When I moved to Europe, my destination was clear…
I was coming to Paris.
I had waited for 12 years to get back, having left it behind in 2007.
On one hand, the decision was easy. From the day I’d left the City of Light, I’d been counting down until the day I could return.
On the other hand, once my husband Harry and I began to dig into the residency possibilities, tax consequences, and so on, the vision got cloudier.
There were countless ways we could have organized ourselves for this move, which included but were not limited to: buying an apartment in Portugal and getting Portuguese citizenship before moving to France…
Spending time in Ireland to try to obtain the passport that I should have been eligible for…
Splitting time between Portugal and France for a few years…
Comparing routes to take for French residency, which include several options, each with its own pros and cons…
And on and on.
In the end, we decided to try to simplify things by moving directly to Paris and becoming full-time residents.
However, that meant we still had to choose which visa program to apply for.
One of our ultimate goals for living in Europe is to leave with an EU passport, and the residency we opted for in the beginning didn’t lead to naturalization. That added several years to our process. For reasons too complicated to get into here, this visa made the most sense for us as we launched our new lives in Paris… even though it wasn’t the most direct road to getting a French passport.
But it took a lot of research and multiple consultations with lawyers to figure that out.
These are the kinds of things that you need to think about when you decide to make a move overseas. The unfortunate reality is that you can’t just hop on a plane and set to setting up house on the other end.
I was lucky to have a legion of friends and colleagues to help us wade through the sea of decisions we had to make coming across the Pond. Without the advice of more than a dozen experts in Ireland, Portugal, France, the U.K., and beyond, we wouldn’t have been able to make an informed decision about how to execute the legal side of our move… and we’d likely have wasted plenty of time and money.
The decision to move to Europe is, perhaps, an easy one to make. You like the place; you decide you want to move there.
But What Next?
This is where so many readers who are excited about a move overseas get tripped up. You know what you want… but not how to get it.
And who could blame you? As I said, the prospect of moving to Europe is immensely complicated and daunting. And you don’t know what you don’t know… until you do (and often the lesson comes the hard way).
The only reason Harry and I managed our move to Europe with reasonable success is thanks to all the help I got from folks I work with who give this kind of advice for a living.
It was with all these thoughts in mind that we recently got to work creating a step-by-step guide to moving to Europe… an intensive 40-day course that allows more than 30 experts from across Europe to hold your hand and guide you through all the hurdles you’ll face as you work to engineer your own move to the Old World.
The first challenge for many whose imaginations have been captivated by the idea of life in this irresistibly romantic, beautiful, historic, and culturally rich part of the world is finding your exact right fit…
The second is mapping out your customized plan for getting from where you are now… to wherever it is on the Continent that’s calling your name.
And the key is getting the right support.
I have been lucky enough to spend the majority of my life living in Europe… my family and I have spent decades savoring the charms of this part of the world.
In that time, we’ve made many contacts and friends, including attorneys and notaries, real estate agents and property managers, bankers and finance brokers, residency experts and tax advisors, doctors and logistics experts, architects and antique dealers, plumbers and cabinet-makers…
Plus, of course, we’ve gotten to know other expats… not only fellow Americans, but also people from all over the world who have sought out new lives in this irresistible region.
How You Can Get The Support You Need
It’s this network that we’ve relied on for help in our own moves to Europe, and it’s these contacts who have helped us make sure you are given every advantage and head start imaginable as you depart on your own journey.
This is your chance to have every one of your How Can I Retire To Europe questions answered in detail…
Should you become a legal resident? What are the pluses and the minuses… and how would you qualify?…
What is required to open a bank account?…
What are your options for health insurance?…
What about public medical care? It’s the best in the world and can be free. Would you qualify to use it?…
What are the options for financing as a foreigner? How much could you borrow… how would you qualify… what terms are available? (Our program includes details on our favorite mortgage brokers across the region.)…
What are your best options for learning a new language?
Where should you buy today for investment?…
What return could you expect from a rental in this part of the world… country by country, region by region, and city by city?…
What about taxes? Aren’t the rates diabolical in Europe? (Not necessarily…)
How would you undertake a country house renovation? What would it cost? (Our program includes presentations from expats who have undertaken country house renovations and who will speak from personal experience about the joys (?!) of making this kind of investment and undertaking this kind of adventure.)…
What are the opportunities for you to connect with local expat communities? (Many!)…
In short, this new program will provide everything you need to know about residency and taxes… bank accounts and mortgage financing… rental management and health insurance… shipping, cell phones, decorating an apartment, furnishing a house, enrolling your children in school, learning French, and becoming part of your new community…
We’ll introduce you to your many and varied opportunities and options for savoring life on the Continent.
If you’re dreaming of a new life, either full- or maybe part-time, in Europe, you need to know about the cost of living, health care, renting, buying, paying your utility bills, opening a bank account…
You’re reading my e-dispatches each week… so you understand the appeal and the benefits of launching a new life in Europe. I don’t need to tell you about the reasons to think about living or retiring to the Continent. You’re already thinking about it.
Maybe you’ve been thinking about it for a long time.
Thinking, thinking, thinking… but not acting!
Europe is calling to you…
So what are you waiting for? What in the world is holding you back?
With so many options and opportunities on the table, I understand how you might be confused… intimidated… maybe even paralyzed with uncertainty and doubt.
“How,” you must ask yourself, “am I ever going to find the place that’s right for me?”…
“And, once I do, how in the world am I going to figure out how to make the big leap to launching a new life on the Continent?”…
These are the questions we’ll help you to answer in the 40 Days To Your New Life In Europe program. You can find out more here.
Kat Kalashian
Editor, In Focus: Europe
