Hello there,
(sorry for the long read..but wanted to cover everything as concisely as I could)
We are American citizens and my wife's job is moving to Amsterdam. They have offered her a position abroad, albeit with a 20% pay cut and we have a short timeline to make a decision, the deadline is rapidly approaching...2 wks from now. While this does seem like quite the opportunity but I am worried about the prospect of me finding a job in Amsterdam. I work in IT Service Management.
Her job does offer spousal relocation services with a recruiting agency but they won't even start “what are my spouse chances of getting a job” conversation until my wife agrees to work in Amsterdam, which is frustrating because we'd like to know my prospects for a job in my field before being contractually locked into something for 3 years.
I've searched on LinkedIn and noticed quite a selection of jobs require fluency in dutch or german. I am worried about moving there and not being able to find a job in my field. After some research, I've read that there are some layers to finding a job as a foreigner in Amsterdam such as companies abroad must prove they tried to offer the job to a local before giving the job to a foreigner.
At this point, I am a bit discouraged about this opportunity and feel this may not be the right decision but I want to get as much information as possible before making a decision. I've reached out to 2 recruiters so far and they pointed me to LinkedIn and indeed.
Would it be a crazy decision to move before getting a job? What are some of your experiences searching for a job in Amsterdam that you wish someone would have told you about?
Spouse job moving to Amsterdam. I'm worried about job opportunities
Hi and welcome to the Forum.
Depends. If you continuing to work is essential, then you need to consider the facts you have outlined in your OP. Nobody has offered you a job and it is a fact that any resident already in the Netherlands is going to be given preference over yourself for similar work, it's Dutch law. To get a decent job anywhere, you need 4 things:
Relevant qualifications
Relevant experience
Speak the local language
Luck
The more you can tick off, the more chance you have of getting that job; you do the math. If you've spoken to 2 recruiters already and their response was to point you to LinkedIn, then considering how they make their money is to recruit people, doesn't bode well and perhaps you already have the answer. However, there is nothing stopping you from reaching out to your peers already in Amsterdam now and asking the questions and then make your decision a few days down the line.
If your wife's job is moving to Europe and there is nothing else she can do internally, then perhaps she should consider declining the move and starting again Stateside.
Not sure if I've helped, but I wish you both the best in the future.
Cynic
Expat Team
Thank you for the response and feedback! I will continue to do as much as possible before the deadline but like you said, we will have to do the math of the makes sense.
Hello, @CuriousTraveler!
I am curious to know if you decided to move to Amsterdam in the end. I'm facing a similar situation; my husband is English, and he received a great opportunity in the Netherlands. I can go with him under a spouse visa, but I'm afraid I won't find a job that easily.
Did it work out for you in the end?
Thanks!
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