Should i move to Luxembourg from Atalnta, GA??? what's it like?

Hello katiebanks,

Welcome to Expat.com!

Maybe you could have a look at this thread "Living in Luxembourg" as well.

Wish you all the best.

Rouma

It is unfortunate that the link provided above has such a sour opinion of Luxembourg for it's top post, so please consider it with a grain of salt. Logic should tell you that folks wouldn't be moving here in droves or commuting into the country if it were honestly that awful of a place!

We have been here for about 6 months now. Yes, it rains a bit, can be foggy, and gets dark early. Yes, it is colder here than Atlanta (or in my case, Dallas). HOWEVER, the opportunities that are associated with living in Europe are endless and there are many beautiful days to compensate for the rather dreary ones!

I have 11 and 13 year old boys and I am already amazed at the difference I am seeing in them with this move. We spent the last 10+ years living the suburban city life and though it has it's moments, it is all just really the same ol' thing, regardless of what city you live in. Making the move to Europe is like wiping the slate clean and discovering opportunities that you otherwise don't have available to you in the U.S. As young as your children are (assuming this is a permanent move and not a temporary one), they will likely grow up to be bilingual or trilingual. Though the language can be a barrier initially, it can also prove to be a great opportunity - you just have to be patient.  My oldest son plays tennis and though we are still trying to learn the ropes about club tennis here, there are several really great tennis clubs in the area, so you should be able to find something. Again, language can be a bit of an issue if you don't speak French. I do know the American Women's Club has a tennis group, though I don't know how competitive they are. In any case, I am sure you can find other women through them who play more competitive tennis.

Finally, with regards to schools, that is a decision worth a little research and determination with regards to what you want from their education. If you are looking to immerse them in the culture, I have met many parents who have sent their children to the local Luxembourgish schools for elementary schooling. Most, however, do eventually move their children over to the International School or St. Georges, especially if you want them to go to a US university. The IB program at ISL is competitive and challenging, but they have an excellent sports program as well as art/music. So, they provide a nice balance. The travel opportunities are endless and if your children attend ISL, field trips are everywhere from Switzerland in 5th grade, Belgium in 6th, Germany in 7th and France in 8th - all having their academic and social benefits. Sports competitions are against other Northern European schools, so if they choose to play a sport, games/tournaments will also have them traveling to nearby countries. I am amazed at the international perspective my children have already developed and their transition to the ISL was easier than their move to Dallas from Virginia.

Good luck on your decision. Just know that yes, it is a big move, yes it will be different, and yes it will be hard at first. You just have to decide if it is the right time in your life for this type of change (it is often difficult when the mom quits working without throwing the international move to the milestone) and whether you can approach the change with an optimistic outlook

Dear Katie,
My family recently moved to Luxembourg this summer. We have two children, an 11 year old daughter, and a 13 year old son. Moving out of the United States was totally out of my comfort zone, but we are very happy in Luxembourg. I actually lived in Atlanta with my husband before having children and loved it there! Luxembourg is nothing like Atlanta, but you are living in Europe! My children are extremely happy here and love their school and have made tons of friends. They have always been in private schools except for last year and feel their school is very similar to the schools they went to in the states but better. They now have friends from so many countries and have learned about their cultures and traditions. My children also participate in the very active sports program at the school and they also play on Luxembourg teams. I really feel like I am giving them such a wonderful gift by bringing them here. My daughter has played soccer in Belgium and the Netherlands. My son swims all over the country of Luxembourg and will go to the French alps for a week of swim training with his team this spring. They will also swim in competitions with the school in Belgium, Switzerland, and Norway.
When I lived in Atlanta, I played tennis for ALTA. Unfortunately, I worked full-time before moving here and did not have time for tennis anymore. I do have a friend here that plays twice a week and I believe it is a competitive league. There are very nice sports facilities here including nice indoor tennis facilities. I hope this information helps and you strongly consider Luxembourg.
Melanie

Hi Katie,

Not sure how far along you are in your decision-making process, but I thought I'd send you some info that might be helpful.

You will like Luxembourg! There's lots to do here and your kids are a great age for it. You will find lots of activities like Tennis, yoga, swimming (there's a great indoor swim center for the kids with a wave pool, water slides, etc) and the travel is fantastic - so many places to go within a 2-3 hour drive (EASY day trips or overnights to Paris, Brussels, Heidelberg, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Strasbourg). Castles everywhere, and there's a great expat community. My husband said he loves going out to social events and always being surrounded by so many smart, interesting people, all eager to share info about cultural differences, places to go, things to do. It takes a few months to get acclimated, there are pros and cons alays, but it's a cool adventure!

Knowing some basic French is very helpful, but you can still get around on English. If you're in Germany, more people speak English than in France. There are several places to go here for French lessons, and the American Women's Club can give you some glossary lists to help with figuring out groceries in the store, driving signs, and laundry machines. Register with the American Women's club right away, they can be super helpful.

For the kids, I think their ages are good for this kind of move. The school (ISL) is comparable to an average US public school I'd say. Not super strong on the core academics, but they do a decent job with science and history and field trips to ancient Roman ruins and various nearby historical sites. And they do a lovely job with music, art and theater performances. The kids will make friends from all over the world and take it in stride "Oh yes, he's from Russia, she's from Iceland, Denmark, etc." St. Georges is the British school, but FWIW, all the Brits I know says it's crap and send their kids to ISL. There's a European school as well, but unless you work for the European Union, it's near impossible to get in.So ISL is pretty much the only choice. And it's expensive, so make sure your hub's company will cover that.

One very helpful thing is to switch your US phone to Vonage before you leave - it gives you a box that you hook up through the internet, and you can keep your US home phone number and people there can call you as usual and it just rings you over here, with no long distance fees. It's only about $25-$35 per month, and you can talk to family and friends clear as a bell, for however long you want. This is huge for easing the transition and homesickness, and managing misc things back in the States as needed. Just get a local cell phone for calls here.

For TV you can ask around for "dodgy Sky guy" and get hooked up with Sky TV so you can have the same TV as you'd have in London, and there are lots of US programs (American Idol, Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, etc and all the CSIs and Law & Order, either in syndication or current seasons maybe just slightly delayed from the US.) And there are ways to get current US tv shows online as well.

It's truly a very nice place for a family. Very safe, clean, not a lot of crime.

I recommend looking at athome.lu to start looking at available housing. That's the closest you'll get to a multiple listing service, but you have to contact agents individually. If you are given relocation assistance, when it comes to a housing search, be aware that each agent is only limited to the properties listed with their service. So you might do best shopping around on your own.

Belair is a very desirable neighborhood, within walking distance to the city center. Other neighborhoods to look at would be Limpertsberg, Centre, Strassen... you can see the parts of town on the athome.lu site that are closest to the city and the school, and then with the buses here it would be managable with one car. If you want a bit more land space, you can go a little further out to Bertrange. Everything's pretty close here, but I think people are happiest when they live fairly close to town and the school.

I wish you luck, and I can tell you that for our family, after the the first few months of settling in, we're really really loving the experience. If you had to choose a place to try an expat tour in Europe, Luxembourg is a great choice.

Hello to all of the lovely ladies writing here and supporting each other!

I must say one of my biggest fears of moving there is the sense of community that we developed here, Qatar! yes I know I know!
But believe it or not I will miss all the ladies and moms that were always ready to support to each other and give a helping hand!
I am an American mom of twin girls 13yrs old, currently working in Doha for the past four years. My husband is Belgian and believes we should move to Europe instead of US. I support his decision but I am quite worried naturally for the girls in terms of schooling. Though, I felt a bit better after reading your posts. The girls both are very competitive in sports, drama, and music.. all the ones that you mentioned here.

private schools? well not sure if we could afford that since we are just moving there with no plans!!! I know but we kind of have had it here and ready to get back to the reality and getting the girls ready before entering universities in Belgium.

So getting to the school might be an issue at the moment. I am also told that because of their coloring(biracial)they might not be treated well. So this part of it scares me.

Jobs- I have always been working and the thought of not finding a job is killing me. So I have been looking and looking (big player on linkedin) and trying to connect with international businesses, US companies and such that I could work for them.

Wish me luck or any of you with their husbands already working for English companies, please keep me in mind.

Anyways, though I am very excited specially after reading your posts, I can't help wondering what would happen next and how we would get through the transition???

Thanks for hearing me out!
expat mom of twins

My husband is in process of interviewing for job in Luxembourg.  We currently live in Louisville, KY and have 2 small children (2 and 4 yr old).  Is this a good place for a family?  Do you recommend living in Lux or elsewhere and commuting?  I am most worried about the language barrier as I only speak English.

In reply to leannerush

Yes, it is a good place for family. Lots of parks and playgrounds, very safe, people are friendly. The society is rather conservative, and in fact single young people might find it boring. For example, the shops close early and on Sundays all of them are closed (except some 'special' Sundays).

Regarding living in Luxembourg (I assume you mean the city) vs elsewhere I cannot recommend categorically one or the other. The rental prices in the city are higher than outside, but of course it also depends on what you rent. You might even consider renting/buying in the neighbouring countries - France or Germany, or perhaps Belgium, where the prices are much lower. Many of my colleagues do so, but I really cannot comment on specifics. You can check out athome.lu to get the idea of the prices. But also bear in mind that Luxembourg city is a very international one - about half of the inhabitants are foreigners. Outside the city it is less so.

Most of the people here speak English, even in the official institutions, although not all. I was able to get by for 1.5 years with English, which by the way is not my native language. Nevertheless, some French might help, as most of the written information is in French, sometimes also in German or Luxembourgish.

I have heard that there is an active American community here (must be awcluxembourg.com/), although I do not know any details.
Overall, bear in mind that there are very many foreigners here, so certainly you will not stand out of the crowd.

There are some expenses that you would never expect to have. As a tenant, you pay the real-estate fee, worth one month of rent, plus a 15% tax on this amount. You also pay damage deposit of two months worth of rent. If you arrange for a bank guarantee instead of cash, the fee for this may be quite expensive.

On that note, bring lots of cash. It takes weeks to set up a bank account here and you will have to pay all these expenses up front, if you want to have a roof over your head.
1st rent payment of 1,200 + 200 monthly maintenance fee
1200 + tax to the agent (15%) = 1380
2 months of rent as damage deposit = 2400
Total = over 5,180 EURO !!! in cash

Plus hotel costs (you will need a month, at least).
Anywhere from 70-100Euro per night
2 weeks = at a really cheap rate of 85 Euro, let's say, is 1,190 Euro
4 weeks is 2,380.

Be prepared to have about 7,500 Euro available. The apartment search took me all day, every day, it isn't something you can do after work. Most agencies close at 5pm and absolutely nothing can get done on the weekend.

Pre-arrival costs:
flights for 3 people (about a $1000-1200 each)
storage (~ $300/month while gone, unless you get rid of all your posessions there)- first 2 months I count as initial cost, but it is up to you to add these costs to the total

Initial costs of coming here :
7,500 Euro =    $10, 200 US
flights = $ 3,600
Total minimal initial costs associated with coming to Luxembourg, for which you need to put funds aside = $13,800

You cannot rent an apartment while still in the US. I tried very hard. The last thing I wanted to do was to show up here, not knowing when I will a roof over my head. However, it does not seem to be possible to arrange for an apartment ahead of time. There are many potential tenants. You will first meet with the agent, then you will have an interview with the landlord (if the agent thinks you are the best candidate) and then you will be contacted, if you still are the best candidate, to come and sign the lease. You will also need a lot of documentation to do this. One of these is a valid work contract and a bank account. This is an absolute requirement.

You will need to find an insurance company to insure the contents.
You will have to sign a contract for utilities, after you find a utility company to sign this with. The maintenance fee is for everything outside of the apartment, like washing of the hallways and garbage.
You will have to find a company to get a phone installed, as well as internet. The contract is usually two years, make sure that there is a diplomatic clause in the contract, incase you give up on this place after all. You will have to buy the equipment (router, etc.) – about 80 Euros.

2. legal advice – e.g. rental contract
As far as I know, including a “Diplomatic Clause” allows one to break the lease before the year is over, in case things don't work out and you need to return to the US.
You will need someone to read the lease with you, particularly if it is in French. However, leases here can be written in a rather convoluted manner. With mine, all seemed clear, until it came to leaving. This is another reason why you need your employer to provide advice. Do not take the job, if this is not available.

Unlike in the US, the administration (believe it or not) is about 100x more complicated here. No matter how much one ever complained about the administration in the US, it works like a clockwork there, compared to Luxembourg.
The saying here is #1 Assume nothing, #2 Go there in person. The ONLY thing you can assume is that every step of the process will be performed badly. I kept waiting to be surprised when I'll see an exception to this rule, but after four months, I am yet to be disappointed.

In retrospect, I would definitely not accept a job unless the employer guaranteed to process my paperwork. Do not take any excuse and do not settle for a “list” of steps. Do not take a verbal promise, these were forgotten rather quickly, once I was here. If Luxembourg administration is good at one thing, it the illusion of everything being organized. I was fully convinced that I have an HR contact that will help me with any issues that may arise, but in reality, nothing was further from the truth. The ONLY thing I got form my so-called “HR contact” was a website where all realtors post available apartments. This is the first website one reaches when you Google “Luxembourg apartments for rent”, I had it months earlier.
The process is so convoluted, that there is no set number of steps and no set way of going about this, everyone is an exception and you can't ask about things you don't know about. Do not take this lightly, often I had to make a trip to one office or another three times per week. Despite being a workaholic, my productivity has been reduced by 30-50%, making my experience here extremely frustrating and, in the end, reduced performance only looks bad on you, as in retrospect no one will care that you spent nearly half your time visiting government offices. My mind was constanlty preoccupied with some impending administrative problem, wondering what is it I forgot to ask. After coming back four times and asking if all is well, getting a letter in the mail that some part of the process was not completed. It was like living in a twilight zone. Try adjusting to a new workplace and trying to show your strengths, it was impossible. How can you concentrate when you are being kept in the dark whether your kids will get into a school and an after-school care for a month and a half, until the week before the school started. I was in a total panic. I was locked into a lease by now, but I would not be able to work, unless I had care for my children. Worst case scenario was stopping lease payments and going home, losing my 2-month deposit.
I was also told that you won't get far if you don't speak Luxembourgish. Most things are done according to who you know. Do not, under any circumstances, underestimate this.

Make sure the employer covers your administrative expenses (including medical). Just the medicals can be extremely expensive, as due to government requirement overlaps, you will have to go for a number of check-ups. There is one for residency that the City Hall requires – for a family of four that is 4 times 40-50 Euro plus a TB test (even for children). Then there is another health check for employment, usually arranged by the employer, but charged to you. None of these are covered by the local health system. Plus the cost (50 Euros per person) of submitting this information to the federal government (yes, after you submitted this to the city). I have spent hundreds and hundreds of Euros on just administrative costs, far in excess of what I was told to expect.
residency check-up – family of four ~45x4=180
TB test and chest x-rays 20 each = 80
Submitting documents to federal gov't is 50 each = 200
total 460 Euros
not including fees paid for documents prior to entry to Luxembourg.

If I was to do this again, I would require:

1. temporary accommodations until one I find an apartment, employer to cover at least some of the costs associated with the hotel and with finding an apartment (agent fee and bank security deposit fee).

2. Guarantee that the HR will process ALL my documents, get this IN WRITING (many things were promised, but if not in writing, swiftly denied to have been promised) and cover the many fees associated with this.

3. A contact to refer to in case of any difficulties with Luxembourg administration, help with forms, dealing with administrative people that you have to call and who won't speak English to you, lease, etc. Remember, you don't get far if you don't speak Luxembourgish (even though French and German are the other two official languages, I have witnessed that, you are dealt with differently). Don't assume that an HR person assigned to you will help with this, I was told by an HR person “this is not in my job description”. Lease and all processing all your documentation, including obtaining the tax card for your employer, is considered a personal issue, not the issue of your employer, no one will help you with any aspects of this.

4. Arrange for a car lease for the time that I you are to be in Luxembourg, if this is less than two years.

5. Schooling for children. The story of how the children will be instructed changed drastically, depending on whom you ask, from federal to local governments, to even different people in the same local office. Bottom line, despite what the curriculum says, most instruction is in Luxembourgish, in all grades, even grade 5 (its equivalent).

We were told that registration is no problem and that there is an after-school program and a way to integrate our child into the school system. I was told that the first few grades are in German and the second half of Grade school is in French by the federal administrators. Then the  local school government told me that his is not exactly clear. Then the school had yet another description and the truth really didn't come through until our child started school. Most instruction is in Luxembourgish, the early grades use school material written in German. Not sure what they meant by integrating the child in, but the teacher spoke some very, very basic English.
According to the Grade description, our child was supposed to be in Grade 6, this was confirmed by the person I contacted at the federal level. The local school administrator insisted that the child needs to go to Grade 5. I argued, based on age described in a table form the federal government, this is clearly Grade 6. I was told that all kids of the same age go to the same grade and our child should be in Grade 5 according to this. So, Grade 5 it was and on the first day, we discovered that out child, of average height in the US, is a head taller than everyone else. Arguing with the school made no difference, we went back to the City Hall where the local school administration resides and were told that this is because their system is certainly ahead of ours. Two sentences later the same administrator told us that the Luxembourg schooling level may be a bit behind compared to the US, because they have three languages, so we can't expect the children to be at the same math, as well as other subject, levels as everywhere else. Sure enough, within three weeks we were meeting with the teacher, because our child was at least a year ahead and was doing school material form the next grade. However, because of age, our child would not be moved up to the next grade level (incidentally, where the kids of the same height were). I cannot describe my total exasperation with this system.

When I was researching after-school care options, it seemed that such care would be reasonably available. We were on a long waiting list until the very start of the school! I was about to go door-to-door and knock at the addresses of women care-givers given to me, as there were no phone numbers and, at this time, I was told that a list of phone numbers for these women does not exist. I doubt that many would speak English, but without after-school care I would have to resign my position and return home.
Mid-week week before the start of the school, the very day I took a day off from work to go knock on doors, I was finally notified that we were awarded a spot in the after-school care at the school, which provides food and care for children during the 2-hour lunch break three days in a week, and after-school care on the two days when school ends at around 2pm.
I do have to say that the lunch and after-school care for children here is excellent and something people in the US can only dream of.

Make sure you supply doctor's notes whenever the child is sick. Without these you will be charged for the hours. So, even if it is a minor cold that you could treat at home, you need a doctor's note.