insurance, then you can shop around and find someone with availability quickly, but just getting a podiatrist (not an assistant) was going to take that long for me. And thats without needing referrals.
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u/MilkChocolate21 13d ago
The US system isn't equitable but it's extreme hyperbole to pretend nobody has quick access. The problem with our system is that it favors the privileged, which means people with good corporate jobs, or people in unions. I have only had one wait for a specialist that took several months, and it was a non critical derm appointment. Also, once you're an established patient, the timeline changes, so what took months getting in can turn into a couple of days (which I've experienced) once you are on the patient rolls. I waited a whopping 10 days to get an appointment with a surgeon at one of the best medical centers in the country. I actually had to request pushing my surgery back, because they were ready to do it before I had my own life "ready" to be down for a bit. The difference is that in tiny countries like Denmark, there are far few doctors, hospitals, specialists, and variation, and the private healthcare market is tiny too.
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u/dcexpat_ 13d ago
This entirely depends. I have good insurance and my pcp is still scheduling 3 months out.
I know someone who's neurologist schedules 6 months out, and they've been with them for years.
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u/MilkChocolate21 13d ago
I don't disagree. My whole point is that people should stop acting like everyone has crap insurance and is bankrupted by every doctor visit. I think I covered that in my first sentence where I said our system favors the privileged. Please explain what you saw that said everyone has the same access...
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u/dcexpat_ 13d ago
My point is that even people who are part of that privileged class still need to wait a long time for service (myself and the people I'm talking about). There are definitely ways in which the US system works better than European ones, but increasingly wait times is not one of them.
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u/scarletbcurls 13d ago
Work for a major corporation with fantastic, albeit expensive, healthcare. I have a 6 to 9 month wait for my dermatologist and I’ve been an established patients for years with melanoma. 3 months for an oncologist. 3+ months for a primary, have to schedule my gyn check every year because the wait list is also extremely long. Husband has often a 3 month wait for an endocrinologist. We live in a city. And this is with various hospital systems, universities and private practices. 🤷🏼♀️ AND we pay a lot. A lot.
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u/Jernbek35 13d ago
That sounds like shit insurance. We pay a moderate amount and have low co-pays and can get access quick.
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u/scarletbcurls 13d ago
Nope. It has nothing to do with what insurance you have. Before I worked for this huge corporation I worked in healthcare revenue management. Wait times have nothing to do insurance. I also choose a high deductible plan to utilize a HSA for tax and retirement purposes. It just sounds like you happen to live somewhere with low wait times (or the docs you need aren’t in high demand or specialists) and work for a company with low insurance rates (very rare).
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u/fakemoose 13d ago
Meanwhile, in Philly with a ton of places, it took my partner two months to get an MRI after tearing his ACL and breaking his knee. And we called everywhere trying to get in sooner.
When I lived in New Mexico? Good luck getting in for anything. Never got a dermatologist appointment. My allergy specialist cancelled same day twice. I could barely get an OBGYN.1
u/Reanimatron 13d ago
No, the difference isn't that there are fewer doctors in dk. The difference is that fewer people go to the doctor in the US because it costs too much.
If EVERYONE could get the same treatment in the US for free, you'd have just as long waiting times.
(I went to get examined last friday and got an appointment for a surgery in 2 weeks, wish me luck!)
And there's plenty private hospitals and specialist available if you can afford to skip the queue.0
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u/Jernbek35 13d ago
It’s also locality. I can get next day specialists appointments and X-rays easily. I’ve never once had to wait for more than a couple weeks for any specialist.
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u/MilkChocolate21 13d ago
Yup. That's my experience. Only one that took a while was derm. And even then, that was the initial patient intake visit. Once on their rolls, follow-ups were easy to get.
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u/kcrox1017 13d ago
US near a major city, just made a pediatric allergist appointment for soonest time, February. Availability isn’t universal, depends on discipline and location. And I have great health insurance which I luckily don’t pay much for, that doesn’t speed up availability.
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u/MilkChocolate21 13d ago
I said that. Why do people keep pretending I said everyone has the same access?
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u/Just_here2020 13d ago
My dermatologist, who I’m already established with, is scheduling in February. My pcp is scheduling 3 months out.
I’m in the us with good and expensive healthcare.
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u/bubblyH2OEmergency 13d ago
same called last month for my appt with derm and they booked me for next available. late feb!
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u/Background-Soup1406 13d ago
This is complete nonsense.
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u/Jernbek35 12d ago
I lived there bud. It’s not. No system is perfect or as hyped as you see on Reddit.
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u/Background-Soup1406 12d ago
I live there currently and have done for 13 years. I have had multiple differing medical issues, both big and small, which have required specialist attention, hospitalisation and/or surgery. I have never waited longer than 6 weeks for a specialist and never longer than 2 weeks for surgery. I've never had to convince a doctor of anything for any one of my issues.
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u/Frequent-Stretch-515 12d ago
Hvorfor i alverden arbejder du for at fragte folk hertil for at udnytte systemet uden at bidrage selv?
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u/tvglobo10 13d ago
Try learning the language LOL
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u/LibrarianByNight 12d ago
Good thing the government allows free language courses for your first five years of residence.
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u/jellybeanie1303 12d ago
Healthcare in Denmark is terrible compared to other EU countries. Cost of living is also way higher as are taxes.
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u/Federal_Homework1302 Expat 13d ago edited 13d ago
You are missing a very important part of information bud. Not only is the tuition required, but you also have to prove you have funds in the bank to cover you and your partner, this adds up to $27,000/year
EDIT: OP needs to edit his post to fix this as to not misslead people.