Guide to moving to Norway

This guide is uniquely written by a citizen of the world, I suggest you read the about me page prior to understanding viewpoints as presented here.

Thinking of moving to Norway?

The most important question to ask yourself is, why do you want to move to Norway?  There are plenty of other wonderful countries to move to, you do not have to move to Norway just in general.  Unless you're living in the third world/war torn/communist/politically unstable country, you actually may be better off staying where you are.  The illuminist United Nations ranks Norway number 1 in the Human Development Index and the best place to live in the world in 2011.  An important note to consider is that this report has been written by people who have never lived outside their own country.  Another important consideration is the report only offers a general ranking, and it does not fit everyone because each and every one of us are different, and each of us have different needs.  People seem to forget that.  There are some exceptions to this rule.  If you are moving to Norway for...

Experience.  Go right ahead.  Experience is invaluable, and adding that you've lived and work in a country.  Employers like that.  In some mystical way, puts you above the rest when it comes to the resume department.  Plus you build happy/sad/tragic/euphoric stories to tell, and the pain/thrill, I mean, excitement, of moving from one country to another.  You get to live and work in an entirely different culture and experience a different way of thinking.  Plus 5 weeks of annual leave, which does not exist in many countries.  The only problem is if you've worked here too long it's going to be extremely hard to get used to what real work in other parts of the world are like.  And I mean that seriously, my idea of work (and many people around the world) and Norwegians idea of work, they don't meet anywhere.  If you want to get a job in Norway you might want to check out the flowchart that I created. ;)

Social reasons. As in you have an existing relationship with somebody.  You could be in love, you met someone here, you're head over heels, you know what you're doing, and you're sure of what you're doing, then go right ahead.  Life's too short to be working for worthless pieces of paper that are worth zero, that you can't take when you meet your maker, and love is real, so if you're meeting the destiny of your life, then do it.  Or you have family here, and you want to reunite with them.  That's a worthwhile reason to move as well.  In case things fall apart if you move here, the social benefits here are generous bordering on ridiculous.  Thanks to the oil from the North Sea, Norway is one of the wealthiest countries in the world and as of to-date, has the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world (However this might change in the next 100 years when the oil runs out or when oil collapses to $20).  Anyway, the point is if you're unemployed, or somehow you're unable to work, you will still get some kind of welfare from the government.  That is why many Norwegians come back to Norway after working overseas, to take advantage of the welfare system.  Some Norwegians even move overseas to retire, usually in a far cheaper country, like Thailand, and just collect their welfare checks.  And with benefits like fully paid year long maternity leave and three months paternity leave for every child you have, no wonder people want to live here.  There's also free (as in taxpayer subsidised) healthcare but the quality of that can range from somewhat terrible (as in you had to give birth on the floor because the allocated hospital was too far away) to very good (you get your child healthy and you're free to go on the same day in the hospital).  You may have to put up with shitty weather, cold/lukewarm/small thinking type of people, and high prices for everything, but that's worth it for some people.

Travel and nature.  Norway's really freaking beautiful.  So yes do move here for nature, the landscapes and nature is hard to beat especially if you're used to concrete city life and need a change.  One of the only reasons why I'm here is for nature.  There's plenty of scenic places to visit in this country, you just have to catch a plane or drive many hours.  You get to see the Northern lights during winter which are spectacular.  If you fancy a trip to other parts of Europe, you can catch a short plane ride to London, Italy, Germany, Sweden, etc.  Air Norwegian and Ryan Air operate many direct flights to many European countries and destinations.  With the currently strong (strong as in comparing to other fiat currencies) that's what many Norwegians do with their noks, they take them overseas and spend (*Note that as of August 2015 the Norwegian krone has fallen 25% against the US dollar so it's no longer strong, but still an expensive country).

On the other hand, if you're thinking of moving to Norway for the following reasons, you might want to think twice.

Salary.  Gross norwegian salaries are high, that is no doubt correct.  For example a postman here can make 300000 nok about 50000 australian dollars or 40000 euros.  The only problem is things in Norway aren't cheap.  In fact, things are bloody ridiculously expensive here.  No shit.  And amazingly, people put up with it.  For example, a 500 ml of coke costs 4 australian dollars or 3.3 euros.  That's at least 3 times more expensive than what it costs in Australia.  And let me tell you there's no way you'll be getting 3 times more nett income here because taxes here are way extremely high, 50 percent.   Of course you're not going to spend all your cash on coke branded toilet washing liquid, but this is what you have to get used to.  To the productive employed individual, that 50 percent tax does not benefit them whatsoever, it goes to the unemployed, the married with children couple, and other miscellaneous parasites of society.  Let me put it this way, you get no immediate benefits from working in Norway as an working, healthy, unmarried individual, even though you pay a direct 50 percent tax and much higher indirectly.  Renting is not cheap either.  A single small unit in the city can cost 10000 nok which is 1670 australian dollars or 1342 euros.  Plus you still have to factor the cost of electricity which is about 1000 nok a month which is 167 australian dollars or 134 euros.  Water on the other hand is taxpayer subsidised.  Gas on the other hand, costs 4 times more expensive as in the US even though Norway is an oil country, so unless you're getting gas subsidies, the cost of a vehicle can rack up pretty quickly.  If you're thinking of buying things from overseas to overcome the insane prices here, the bad news is you have to pay (up to 50% tax!!) on things which cost above 200 nok (about 35 US dollars), which is pretty much everything nowadays.  The good news is you do not pay tax on magazines or books.  Because of the high prices of goods here, many Norwegians shop in Sweden (Just like how Singaporeans like to shop in Malaysia).  Also, there's also fees here for everything, like having an ATM card, talking to customer service, taxes on food, plastic, things which you probably are used to being complimentary.  So your so called high salary will probably end up in the low to middle end of average compared to the rest of the world after all theses invisible fees, taxes and other costs which you do not see but definitely exist.

Friendly people.  To put it plainly, Norwegians are unfriendly.  I mean that in the most unoffending way.  And they acknowledge that.  Probably one of the reasons why they drink so much.  In my opinion, Americans are probably the friendliest people.  Customer service in America is like a warm summer's day compared to the depths of a dark cold winter in Norway.  When I flew to the US, it was immediately noticeable the moment I boarded the plane!  Anyway the general point is, don't expect to make many Norwegian friends, they tend to stick to themselves.  If you move here you'll probably get to know more non Norwegians.  If you're the social type just be prepared to be shocked.

Weather.  Weather here sucks.  It really does.  Especially during winter which is many months.  It becomes dark.  You wake up to go to work, it's dark, you come home, it's dark.  So you need to distract yourself during these dark periods.  Like skiing or sledding or something.  Summer in 2011 sucked too, it rained a lot.  Maybe it will change in 2012.

Here is another interesting forums post on Norway which I've found.  More food for thought.

So, asking yourself why you want to move is a really important question.  But if you've decided to take the plunge then you should do the following as soon as possible when you move here.

Get a work permit.  Your company should do this for you.  Might take several days to weeks depending on how bureaucratic the system is.  You'll probably have to go to the police station to verify your identity as well after you arrive in Norway.  Then you'll have to go to the tax office and get your norwegian personal number.  If you're part of the EU you probably do not need a work permit, but perform due diligence to make sure you don't have to.

Get a norwegian personal number.  No number no honey baby sorry!  Without this number you cannot do anything, not even open a bank account to receive your salary.  Also it is advisable to bring a copy of your contract when opening a bank account, the bank will not issue you a proper ATM card (bank card) if you do not have your contract with you.  Instead they'll issue you an electron card which means you cannot use it online.  If you have your contract with you they'll issue you a normal ATM card.  You just to register yourself at the tax office.

Sign up for a doctor.  Here's how I signed up for a doctor.

Find a place to live.  This one is tough.  If you don't speak Norwegian they don't usually trust you.  Get a work colleague to help.  You might also want to know about the east side phobia of Oslo.

Bring plenty of winter clothes.  It's cold here, and things are expensive, so load up your winter clothes while you are overseas.  However, don't forget to bring summer clothes too, as it can get warm on some days.  The point is, do your clothes shopping overseas before you arrive. :)

From my experience, if you are a very average person (few or no life goals or ambitions), then Norway might be a very good place for you.  If you have dreams, ambitions, and do not like half your money stolen from you, then perhaps not so much.

Like a fork in the road, our world is paved with decisions to make everyday.  With every move there are pros and cons, saying that you should really think hard when moving anywhere.  I'm this guy currently living on planet Earth, specifically Norway for the reasons of experience and travel.  If you'll like to connect with me, feel free to do so!