Today we are going to talk about something that might be tempting for international students planning to study in the Netherlands. They want to bring their families along on a student visa. While this might seem like a good idea, at first, there are several reasons why it may not be the best choice for your family’s well-being. Hey, my name is Goodness, and on this blog I share with you my experiences and knowledge about living, working and thriving in the Netherlands.
So I came to the Netherlands in 2018 with a student visa. I did not move with my family. I’m a mom of three kids, and at the time they were all under the age of eight. While it was a very tough decision to make at the time, in the end, it turned out to be the best for myself and my family. I will explain to you in this blog and video, eight reasons.
8 Reasons Not to Move with Your Family on a Student Visa
While moving with your family on a student visit to the Netherlands may not be a good decision.
ACCOMMODATION:
Number one, accommodation is a huge challenge in the Netherlands, one of the most common complaints we get from international students is the problem with accommodation. And if you arrive the Netherlands alone, you stand a higher chance of getting a room in a student hostel or sharing a flat with other students. As a student, you might receive some support and help from your university with student housing. Still, if you come with your family, it becomes much more difficult because the school will likely not have provisions for a family. And this puts you under immense pressure from the get-go. Getting accommodation in the Netherlands generally is difficult even for citizens in the country. And landlords place a lot of conditions that makes it difficult for you to get accommodation.
The cost of accommodation for a student hostel can range from 300 to about 600 euro. But when you want to rent a place for a family, then you start looking at 650 to as high as 2,500 euros, depending on the location and the size of the accommodation. Most of the time they want to see proof of income that you have a job, which assures them that you’ll be able to pay your rent when due. Sometimes they’re asking for income that is straight times the amount of rent they are requesting. In the absence of an income, you’re asked to provide a grantor who equally has a financial standing to back you up. In some other cases, you would have to cough out a deposit for many months just to get them to rent out a place to you. So even if you saved some money and you arrived in Netherlands with some money, it may still be very difficult to secure accommodation as a family without a job.
COST OF LIVING
Another point to consider is the general cost of living in the Netherlands. Chances are that the cost of living in the Netherlands is higher than your country of origin. So aside from accommodation, you need to consider other costs such as feeding, electricity, health insurance, telecommunication, transport, internet, and much more. And this cost can easily add up to over a thousand euros in a month, not counting in accommodation costs.
STUDENT VISA
Another point that people may not consider when planning to move with their family immediately on a student visa is the fact that your partner is not allowed to work on your partner’s resident permit. It’ll be clearly written, not permitted to work. This means he or she is not able to engage legally in economic activities to support your family financially. And for me, this is one of the major reasons why I did not move with my family immediately on a student visa.
TUITION FEES
Let’s look at study costs, Tuition fees for international students in the Netherlands range from somewhere around 6,000 to as high as 20,000 and above. Unless you are on a scholarship or you saved up a lot of money and paid your school fees upfront, chances are that you want to work while studying to support your educational costs. Adding family to the equation makes the situation even more stressful.
ACADEMIC DEMAND
What about academic demand and school workload? Living abroad on its own is stressful and navigating a new environment, focusing on class, trying to work to earn some income, can be a lot of burden on an international student to add family obligations.
PARENTING AND FINANCIAL PRESSURES
Parenting and all the financial pressures that come with it makes it a lot more difficult for a student to focus on his studies and finish his course in good time. And if this pressure is not managed properly, it can lead to you missing classes or failing exams and having to either have your visa cancelled or pay extra fees to repeat classes. If you have not yet subscribed to my channel, this is the time to consider doing so. Please subscribe and smash the like button. It’ll go a long way in helping a small channel like mine. Thank you so much.
As an international student in the Netherlands, your working hours are limited to only 16 hours a week. Not only that, whoever is going to employ you is expected to apply for a work permit on your behalf. This makes it difficult for international students to start work immediately after they arrived in Netherlands, It takes a bit of time to find jobs that are providing this work permit. You’re also allowed to work full-time during the summer months, but you can mitigate this challenge by registering a self-employment business name by the Chamber of Commerce. And with that, you can work more hours without restriction.
CHILDCARE COST
Number seven factor to consider before bringing your family to the Netherlands is childcare costs. In the Netherlands, children go to school free of charge from the age of four. If you have children below the age of four and you want to put them in kindergarten school, your family would have to bear the cost for this out of pocket. And childcare costs can be anywhere between eight euros to 11 euros. Again, depending on your location and the school. The egg point to consider is the emotional strain on your family’s well-being.
ADJUSTING TO A NEW CULTURE, LANGUAGE BARRIER AND DISTANCE
Living abroad can be very challenging, adjusting to a new culture, language barrier, distance from family and friends. And adding financial stress to the equation can have serious emotional drain on your family relationship. So instead of having fun as a family, you might discover that you feel disconnected and isolated. And if care is not taken, this can have very negative impact on the family dynamics. So these are some of the points you need to consider when contemplating the idea of bringing your family to the Netherlands. You have to look at the financial, economic, emotional, and academic impact it can have on your well-being and that of your family. It might be worth thinking through this decision and considering leaving your family behind while you focus on your studies. This was the option that my family went for. I came and I focused on my studies and only applied for my family visa after my study was done.
In the end, I found that to be better for my family overall. Alternatively, it is for you to look for opportunity of traveling to the Netherlands on a work visa. There are lots of Dutch companies that are hiring foreign professionals, and it is much easier to travel with your family when you are on a work visa. If you click the playlist on the screen somewhere here or there, you would watch the video of 15 companies that are currently hiring from abroad with relocation and visa assistance. And if you have not yet subscribed, please, this is the time to do so. Leave your thoughts and questions in the comments session and I’ll see you in the next one.