Many expats don’t have a choice about where they are heading to, but if you could choose and you’re looking to make a move to a country that your children will really enjoy and will thrive in, then consider one of these four destinations.
Top spots for expats with children
The wide, open spaces of New Zealand
New Zealand is not short on space and has some of the most breathtaking landscapes on the planet. Here your children will be able to indulge any sporting fantasy – from skiing to surfing to sailing and everything else in between.
New Zealand also has a very open, inclusive, laid-back culture in which children are encouraged to develop and grown. Offering a world-class education combined with low-stress schooling, it is the perfect environment for children to flourish and explore their own abilities and talents.
The safety of Denmark
Denmark is renowned for being an extremely safe country with a very low crime rate where children play freely outside, even on the streets, and parents are confident that strangers will treat their children with courtesy and care. Children as young as ten go where they please and happily use public transport on their own
Danish children are also given a very unpressurised start to school life. They only start school at age six and children are allowed to learn to read at their own pace – even if it means that they are only beginning to read at age nine. Despite the slow start, Denmark is renowned for having one of the highest educational levels in the world. Independence, outdoor play and confidence are all highly prized by their educational system and fostered in children from the day they start school.
The child-friendly benefits of Vienna
Vienna is a very family-friendly nation, which supports families with a wide array of benefit payments and childcare cost allowances – which can be claimed right up until the child is 25 years old. In addition, the paternity/maternity benefits are amazing with new parents being entitled to take a full two years off work with full pay to care for their young children. Combine this with Austria’s beautiful mountainous landscape and fabulous skiing opportunities, and it’s not surprising the whole world isn’t rushing there to raise their children!
The slow-pace of Sweden
Sweden believes parents should savour their children’s youth and gives parents 480 days of paid leave between them to share and parents are legally allowed to claim reduced working hours until their children are eight.
Most Swedish employees are given five weeks of annual leave over the summer months, so the family can enjoy quality time together during the long summer daylight hours. The government contributes a monthly allowance to pay for the cost of raising children and will even pay parents to take time off work to look after their children if they are ill.
Taking the family abroad? Finglobal.com can help move your money to your new home. Simply leave your details and we’ll get back to you.
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