Nine Months Later

  • September 8, 2009 8:49 PM

Last Fall, when preparing to move to Belgium, I corresponded with a blogger who was about 6 months ahead of me in the process. (Hi Julie!) She gave me a list of documents I would need and clued me into the red tape of Belgium residency cards. I’ll admit it..I disregarded some of what she said because I was sure our process would be different. We’re an American/EU citizen couple, and we thought we were going to get to skip through the whole process. We were way off..in fact, my American/American friends who arrived at the same time as us got their cards months earlier. Mine took 9 months…

Here’s how it worked… Note: Every commune (neighborhood) seems to have different rules. I live in Ixelles.  If you live in another commune, your process probably has some differences.

1. Collect information in US
There were several documents we had to collect before we moved. Unfortunately, the list varies depending on what commune you live in. We did not know where we were going to live yet, so we collected them all just to be sure. First, I requested a certified copy of my birth certificate and marriage license. Though I could go into the Atlanta office for the marriage license, the birth certificate was on the other side of the country and had to be ordered by registered mail. These documents had to be apostilled, sort of like a notary but by the state department. Next, I got a physical and a notarized medical certificate (preferably by an approved doctor) that I was healthy. Finally, I was fingerprinted at the police station and sent the fingerprints to the FBI for a copy of my official criminal history record. It was also recommended that we get these all translated into French or Dutch, but we didn’t.

2. Moving in
As I mentioned before, your residence card depends on what commune you live in. Therefore, we couldn’t start the process for the first month while we were in temporary housing. Soon after we moved into our permanent apartment, we were visited by the police. No, we weren’t partying too loud – they just wanted to confirm that we really lived there. We weren’t home when they visited us, but they noted our names on the mailbox and left a note with an appointment to come to the station to fill out some forms. Some of our friends have had them come in their homes and request to see their passports.  After filling out the forms, they gave a letter stating that they checked us out.

3. First visit to commune
Though we moved into our permanent apartment February 1st, we were not able to get an appointment at our commune until the end of the month. At our appointment, we took all of our documents from Step 1 and 2, plus 4 passport photos each and filled out more forms requesting our residency cards. They looked only at our birth certificates and marriage license.  At this point, Thomas was very anxious for his residence card so he could buy a motorcycle and get a Belgian driver’s license, but that’s a whole other story. They told us that when everything is ready, they’ll mail us a PIN number to pick up our cards.

4. Thomas gets his card
Four weeks later, we got our PIN and went in for our appointment. Thomas got his permanent residency card, but I was told that I would have to wait 5 months while they investigated that our marriage is legit. Supposedly, if I had gotten a spousal visa before moving, this would not be required, but we did not know. I was given a temporary card and told that I couldn’t leave Belgium for the 5 months. (Shhh! Just ignore the Around the World category on this blog.) Actually, the issue was that I couldn’t get my passport stamped, but there are  25 EU countries (Schengen states) that don’t stamp passports when traveling from Belgium. I just stuck to those, but I did have to cancel my flights to Ireland and the US.

5. Five months pass
I guess I passed the marriage test because at the end of August, I got an invitation in the mail to visit the commune again. I arrived first thing in the morning and it took all of 15 minutes to fill out the paperwork for my card. They took my temporary card and 4 more passport photos and told me to wait for my PIN in the mail.

6. The final appointment
Two weeks later, I got the PIN in the mail and headed back to the commune. Again, I was there first thing in the morning and seen right away. I handed in my letter and my PIN number and they handed me my residency card. It’s a type F (family) card, which means that I’m married to an EU citizen. If Thomas moves away from the country, I’m not allowed to stay, but I am allowed to work here in the meantime.

DSC_6589-Edit-Edit

I'm now a card-carrying permanent resident of Belgium.

Thank goodness we had our relocation company to help us. Our commune was very flexible in speaking English to us, but having help reduced the headaches. This experience helped illustrate to me what this process must be like for people entering the US. It’s not a fun deal.

Note: There were some fees paid at the commune for our residency cards, but our relocation person handled that, so I’m not sure what they were. They weren’t much though.

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

  • June 8, 2009 12:39 PM

Man, those questions you guys gave me a couple posts back…they’re not easy. :) The first one asks what character changes I’ve noticed in myself since moving here.  Great question!

I’m not sure if it shows in my blog, but I’m a Type A person – I like schedules and lists, I’m a rule-follower and worry-wort, and I get stressed if things are not following the plan. However, I had to give those traits up with moving here.  I think I’ve become a lot more easy-going and relaxed.

Part of the change is that in the US, I felt that I had control over my life.  I decided what I wanted to do and when I wanted to do it.  Over here, I’ve had to let go a little.  I’m not hopelessly waiting for someone to rescue me, but it’s more of not knowing how things work and not having the language to always move it forward myself right away.

Over here, I can plan an entire day out, only to discover that the tram doesn’t come because it’s a holiday, or there’s a protest.  I’m not as likely to return something at the store, or argue for a discount because of a flaw because I don’t know how to explain myself in French or Dutch.  For 2 months, I used fabric softener rather than detergent on our clothes because I didn’t translate the text on the bottle.  Fortunately, because I have a very flexible schedule, it’s easy to say, “It didn’t work out today – let’s just try again tomorrow.”

In the whole scheme of things, Belgium isn’t that different from the US.  It’s not like we’re living in a place with thatch-roof huts, or water we have to collect ourselves.  But still, everyday has a ton of little differences and with those, little accomplishments – I figured out what sour cream is called, I learned where to buy curtains, I greeted my neighbor in French on the way out of the building. These things are part of the overseas adventure.

So, yes, I think I have changed.  I’ve learned to let go and not be stressed about things I can’t control…well, at least a little bit. :)  I’ve even caught myself telling Thomas to not worry, that we’ll figure it out in time.  It’s the only way I could remain happy while living in a place where I can’t always predict how things work.

It’s hard to review your own character; I wonder if Thomas would say these same things about me from his perspective.

Stress Busters

  • November 7, 2008 10:42 PM

When life gets you stressed, go out for ice cream…

Ice Cream Sundae Ice Cream Sundae

If you ever decide to move to Belgium, remember to get the following:

  • Passport, with at least 15 months until expiration
  • Certified Birth Certificate, with apostille
  • Certified Wedding Certificate, with apostille
  • Official Criminal History Record from the FBI, with fingerprints
  • Notarized Medical Certificate, preferably from an approved doctor
  • and of course, all of these may require a French or Dutch translation depending on what town you’re moving to…

We’re working on it.  In other news, after a handful of standups and rejections from Craigslist, we’ve sold our frog tank and our dining room set.  Just a bedroom set, a couple of desks, and a TV armoire to go.  We also had a bit of drama with our house painters.  Isn’t moving fun?

Happy Halloween!

  • October 31, 2008 6:21 PM

Happy Halloween from me and my uh…”grandmother”.  This photo was taken on Halloween in 1984, when I was 5, and he she was 9.

Halloween 1984

Halloween, 1984

This year, my Halloween started at the local police department where I was fingerprinted. No, I didn’t egg the sherriff’s house or anything fun like that. One of the documents I need for Belgium is an FBI Identification Record, or in other words, my criminal record history stating that I’m not fleeing the law. To do this, I had to get my fingerprints taken. Fun, fun. Actually, it wasn’t that bad. They said they do it all the time for people who are moving overseas.

Just the Facts, Ma’am

  • October 28, 2008 10:14 PM

Thank you so much for the well wishes, everyone.  I’m very excited about the move, but also stressed and a little nervous.  I appreciate you letting me know that you made it over to my new blog.  I was a little afraid that I would lose you all in the site change.  Don’t forget to update your feedreaders and links.

Now that it’s out in the open that we’re moving, I’ve been getting a few questions about it.  Hopefully this will help.

Belgium Books

Belgium Books

All about Belgium

  • The entire country is about the size of Maryland.
  • The northern part speaks Dutch and the southern part speaks French.
  • Brussels is the capital and both languages are officially spoken there.
  • Belgium is bordered by The Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, France, and the North Sea.
  • On a train from Brussels, Paris is 1:45 hours away, London is 2:30 hours away, and Amsterdam is 2:45 hours away.
All about Our Move
  • When do you leave?
    We’re planning on spending Christmas week with my family in Texas, and will head out from there around the 29th.
  • How long will you be in Belgium?
    We’ll be there for at least 2 years, but it is basically open-ended.
  • Where will you live?
    We haven’t quite figured this out yet.  Thomas’ job will be in Mons, but it’s a small, quiet town, so we’re thinking about living in Brussels.  The downside is that Thomas’ commute would be about an hour, which is what he currently does here in Atlanta.
  • Do you speak French or Dutch?
    Nope, not really.  I studied French from elementary school through college, so I’m hoping it will come back to me.  Thomas can recognize some Dutch words from his Swedish background, but he’s currently taking an Intro to French class.
  • Will you be able to work there?
    Because Thomas is an EU citizen (Swedish), I will be able to work there.  If he was American, I would not.  It will take a couple of months for the paperwork to go through for me, and I’ll need some time to learn the language.  In the meantime, I get to work on my hobbies – travel, photography, and sewing.
  • Are you selling your house?
    Because of the current market, I don’t think we’ll be able to sell our house right now.  Instead, we’re going to try to rent it out, and hopefully the market will improve in time.
  • What about Clover?
    She’s been living with my parents in NC since July, when we went on our first Belgium trip.  After we confirmed that we were going to do this, we decided to have her stay there.  We could take her with us, but with the travel we’re hoping to do, it will be easier without her.  It’s hard to not have her snuggles everyday, but she loves being with her sister (my parents have her littermate) and my parents are taking good care of her — though we love to see more photos of her. :)
  • What do your parents think of all this?
    Maybe my mom will leave a comment on this one, but I think they’re excited for me.  They’ve already mentioned coming over to visit and have been very supportive and encouraging.  I think they see it like I do – a great opportunity at a great time in our lives – though like parents do, they worry about us too.
  • What are you doing with all of your stuff?
    We’ll take a lot with us, but since we’re going from a 4-bedroom house to a 2-bedroom apartment, we’ve been trying to downsize and declutter.  Some of our furniture has gone on Craigslist, we’ve sold a ton of books, and we’ll put some in storage.  We’re really looking at this as an opportunity to live simply.
  • What about your bus?
    We’re not able to take any vehicles, so the bus will be going into storage.  My brother is going to take my Honda, and Thomas will be selling his motorcycle.
  • Can I come visit?
    Yes, please!  Just let us know when you want to come.  We have loved having visitors in Atlanta, and I’m hoping for just as many in Belgium.  At the least, we can provide couch-space and tour around with you.
So, did I forget anything?  Got any other questions for me?