I thought I'd write a little description about our preparations for moving to Europe to sing, starting in August of 2007. These preparations cluster into several categories, listed here in no particular order:
- arrange for the absence
- find a tenant
- obtain residency in another country
- find a job for one or both of us
- get the kids in school
#1: Arrange for the absence
Maggie: Within Maggie's profession as a teacher, the principle of the paid sabbatical is well-established. Maggie applied for what is known as a "Four-over-five", meaning four years' pay distributed evenly over five years. The idea is that you work for four years for 80% of your base pay and take a paid year off at the same rate. This works so well as a set-and-forget savings plan that some teaching professionals stay on the four over five programme continuously. This is a way to write that book, lie on a beach in Mexico for a year, take a big bite out of that Ph.D., etc. while still getting paid your customary salary.
Surprisingly, the cool thing is that you don't have to be in academics to take advantage of this; talk to your payroll department and HR departments to see if they can swing it.
Status: applied for and approved, sabbatical to commence June 2007.
Matthew: In addition to my musical career, I also work during the day as a business analyst for a large corporation, and chose not to apply for a four-over-five arrangement with them. Instead, I applied for an unpaid leave of absence. In this arrangement my employer agrees to hold a job for me during my leave. I receive no pay during this period, but I do have the option of continuing to maintain my benefits package - provided I pay the premiums - and continue to accumulate service time as an employee of the company. This leave is for one year, with an option to extend it to a second year.
Status: applied for and approved, leave to commence August 15th, 2007.
#2: Find a tenant
Maggie took a number of pictures of the house, and posted a profile on a number of sites, including the University of Toronto bulletin board, and www.sabaticalhomes.com. These postings cost $30. As it turns out she had more luck with www.sabbaticalhomes.com, ending up with around 150 viewings within the first three weeks. We had several offers, and rented to a family from Australia with whom we negotiated an acceptable rental agreement.
Family friends Kimball and Marilyn Sarin of www.bosleyrealestate.com here in Toronto were very helpful in guiding us through developing a customized rental agreement; there are a number of specific details that should be clearly thought out and added to the agreement, before you even begin to post an ad.
Status: reliable tenant found, rental agreement signed, deposit accepted
#3: Obtain residency (see #4 below)
#4: Get a job
These two are closely related: success at getting a job clears the main hurdle in obtaining residency.
European countries such as Belgium allow for visitors from Canada to stay without visas for up to three months. Obtaining residency for longer periods is more problematic.
In every European country we have investigated, the process must start with an offer of work by an employer to a foreign worker (us). The process looks like this:
- the employer offers the foreign worker a job
- the employer applies for a work permit in the destination country
- the employee applies to the forgein consulate in their home country for a VISA
- the VISA allows the foreign worker to reside in the destination country
In our case we thought it made more sense to settle Maggie and the boys in a location that suits them best, as operatic and concert work is by nature itinerant and transitory. As well, teachers are likely to be hired on the basis of a good resume, references, and a telephone interview; the same cannot be said of singing actors.
We are looking into the contingency of having no job at all in August 2007. There is a possibility because of our self-sustaining financial situation that we might be able to obtain residency without employment.
Status - Maggie: continuing to try to find an employer who will formalize an offer to hire her to teach. The hiring cycle in Belgium seems to be gaining momentum at this time of year.
Status - Matthew: auditions for several opera houses and agents in Belgium, France, and Amsterdam are established for September.
Status - contingency: We are inquiring with the embassy and department of immigration about the possibility of obtaining residency without employment.
#5: Get the kids in school
Our two children are four and eight years old. The oldest has exposure to French, and the youngest is young enough that he should adapt, so we are still exploring the possibility of enrolling them directly into the Belgian normal school system. Were Maggie to find a job with an international or private school, that would open additional possibilities.
Status - on hold until the employment riddle is solved; Belgian normal school is a possibility.
That's it for now, I'll be back soon to give you an update, and thanks for your interest.
Matthew
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