Moving from US to Ireland... thoughts?
 

Yes, I know the economy in Ireland sucks right now, with 15% unemployment. However, my particular profession (Accounting/Finance) is one that they seem to still need many people. I've searched the job boards and seen many that I qualify for. My level of experience would likely get me a job in which I qualify for a Green Card rather than a Work Permit, which means they don't have to prove no EU citizen can fill the job first in order to hire me.

I have no problem with this being a long term goal, as it won't happen quickly - probably in a year or two. I plan on then staying, hoping to get my permanent residency and then naturalization, if I can.

I love Ireland, and have visited 4 times now. I have done self-catering to get myself used to grocery shopping and other 'non-vacation' things. Budget-wise, I am pretty sure I could do it. I love the people, the culture, even the cities (Dublin is where the most jobs are). I love the weather, too - 70 is too hot for me, I prefer it around 60. I'm fine with rain and wind.

I'm in contact with several friends in Ireland, both natives and transplanted Americans, for their advice and thoughts... would love any more folks have.

Thanks!

Hi GreenDragon!
If you can pull off getting a job,I think its a wonderful idea.My husband wants to spend half the year in Ireland when he retires.He has duel citizenship so it should easy.
We are going to look at some homes for sale during our Sept. trip.His family owns 27 acres but right now it is cheaper to buy then build at this point.
I am the one who is a little uncertain about being away from family for half the year.We have atleast 5 to 10 years until he retires so who knows what will happen.

Good Luck!

Susan

Thanks, Susan! This has been my dream since I was a little girl - and I'm 42 now. No time like the present!

What do you have to loose? You certainly have given it considerable thought and done your research. I even see from your recent trip report ( which I have yet to comment on but thought it was grand! ) you are learning Gaelic. My advice is to always follow your dreams.:)

Susan; My husband just asked if I wrote that (your post) since that is what we would love to do. After trips in 2009 &2010 we all love Ireland and he too has gotten duel citizenship. If he could get a job in Ireland right now, I would be on the first plane over, unfortunately there probably isn't much need for a HVAC mechanic (his profession) in Ireland. Retirement is 3-5 years away so hopefully our dream of living half the year in his grandmothers native land will come thru.

Greendragon, I say good luck and go for it!! I am very jealous.

Duel citizenship sounds.. hum.. dangerous. ;-)

When my friends moved to Ireland (and we're talking about an intra-EU move with all the unionwide guaranteed privileges), there were a few things that became obstacles.

Bank account
For whatever reasons, to open a bank account seems to be a matter of national security and rocket science.
The bank of your choice will request proof of residence. Which is - believe it or not - a utility bill from Board Gais and/or ESB. What also cannot hurt is a letter of recommendation from your current bank. It sounds a bit odd how a letter from Mr Anybody in Orange Co. can facilitate this procedure, but it works. At least in more rural areas.

Health
If you stay in or near the cities, HSE will probably be accessible within acceptable distances.
If you opt for a job in the country, check what kind of health services are available in the area.
For example, due to the economical crisis, the regional county hospital where my friends live stopped to offer emergency services after 8pm or weekends. So if there is any problem which is not immediately life-threatening, they have to drive 50kms to Limerick now.

Housing
If you think about buying real estate, try to find someone who has experience in assessing the quality of plumbing and wiring of the property. During the last two hard winters, there had been many broken pipes as they had not been put deep enough under ground to keep from freezing.

Language
Unless you plan to reside in some god-forsaken village in Connemara, you need Irish in Ireland as much as in Maine or California. And, not to frustrate you, pronunciation and even vocabulary differs between the provinces so your Leinster Irish will sound different than that in Munster.

Shopping
Not that special in most respects. Just costs for alcohol are ridiculous. Costs for regular groceries are not exactly cheap, but since the advent of discount supermarkets also not steep.

I wouldn't say that there are any really serious show stoppers for your plan. So, go for it, but be well prepared.

Work in the professional sectors is relatively easy to access most of the unemployment is in the construction industry which did really boom and bust

You will have no problem opening a bank account with a reference letter from your existing bank and potential or prospective employer or just wait to get a reference number from the ESB for rental or purchased Accommodation.

I live 12 miles from the nearest Bus stop but 5 miles from the nearest Doctor. The local Hospital has served me well (also my daughter who was rushed in when visiting me there) Ennis Hospital has suffered and I am unsure how long I can rely on Portucular (Ballinasle) because getting into Galway is a right royal pain in the **

There is a vast amount of new property waiting for someone to come along with enough cash to finish part completed houses. Sites are cheaper than they have been for 20 years and builders are working for 1990's prices

I can hold a perfectly good "English" conversation with any local in god forsaken Connamara (Quoting Cromwell "go to hell or Connamara) there are other places where the locals wont rather than can't hold conversation (a place well liked by Rick Steves suffers from this)

Yes things are expensive in Ireland but the standard of living and the rates of pay are higher than lots of mainland Europe or the UK.

You can always message me through mutual forums if you want an extra hand on the ground. I am assisting with a couple of UK folk looking at making the same move we did 4 years ago.

You could buy Irish citizenship under certain circumstances at a price €€€€ I refuse to buy citizenship to a country my family died to create, so I cannot get an Irish passport and am entitled to vote in Local but not National affairs.

Hi floridapugmom-I read that they are building a casino in Tipperary,they will need skilled HVAC mechanics!

Cowboy1968-you are right lots of hoops to jump through.We are lucky to have a connection to the area we are looking in(family and friends).The only thing I am concerned with is healthcare.My husband already has a bank acct. (family land is leased by a local farmer).
The exchange rate will take a hit on our retirement funds.

My husband is 50(hoping to retire at 55) i'm 45(stay at home mom- just got the last one out of school!)So who knows what the future will be!

You can ignore my thoughts because our experience is only in the UK and might be worthless.

My husband works for a multinational company and was able to transfer (transfer, not an expat package) from the US to the UK. The company took care of so many of the details -- visas, moving, housing (finding it, not paying for it), taxes, banking etc.

When it comes time, if we are still here, there is someone on staff to help us with citizenship.

Since you're not expecting to move immediately, if you're unable to find a company in Ireland to bring you over you might try looking at a multinational to get you over there.

Reading through the lines of your post it seems you might be viewing Ireland through some rosey (green?) glasses. I was the same way before the UK. I really thought it was going to be the land of thatched cottages, walks to the market, trains into London, trips to Europe . . . four years in and we love it more than we thought we would! My house isn't thatched but other than that -- it's wonderful! I hope your Irish dream comes true too!

Tony..

Getting a reference letter from the existing bank was indeed the crucial issue. My friends had switched to internet banking, direct debit etc. decades ago and probably seen the inside of a bank building in 1992.
Furthermore, AIB asked for a letter stating that the prospective new client was "personally known" to the bank director of the existing bank. It was totally uncomprehendable for the bank director in Northern Tipperary that my friends' bank had only one director but more than one million customers in just one city - none of which the director knows "personally". Actually, no bank clerk in any branch knew them "personally" as whatever transaction was needed incl. consumer credits, trading, etc. is done online.

If you want to open a bank account (esp. w/o a credit line) elsewhere, you don't bring reference letters from anyone or wait for utility bills but simply flash ID and walk out 5 mins later. Or do all that stuff online. So the Irish way to handle this is not something that comes to mind automatically when you think about moving there.


As much as I love Ireland, I would not go so far to say that the standard of living is higher there than in the UK or in "most of mainland Europe". I'm not sure where and when you travelled to the UK or the Continent, but aside from the more recent EU members, I would most politely disagree with that assessment. Nevertheless, it's a great place to be.

Have you only traveled there in summer? If so, maybe you should spend a January or February there and see if it still seems as appealing.

Not my sole opinion but that of a recent independent survey putting Ireland in the top 5. My opinion is gained from 30 of my 53 years living and working in UK and running business's with European links, plus information from Polish, Russian, Greek and Italian friends.

I suppose we had the green glasses on along with my heritage. We also located within travelling distance of a Hospital with 5 new state of the art operating theatres so Chris could easily find work. The HSE imposed a recruitment freeze, I went from super fit super active to a wreck through sudden illness and the world went into financial free fall. Do I regret the move, do I regret having to live in a 23ft caravan for 3years whilst the cottage was slowly made habitable? Not a chance..

Really what in the world does she have to loose? Assuming she has a job lined up and doesn't immediately spend a considerable amount of money in purchasing a place ( I'd probably rent for awhile) she'll have the time and experience she needs to decide if living in Ireland is as she imagined or not. If it doesn't appeal then quit your job and go back home. Yes, there are hurdles to be gone through, but I believe GreenDragon is well-informed and has given this considerable thought. I don't get the idea that she's someone who has just sat at home viewing tourist videos from Ireland and reading Irish novels while acquiring an overly romantic idea about the Isle.

There are a lot of books out there about retiring overseas that you might want to consult. In my work as a library volunteer, I recently came across a book at our library called "How to Retire Overseas" by Kathleen Peddicord and there are sections on retiring in places such as Panama, Uruquay, Croatia, etc. There is also a section on retiring in Ireland which may be of particular help to you.
I recommend you check your library first and then Amazon.

Greendragon...I wish you luck and think you definitely should go for it. I regret not moving back when my parents both passed away when I was 21 (many years ago). But I had a boyfriend and you know the story. Now I am tied here with my children and grandbabies (I could never leave them). But I do go home every year and when I retire my dream is to spend months there living in my grannies house that is empty now. However, I do know many people that moved back to Ireland and then came back again. These are people that were born and raised in Ireland but lived in the US for many years. You have to realize that the Ireland you go to on vacation is not the same as the Ireland you live in. When you are on vacation, your friends and relatives make time to visit and take you places. You don't worry about bills and weather and time. Some friends of mine retired back to Ireland. They had been born and raised there and went home every summer and stayed with family. When they retired they sold everything and moved back. They were very unhappy for awhile. At their age, they had trouble fitting in. And the dampness of the weather really got to them.

That said, as others have noted, you have nothing to lose. I think it would be wise to rent for awhile and maybe not get rid of everything here at first.

You should read the books by Christine Breen and Niall Willaims (O Come Ye Back to Ireland and the sequels). It was quite a few years ago but a good realistic look at living in Ireland. Good luck to ye!

Thanks for all the great advice, everyone! Especially the bank stuff - I, also, do the vast majority of my banking online. I have met one bank manager, but that was over a year ago when I opened a joint account for my parents.

Hadn't thought about health care much, either, however, recent events here made me more cognizant of it. I recently had gastric surgery at a hospital about an hour's drive away - no big deal, but all the follow ups are out there, on windy, twisty, mountain roads. I just couldn't make it for my January appointment, I crashed on the way there on icy streets.

I've been reading information on www.movingtoireland.com over the last two years, including the writer's vitriolic rants on the politics :)

I'm sure my glasses are tinted green, but I have been there in non-summer (April and May) and I have done self-catering stays, where I had to take care of groceries, laundry, etc. I know the things I will miss - big clothes washers, big refrigerators! And yes, I will likely rent a flat for several years before even thinking about buying a place.

I had applied to a couple Google positions, since their EU headquarters are in Dublin - since they are a US company, the transition would be much easier, paperwork wise. However, paperwork does not scare me - I've been preparing tax returns as a CPA for over 20 years.


I'm thinking of planning a one-week winter trip to Dublin either this year or next, to get a feel of the city in winter. However, right now I live in the WV mountains, and we got 50 inches of snow last year. While we are MUCH better equipped to deal with that (snow plows and salt trucks abound) than Ireland is, at least I now know how to drive (or give up on driving) in snow-covered streets at steep angles.

I am likely going to get a job in Dublin, as that is where most finance jobs seem to be located. However, commuting from a suburb is common, and the public transport is good. They've added some since I was last there. Most flats seem to come furnished, so my plan would be to get rid of almost all my stuff except clothes, computer, some books/photos, and my beading stuff. Everything else I can rent or buy over there. Sell my old clunker car, and if I need one, buy a new clunker car.

Groceries - one of our chief amusements when I go to UK or Ireland (or anywhere) is going into the grocery store to see what's new, different, and funny. And to notice what's NOT there that we are used to. I'm not a gourmet, so I am sure I'll make do.

tony, I will definitely message you as the goal gets closer! Your experience is invaluable, thank you for the offer to share it.

I do research things intensely (as most of you may know from my trip researches), so this isn't a fly-by-night idea. I've wanted to do this all my life. 12 Years ago I sent out 100 resumes to different Accounting firms, but got no nibbles - I'm sure the immigration problems were a big part of that. However, the rules are different now, and the internet plays a huge part in that.

I've got dozens of connections on LinkedIn that are either in the Accounting field in Ireland or the HR field there - I've been sending out requests for help. Who knows, someone may know someone! And with Skype and other online video messaging, I might be able to conduct some interviews from here. However, realistically I'll likely have to schedule interviews during a particular time period and make a trip over there to cover them.

Thanks all! More advice always welcomed.

Also try Northern Trust - they are an American custody bank out of Chicago...they have a financial reporting team in Dublin.

Hi Christy- Corey tweeted an good blog the other day.
http://anamericaninireland.com/
You might enjoy it.

Susan

I have no real advice to add, but just wanted to say good luck! I hope this dream becomes a reality for you. I firmly believe if there's a will, there's a way. You can do it!

Without a job offer, this will be tough. Keep working the relationships, because you will have a lot of trouble without an offer in hand. Otherwise, you are fine. You have the sense of humor to be an ex-pat, provided you can wade through the employment complexities.