Job Discussion Forums

[naturegirl321]

I've read the job information journal and the posts here on the forum and it all seems so negative about jobs for people without EU citizenship. Is it really that difficult to find a job if someone has experience and qualifications?
Or is Italy a lost cause along with France, Switzerland and Spain for people without EU citizenship?

[rogan]

naturegirl
- the answer to your 2 questions are YES and YES

[naturegirl321]

Where in Europe can non-EU citizens work?

[Guest]

I'm afraid the clue is in the question.

You will have a better chance in the European countries that are not in the EU.

[scot47]

Or you can risk working as a "wetback". I must admit when I see the swarms of illegals making a precarious living selling trinkets and perfume on the pavement, I think they are not so far removed from the illegal EFL teachers.

[rogan]

Take the 15 EU member countries - now forget them !

Take the 10 EU candidate countries - now forget them too !

Now take what's left and consider those. You might be able to find a job in one of those.

Hope that helps

[shirley]

There are a lot of negative comments on non-EU citizens working in Europe but I have not found this to be the case in working at universities and state schools. I have worked with plenty of non-EU citizens. My first uni job in Italy was as an American who just walked in and asked for a job. I was in luck. You must have at least a BA, better with an MA and simple with a PHD. Any of the universities will provide the work visa for qualified applicants in Germany, France and Italy. I'm not sure about the others as I have had no personal experience. Without a BA I think the negative comments are warrented. In most cases, but not all, you will need to be able to read the language to find the positions and apply for them. Check with each individual school. There are currently 3 university positions open in my city for mother tongue experts with at least 5 years of university. Citizenship does not matter.

[jud]

Actually, at least up until 2 years ago, teaching in Germany was relatively easy for Americans, Australians, and Canadians. All you needed was a letter from your employer indicating their intention to give you a certain number of hours (and therefore a certain amount of salary) and you could get a permit to stay.

Maybe this has changed, but I'd be surprised.

Italy (where I am) is next to impossible without an EU passport.

[LAgirl]

I'm not sure how helpful this is regarding working in Europe but this is my experience and maybe someone else will benefit as I have.

Because so many immigrants came from Europe in the 1800-1900's many European countries are now offering dual citizenship through parents, grandparents and in my case the great grandparents line who settled in America.

I have wanted to go and teach in Europe for SO long but knew that it was very difficult and hard to obtain Visas etc etc.

Only after stumbling upon it, did I realize that I am able to obtain dual citizenship through my great grandfather who was born in Italy. It does take time - getting all the birth, death and marriage licenses, apostilles and translations but it is worth it. You also have to make sure the Naturalization took place at the right time and that the country is offering it - but many are.

I have met with the Italian Consulate in Los Angeles and am now about to have my Italian passport and dual citizenship able to travel and stay anywhere in Europe.
I know each situation varies - but if you are like most Americans - with immigrants in the family tree - it is worth looking into.
I am SO VERY grateful.
My one and only obstacle gone.

Good luck...and I hope this helps someone in a similiar situation.

LAgirl

[Albulbul]

Great-grandfather !

Wow, that IS a generous citizenship law.

Note that the laws are different in different EU member states.

[daily chai]

Note that people may be motivated to downplay the availability of work to reduce competition. I'm not saying this has happened, but it is a possible factor.

However, the information reported for non-EU citizens is optimistic but not recent. Note the economies in this part of the world are not strong nor hiring a lot of people. I find it hard to imagine with local competition for work it would be easy to find a job in the current scene: you have to get permission to work, that permission relies on "proving" in one way or another that no EU person is similarly qualified/available (note this regulation is sometimes very lax, and other times/places really enforced), and no outsider will come with as many contacts as the local competition. They may also have better language skillls for the area, which is an obstacle. If any non-EU person wanted to work there, only come with money set aside and with an exit plan if things don't work out. If you don't have either, Korea is a wise choice--your expenses will be paid and your nationality is not critical as long as you have a passport from an English-speaking country and a bachelor's degree.

My fiance (almost husband) is from the EU and he wants to stay in Taiwan because the job market is so bleak.

[jnesta1]

Congrats to LAgirl! I too am working on a link through my great grandpa. Lots of work, but do-able I think.

Here is a link for anyone interested in the details of Italian Citizenship "by blood" as they say.

http://www.italyemb.org/Cittadinanza.htm

It's in Italian, then English. In case the link doesn't work, it's at teh Consular Services section of the Embassy web site.

Good luck!

Jeff

[Jetgirly]

Just for another perspective:

My grandfather (Opa) was a German citizen who fought in WW2. His submarine was captured off the coast of Canada and he was taken in as a POW. He had a pregnant wife (my Oma) back in Germany, and when the war was over and he was released, she came to join him in Canada with their first daughter. My Oma then gave birth to my father before she and my grandfather became Canadian citizens.

About six years ago my dad looked into matters, and discovered that even though he was born in Canada, he could get German citizenship. It required a lot of work because my grandparents didn't keep very good records, and it was difficult for him to prove that he was born BEFORE they became Canadians (and he needed copies of their German marriage certificates). However, he finally got all the documentation together and successfully applied for his German citizenship.

When he received his passport, some literature was enclosed that said German citizenship is paternal... meaning he could pass it on to his children (but not his wife), and that his MALE children could then pass it on to their children (and so on...). So the buck stops with me, but my brother can apply for citizenship and then pass it on to his kids. My kids and my mom are out of luck.

[go2guy]

Geez, I thought it was only the Latin countries that were so sexist! Anyway, it's always fun to hear of the ways in which we sometimes back into our new-found citizenships. I acquired a British passport in similar fashion ... My Dad came with his parents from Northern Ireland to Canada as an infant. Good thing he wasn't much of a traveler in his adult life because he may have been forced to choose between a Cdn and Brit passport. If he had gone the Cdn route he may have ceded his Brit citizenship. So, because dear old Dad was such a homebody I was able to get a Brit passport with relative ease (getting his birth certificate was the toughest part). Anyway, as for work for "non-EUers" in Europe I would agree (from my own experiences in France) with Shirley, i.e. if you have the academic qualifications and general profile schools are looking for they will find a way of getting you the required paperwork ("wo eine Wille ist ist auch ein Weg", as they say in German!)

[jnesta1]

For those who may still be trying to obtain Italian citizenship, there are also maternal options available. Again, all the details can be found at the Embassy web site, or any local consular website (US anyway) as well.

Buona foruna a tutti!

Jeff