Living and Working in Norway

Nils-Erik Bjørholt/Innovation Norway

Johan Wildhagen/Innovation Norway

Erik Jørgensen/Innovation Norway

NAV EURES Norway,

Marinella van Welsenes

Sandrine Beaudoin

18-11: de 12.00 a 14.00

19-11: de 10.00 a 12.00

Norway - ”the way to the North”

Geography

• Population : about 5,1

millions

• Capital: Oslo

• 19 counties

• Biggest cities:

Bergen 272 000

Trondheim 182 000

Stavanger 130 000

Kristiansand 86 000

Oslo 634 000

Norway

• Currency: Norwegian kroner, NOK

• Constitutional monarchy, King Harald V

• Prime Minister; since October 2013,

Erna Solberg

• Conservative Party/Coalition government

Characteristics

• A Northern climate, milder along

the south and west coast.

• Bright summers/dark winters

• Natural variety

• Outdoor culture

• High standard of living

• Extensive welfare system

• Safe working conditions

• Norwegians are reserved people

Language

• Most Norwegians speak English…..

- But most of the employers require that you speak Norwegian, or a

Scandinavian language (Swedish or Danish)

• Norwegian courses held in most municipalities in Norway (payable).

• Two official forms of Norwegian:

– Standard Norwegian (bokmål)– New Norwegian (nynorsk)

• Close to Swedish and Danish (we understand each other)

• Many regional dialects

• Norwegian is the working language.

Some exceptions: Oil and Gas sector, some construction worksites, some

restaurants (for cooks), some cleaning positions (in hotels), some seasonal

(agriculture, fish industry)

Norwegian language courses

• ONLINE courses:

www.ntnu.edu/learnnow (free)

www.fu.no (payable)

www.migranorsk.no (payable)

• Courses in Spain:

http://institutnordic.com Barcelona

www.ucm.es/csim/idiomas Madrid

www.centro-escandinavo.org Scandinavian Club Madrid

www.clubescandinavo.com Scandinavian Club Barcelona

www.nordicsenter.com L’Alfàs del Pi

www.workinnorway.no

NAV, the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration, pages in English

www.nav.no/english

Most wanted engineers

• Petroleum engineers

• Subsea engineers

• Drilling engineers

• Piping engineers

• Mechanical engineers

• Hydraulic engineers

• Structural engineers / Steel calculation

• Stress analysts

No demand for environmental

engineers or chemical engineers

• Machine design engineers

• Electrical engineers

• Automation engineers

• Engineers civil works (buidings, roads, bridges and tunnels, water and sewage management). NB: Norwegian language skills required

No demand for Civil engineers with

no experience with steel structures

and who do not speak Norwegian.

Other professionals wantedMedical doctors

Specialized nurses

Pre-school teachers

Teachers (especially in science subjects

and maths)

Truck Mechanics and car Mechanics

Electromechanics

Electricians

Industrial plumbers

Cooks, pastry chefs and waiters

NB: most jobs – and especially those that imply a contact withpatients, customers or pupils/students, require Norwegian language skills

Job seeking Imore details on www.workinnorway.no

• Make a CV in English, or in a Scandinavian

language if you speak one

• Europass CV increasingly common

• 2-3 reference persons is common (who

speak English!)

• First CV and cover letter, other documents

if requested

• Be prepared: have scanned copies of

certificates, diplomas, letters of reference

etc ready to go!

• More and more online applications

Job seeking II

• CV in English for Norwegian employers:

– Personal information: name, address, phone, e-mail, date of birth, nationality

– Key skills– Education (describe shortly)– Work experience (describe shortly). NB: mention the website of your

previous employers(s) – Courses and certificates– Technical skills– Language skills– Interests– References (eg. former employer ) + phone number or e-mail– Photo not required– 1-2 pages maximum– Use decreasing chronological order for education, work experience,

courses etc…– Don’t use sentences!

Mr. John Jobseeker Address: Solgata, 00001- Madrid (Spain)

12 12 12 14 john.jobseeker@yahoo.cim

Date of birth: 01.01.1985 Nationality: Spanish

Key skills

Structural Engineering (concrete and steel design) static and dynamic analysis.

Fluid, Soil Mechanics & Foundation Engineering.

Site supervision, Surveying , Cost estimate and Technical drawings.

Education and Qualifications:

2008-2011 Master of Science (M.sc Eng.) Civil & Structural Engineering

Polytechnic University of Bari – Italy www.website.it

2004-2008 Bachelor degree in Civil Engineering

Polytechnic University of Bari Italy www.website.it

Work Experience:

May 2012 – Feb 2014

Civil engineer Engineering Company, Italy , www.website.com XXXXXXXX XXXXXXX

Mar 2010 –

Jan 2012

Consulting engineer in building firms Engineering Consultants, Spain, www.website.es XXXXXX XXXXXX

Mar 2008-

July 2008

Internship – civil works department Municipality of Broom, Italy Assistant in a tunnel building project, CAD drawing

Technical skills: FEM integrated software for structural analysis and design (SAP2000, Strand7, ETABS ..),AutoCAD, 3D CAD systems, MS project 2013, Photoshop CS3, Windows OS

Languages Spoken: English (fluent) and Italian (mother tongue).

Interests: Civil works (in particular tunnels and bridges), Travel, Hiking, Biking, Playing guitar.

Reference:

Mr. George Boss, department manager, Engineering company www.website.it

Phone: (+111) 12 13 14 15, mail: georgeboss@website.it

Job seeking III

• Find jobs at:

– www.workinnorway.no

– Job offers in English at www.nav.no/englisheures

– www.finn.no/jobb (some job offers in English)

• Advice about job seeking: www.nav.no/englisheures

• Call for listings of available jobs at: NAV Service Centre Phone

- Phone: +47- 800 33 166

- Monday – Friday 08:00 – 18:00

• Contact the EURES Adviser in your area

Job seeking IV

Many jobs are NOT advertised

on the traditional websites for job search

• Apply directly for companies. Use www.nortrade.com or the Yellow Pages

www.gulesider.no to find companies

• LinkedIn and Facebook more and more used for recruitment

• Many jobs are filled through personal contacts

• Private recruitment agencies have a great part of the job market. See

www.stillinger.no for listings of agencies

• Useful websites?

www.spaniards.es la Communidad des Españoles en el Mundo

Facebook group “Noruega en Castellano”

Working Conditions I

• Written contract obligatory

• 3-6 months probationary period

• Salary paid once a month.

NB: salary most often expressed as GROSS

(before taxes)

• Employer draws tax from your monthly pay

• 40 working hours per week

• Shift workers have 35,5 hours working week.

More details at the Labour Inspection:

www.arbeidstilsynet.no (English version)

“Wage and working conditions”

Working Conditions II

• Holiday: 25 working days per year

• Holiday pay normally paid out in the month of June

• Holiday pay 12% of gross pay for trade union members

• 10,2% for non trade union members.

Is Norway expensive?

• Most Norwegian families are two-income economies

• Clothing and food prices average for Europe

• Income tax is also average for Europe (about 1/3 of the income)

• Housing is expensive (approximately 40 % of your income)

• Luxury products are expensive (hotels, restaurants, alcohol, cigarettes

etc)

• VAT (sales tax) on some items higher than in many countries….

• Cars are very expensive.

• Gasoline is also expensive, about 1,8 € per liter (August 2014).

• It is expensive to visit Norway as a tourist, and as a job seeker

Taxeswww.taxnorway.no

• If you work in Norway for a Norwegian employer, you must pay

income tax to Norway. Apply for a tax deduction card!

• Average income tax is about 34-38%. The income tax based on

income level, personal economy and family economy

• The National Insurance contribution is 7.8% of the gross salary and

is included in the income tax

• Deductions!

• EU/EEA citizens are entitled to a deduction called “standardfradrag” in

the two first years (10% or max NOK 40,000 per year)

• Interests paid on mortgages and loans can be deducted from taxable

income

• Tax return form submitted every year in April

• The employer deducts the income tax from the gross salary, every

month

Useful websites

Recognition of qualifications

www.nokut.no higher education, vocational education and regulated professionsNB: check if your profession is regulated!

www.sak.no authorization of health personnelNorwegian registration authority for health personnel

www.dsb.no authorization for electricians

National Directorate for Civil Protection

Work/Residence/Registration

• Norway is an EEA (not EU) member, but all EU/EEA and Swiss

citizens have the right to work, study and live in Norway

• For stays of more than 3 months, you must register with UDI (the

Directorate of Immigration) through the Registration Scheme for

EU/EEA nationals www.udi.no

• As soon as you get a job, you must register. After registration you

must meet in person at a Police office with your passport and work

contract

• Job seekers must also register if staying in Norway for more than 3

months www.udi.no

Process described on www.workinnorway.no

Thank you for your attention and good luck!