Every country has some way of identifying its citizens and cataloguing their various circumstances. In the United States it is the Social Security number (SSN). I’ve had this memorized since college. I had to, my University even printed it on our ID’s! We used them to order pizza! Thankfully, that practice stopped shortly before I graduated…but I digress. In the UK it is your National Health Service (NHS) number. The NHS number is very important for taxes and the like, but the UK is so well connected that I didn’t really need to learn it. If I gave my name and house number, most any agency could track me down. In Sweden, it is the personnummer or personal number. This is the number of all numbers. You need this for everything! I’m actually a bit shocked by the sheer number of places that require it.

Your Swedish personal number is not exactly like an SSN and it’s not exactly like an NHS number. It’s an all around number. You use it to pay taxes, to see the doctor, to enroll your child in nursery, to set up the internet, to enroll in IKEA Family…wait, what?!? You use your personal number that you use at the doctor and with the government to enroll in IKEA Family??? Right now you think I’m joking don’t you? I’m not. This number is the number to rule all numbers. It’s the granddaddy of all numbers and if you are planning to be in Sweden for more than one year, you are eligible to get one. If not…you are going to need a lot of help from others.

Skatteverkett, Swedish Tax Agency

After going to the Migration Board and turning in all of your paperwork to get a residence permit card (UT card); you will be able to go to the Tax Agency and apply for your personal number. If you will not be in Sweden for a full year, you are eligible for a co-ordination number. I’m not quite sure how they differ, but I do know there is no “co-ordination” option on that IKEA Family application 😉

The Tax Agency does not accept appointments, and I have been told the wait can be anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour and a half. Please note that they are open between 10am and 4pm with lunch from 12pm to 1pm. It is key that you arrive with all required data. In our case, we brought:

– Copy of work contract
– Migration Board cards
– Marriage Certificate
– Birth Certificate for our toddler
– Passports

We were told that because we had the Migration Board cards, we didn’t really need the work contract, but better safe than sorry.

After filling out the forms they provided, we waited between 30 and 45 minutes. I feel this is reasonable; kind of like getting your license renewed. Our arrival time did coincide with the conclusion of lunch and I do not know if this was helpful or not.

I also need to note that we are not doing this alone. Our liaison, Rachel, from Nordic Relocations, took us to the Migration Board and also to the Tax Agency. She brought along the copy of the work contract, information on our permanent housing, and even entertained our toddler while we were filling out the paperwork. If you do not have a Rachel or if you just want to be extra prepared, this website is very helpful:

http://work.sweden.se/plan-your-move/register-with-the-authorities/

The employees at both the Migration Board and the Tax Agency were very helpful and friendly. Once you complete your paperwork, you take a number and the Tax Agency employee will need to make a copy of all your documents. They will be returned before you leave. This whole process took about 10 minutes once our number was called.

After completing your paperwork, there is nothing to do except wait. Receiving the personal number will take between 1 and 4 weeks. Rachel speaks excellent Svenska (Swedish) and followed up on our behalf, ensuring we had our numbers available even before they sent out the confirmation letters. After the notice was received in the mail, we went the next day to have our photos taken for our formal identification cards (officially my worst identification picture EVER). These cards have your personal number as well as not one, but four pictures; four awful pictures… From start to finish, this whole process took us about a month and a half.

After speaking with some friends, I feel it is imperative to note that our experience is in line with individuals coming in on a long term work permit. We have an American friend not on a work permit, who joined his Swedish partner and child in the country and his experience is very different. He is in a queue to be able to apply for his personal number and is anticipating waiting at least six months. He began the paperwork in August and is still waiting for his number. If you are moving, just make sure to double check these types of things in advance 😃

As a funny aside, yesterday I went to mail a package to the United States. Imagine my surprise when the customs slip on the outside of the box required me to provide my personal number! That means that if you come to Sweden for a short period of time and don’t have a personal number, mailing packages back home (non EU only I think) could be pretty tricky. This number really is THE number for everything.

Like this Ring, except it’s a Number. Image: http://lotr.wikia.com/

I hope the website link and this information is helpful for anyone who is planning a move to Sweden. For the rest of you, I hope you still enjoyed reading 😃

Until next time…

Better late than never? I wrote this blog right after we moved and somehow time got away. Read on for an exciting installment involving…dun dun dun…Socialized Medicine!!!

One common refrain I remember growing up in the United States was the idea that socialized health care, either whole or partial, resulted in lax care and standards. I’ve experienced all levels of the US healthcare system: poor kid with medical coupons, railroad insurance, federal employee insurance, and the penultimate: “The Microsoft Cadillac Plan”. My experience in the UK was interesting. I always got the urgently needed care; waited long times for non-essentials; and was sometimes lucky to get an amazing doctor. Only once was I angry about my treatment and that was quickly rectified, thanks to our supplemental insurance. Needless to say, I went to the doctor today expecting something similar to the UK; after all, this is “socialized medicine” *cue dramatic music*.

This week has been horrible. I’ve been sick, the boy has been sick, the husband is sick; it has been yuck. Finally, despite not yet having personal numbers, we decided we had to see a doctor. Our relocation liaison from Nordic provided us with an office 3 blocks away and gave us the open hours for walk-ins as well as the price we would pay (SEK 1435 or about $169— each). Yeowch! That’s a lot of money. Thankfully, the company my husband works for will reimburse this cost up until we get a personal number.

Masthugget Familjeläkare, with Walk-ins at 9am

When we arrived, I promptly queued (lined up for my US fellows) to ask if they needed any information. My hubby was a bit more on top of it and wandered the room; quickly finding the ubiquitous Swedish “take a number” stand. He came back with numbers 18, 19, and 20. They were onto number 4… We got back into the queue and notified the receptionist about our status (new and without personal numbers). She asked if we had US insurance. *Tip for Travelers* Get travel insurance!!! We explained the reimbursement situation and she looked relieved.

Once that was sorted, she explained that as soon as we had our numbers, we should come again and register. At that point, all of our visits would be SEK 100 (about $12) and our son’s would be free until the age of 6. After that, she pointed us to the children’s area so we could relax while the small one played. They had a pitcher of cold water and an espresso machine for all to use. It was bright, clean, and everyone working was in a good mood.

Ahh! You may be wondering what type of personal data they wanted on us. They requested our names, dates of birth, and a phone number so the doctor could call with the results. That’s it. No identification, no insurance card, no address, just the basics. It was easy and that was helpful with two sick adults and a sick, hyper toddler…

We ended up waiting a LONG time. If you come as a walk-in and don’t have an appointment, we were told the wait is shorter after lunch. Since we got there just as walk-in hours began, there was an immediate disadvantage. Overall, we waited 2 hours. During that time, the hubby went and bought snacks, and we had lots of free water and coffee (water for me and the kid, coffee for hubs). Thankfully, another woman and her child sat down and she explained a lot to us. Have I ever mentioned that most Swedes in Göteborg speak phenomenal English? She even flagged down a nurse to get me a baggie so I could get a urine sample from the small one to make sure he didn’t have a urinary tract infection. Very friendly!

The doctor finally came for us. I’ve never seen a doctor like this in the UK. Fit, handsome, friendly; bonus for the fact that he could understand us 😃 I’m not dissing UK doctors; I’m sure there are many who fit this description; I just didn’t have the pleasure of meeting them. 😉

What happened next was the best customer service I’ve ever had from a physician. He worked on each of us in turn, getting a thorough history, and checking us out. He explained that we seemed to have the current flu; but mine had become bronchitis. Just to be safe, he wanted to do lab tests on all of us to ensure it was viral and not bacterial. Since I’ve also had an ongoing low grade fever previously, he wanted more tests just to make sure everything is good. We left his office about 40 minutes later, armed with 3 prescriptions and 3 lab slips. What happened next was mind boggling.

He pointed to a set of chairs just across the main room and said to wait there for the lab tech. Less than 4 minutes later she was taking our blood…10 minutes later the tests were done and we were sent on our way! There was one test that takes longer; they will be calling in 2 days with the results. Insanity. The efficiency here is amazing. Now came the final hurdle: paying the bill…how much would it be with all those extra labs? Wait for it…

Would you believe me if I said there was NO EXTRA COST FOR THE LAB TESTS?? It was included. Just think, this appointment cost us about $165 per person, but once we are assigned a number, that appointment with all those tests will be $12. But wait! The receptionist neglected to mention this gem that I found at the website, Work in Sweden, “…the maximum cost for visits to a doctor in a 12-month period is SEK 1,100.” This is roughly $130.

There was an additional cost for the prescriptions, but that too will change once we get those personal numbers. Similar to the appointment fees, prescription costs are capped at SEK 2,200 every 12 months. That is roughly $260. Can you imagine that? People would never have to forego medication due to cost if we had this system.

Despite the 2 hour wait, I’m still very satisfied with the amazing service we got today and I am so appreciative of the fact that I was able to get excellent care even as a foreigner wandering in to a medical facility for help.

Remember, if you come to Sweden as a tourist, get travel insurance! If you come as an employee, make sure in advance that your employer will reimburse you until you have a personal number. If they won’t, get travel insurance! We had travel insurance our first week here, before the job started. It was $12 for all 3 of us. This is a small but important detail to remember.

Fear not though, even if you don’t, the Swedes won’t make you go bankrupt to see someone. It will hurt the wallet a bit; but one visit won’t costs thousands of dollars and that I think is awesome. See, not all socialized medical care is evil 😉

Until next time…

It’s time for my second installment showcasing the awesome thrift shops here in Göteborg!  Are you as excited as I am for this?  You should be 😉

The Store: Emmaus at Linnégatan 9  Phone: 031-7753540

The charity itself is not religiously affiliated like the Salvation Army, but is motivated for social change.  According to the Emma’s website they stand for “solidarity, sustainability, democracy, pluralism and human rights – both in Sweden and in other countries.”  Feel free to check out the site; regardless of your preferred language.  They have an “In English” option that I found very helpful.

This thrift shop is located near the Järentorget tram.  The neighborhood is very young and hip; which is reflected in the store’s merchandise.

Emmaus is just one block away from the tram stop and since it is a hub, many trams stop here.  Notably, numbers 1, 3, 5, 6.  There are also numerous buses.  Basically, most routes wind through this area eventually.  The tram stop is also adjacent to Haga, the old town, which means there are a lot of quirky shops and restaurants with high quality goods.  In Emmaus I’ve found that also translates to slightly higher prices; but you do get what you pay for here.

At first glance, I knew I had to visit this shop.  The window displays are fun and funky; and it is open until 7pm during the week.  My stateside friends, please understand that most places in Europe close earlier than we are used to, so these hours are amazing.

Opening hours are:

M-Thurs: 10am to 7pm
Friday: 10am to 5pm
Saturday: 12pm to 4pm
Sunday: Closed

This shop primarily stocks clothing and shoes.  The clothes are an eclectic mix of truly vintage and 80’s vintage.  The shoes and purses are predominantly leather.  I mention shoes because this shop has an entire room of shoes!  An entire room…that’s some expensive real estate in this area to be devoted just to shoes.

As a woman who has never turned down a biscuit, I also feel compelled to mention a reasonable plus size section, which I rarely see in thrift shops.  There is also a decent maternity section, which was also a nice surprise.

The toy section is my son’s favorite section and he happily found several toys that I agreed to bring home.  Guilt over keeping him 3 weeks in temporary housing with no toys was wearing on me that night…

Alas, there is no dedicated furniture section, but they do have some vintage lamps, random wall art and quite a few kitchen items (plates, cups, etc…).

So, what did we bring home?

• 2 fully functioning Bob the Builder construction toys
• 1 semi functioning Bumblebee transformer toy
• 1 women’s sweater
• 1 crazy wood carving (I HAD TO!!!)

Total damage? SEK 260, roughly $31

Awesome wooden troll

As you can see, we got a lot less stuff than at the previous store and it was quite a bit more expensive.  I’m still pleased with the purchases because the toys gave me a bit of peace at home and I was borrowing way too much of the hub’s clothes while mine were in storage.

Emmaus is definitely worth checking out if you want something fun and unique.  I would probably avoid the toy section as I think you can do better elsewhere, but the household “dustables” are fun and the clothes are all in great condition.

Altogether a worthwhile shop to check out.  If you aren’t in Göteborg and just want to learn more about the charity itself, check out this site.

Until next time…

Is that not an amazing title? We have a home! A place to hang our snow suits and fall asleep at night; in our own beds! Amazing, eh? I would love to take credit for this and say it’s because of my Jessi luck (horrific things happen and then everything works out for the best)…but I’m not sure I can. At a stretch I think I can say my luck has been passed to Raymond; because his misfortune led to our great fortune. Here’s a little about that…

As many of you know from this blog post, the last time we tried to move into an apartment we were all sick and things went very awry. What you may not know is that my husband had a work trip that night to Stockholm that also went awry. Somehow, his train tickets were reserved in the wrong order so he had to get new ones. In addition to that, partway to Stockholm, he realized his hotel reservation was for the wrong city. This resulted in him not getting any rest until late in the evening and going through his meetings very ill the next day.

Fortunately for all of us, one of his co-workers felt terrible for him and took it upon herself to help in the best way she could. She offered to help him find an apartment. More specifically, she offered to let us tag along when she went to look at an apartment that she thought would better suit our family. That meeting went really well and we are now the happy tenants of a quirky building in a quiet neighborhood.

Thank you Lisa!!

The apartment doesn’t tick all of our boxes, but newly arrived expats can’t be too choosy. Here’s what it doesn’t have:

• Two bedrooms
• Bathtub
• Washer hook up

Here’s what makes it work:

• Clean, functional laundry room with two brand new washers and a new dryer
• Heated air drying room (this room is off the hook crazy and I love it)
• Locked buggy parking for strollers
• First floor entrance with clearance for American size furniture
• High ceilings
• Lots of windows
• Recycling just across the street
• Large indoor assigned storage
• Accepts cats!
• Fun light fixtures
• An owner that we met who acknowledges that we can sign a sublet in his building

As you can see, the pros outweigh the cons. Of course, we will have to buy some sort of portable tub for the boy. He will wreak havoc if showers are his only option. Suggestions anyone?

After spending the entire day unpacking, I have to say that the energy in our new place is amazing. The small one was in an amazing mood all day and I was insanely productive. We almost slept over, but that would have left our cat home alone and that’s just not cool. After very little discussion, we’ve all agreed that effective tomorrow we will fully move over to the new place (cat and all). We had intended to stay in our temporary quarters until things were fully unpacked, but our bodies yearn for comfy beds and frankly, there is just something very cozy about the new place. The decision to move tomorrow was unanimous.

I’m very thankful this apartment came our way. It was the only place we visited after the previous apartment fiasco that our son actually loved. He never wants to leave, which says something for the energy of the space. Thank goodness for amazing new friends who help us find our way 😃

Until next time…

I’ve decided that as part of this blog it is my duty to help people learn about the different charity shops/thrift shops available in Göteborg. When we first arrived, I was stunned by the cost of everything! That led to some intense internet hunts; which provided a few leads, but not a ton of in depth information. These intermittent and ongoing updates on the cool discount options we have in this fun city will hopefully fill that void for other bargain hunters in the future.

The Store: Salvation Army Majorna at Jaegerdorffsplatsen 4

Majorna (pronounced Muh-Your-Nuh) is the neighborhood and Jaegerdorffsplatsen 4 is the address. Don’t ask me to pronounce that address.

This Salvation Army shop is located just off the Jaegerdorffsplatsen tram stop; which you can reach with the #3 and #9 trams.

I was blown away by this shop. From the outside, it is unassuming; then you get inside and it is crammed with goodies. Over two visits I have purchased:

– 1 awesome iron (Husqvarna) and 1 functional ironing board
– 2 small bookshelves
– 1 large bookshelf
– 1 leather love seat
– 1 side table
– 3 soup bowls (pictured here)

How much did I spend? Altogether, including the delivery fees for the furniture, this whole lot cost me less than $70. Not only that, when our apartment fell through, they agreed to hold onto the furniture for me. Phenomenal, right?

What I did not get:

– 1 awesome gold velvet couch
– 1 amazing peacock tapestry

The elusive Peacock

How much would I have spent? Roughly $66. Why didn’t I get these? Well, this store is only open Thursdays and Saturdays. I saw the aforementioned items on a Thursday morning. They were gone when I went back on Saturday with the hubs to confirm that he would enjoy a gold velvet couch.

Lesson learned, if you see something you like at this shop, snap it up! It goes fast. Please enjoy the amateurish photo of the awesome peacock tapestry shot from my cell phone on the sad day I did not buy it…

If you are in Göteborg, I wholeheartedly endorse this place. The people are friendly and the finds are eclectic and reasonably priced. Plus, they deliver for a flat rate of SEK 150, which is roughly $18. You can’t beat that.

Until next time…