My husband is about to go to Belgium in this late August to pursue his Ph.D degree, then I will come there for family union. I would like to get your advice for some matters in Belgium as follows: Firstly, I wonder if I am allowed to find a job or certain study course in Belgium. His scholarship can cover our life in Belgium, however I want to work to get more. Secondly, I don’t know maximum of how much I am allowed to bring along when I enter Belgium legally. Lastly, can you advise me on Bank I should open our account in Belgium?
Belgium - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
1. If you are not a national of the EU you are not allowed to work. However as a family member of an individual residing in Belgium this may change matters and you should check with the Belgian embassy in your country. However be advised that in order to be competitive on the labour market you need at least a bachelors degree and you need to speak fluently English, French and Flemish. (German and or Spanish as an extra would be useful). 2.Are you sure that the income from the scholarship covers the cost of living for both of you? Cost of living in Euros is extremely high and you could face some unpleasant surprises. 3. How much can you bring with you? See Belgian embassy. 4. Bank: Fortis Bank or ING. Both have agencies all over the place. However be advised that in most of those agencies there is no personnel attending the public for day to day operations. Everything is done by automatic machines (type ATM) with indications in Flemish or French or alternatively by internet.
2 :
1) of course you can why can't you, the is no rules of who can and who can't get a job or study. 2) as much as you want to, just make sure you have a moving company and take as much as you would on a holiday when YOU go on a plane. 3) the best bank companies are KBC, Argenta ,deutch bank
3 :
More info about working in Belgium: http://www.belgium.be/en/work/coming_to_work_in_belgium/ If you are not allowed to have a job, you can always do volunteer work. Studying in Belgium: http://www.belgium.be/en/education/coming_to_study_in_belgium/ At least you can become a "free" student to follow the lessons at university but you can not do exams. And there are many other courses (like learning languages or other things). Of course most of them are in Dutch (Flanders region) or French (Wallon region). In Brussels it will be easier to find also courses in English, and also the university cities like Gent, Leuven, Antwerpen have more possibilities. More information about moving to Belgium: http://www.belgium.be/en/housing/moving_to_belgium/ The major banking brands who cover all services and are all around the country are KBC, ING, Dexia and BNP Fortis Paribas. Only KBC is still a Belgium company, ING is Dutch, Dexia and BNP Fortis Paribas are French. They have not the cheapest fees or the hightest rates but have the best service and widest range of products. Beside that you have tow major types of banks: smaller Belgian banks who cover most of the country but have a smaller range of products (like Argenta, Centea, Landbouwkrediet, Credit Agricole); and international banks who operate on local Belgium market but have only offices in the big cities (Deutsch Bank, Citibank) or the internet (Rabobank). They give the best price for (some) basic products but be careful about hidden costs (like for internationally bank transfers, extra bank cards,...)
