Catch 22 - need some advise

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Ted
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Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:17 pm
Location: Richmond, Surrey

Catch 22 - need some advise

Post by Ted » Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:45 pm

Hi everyone,

I am new to this forum, but must say that it is a great initiative. I already learned a lot from previous postings. However everyone's situation is different and I am no exception. I am planning to move to Finland after becoming redundant. I am Dutch/British currently living in Richmond and trying to find a way into Finland. My previous employer will pay for relocation and outplacement consultancy, but I still need to find a place to live. Have enough money to survive a year without work, so that shouldn't be an issue.

I tried to open a bank account, but was declined because I have no address and social security number. I tried to rent an appartment but was declined because I have no bank account so they can do no credit check... :cry: Even offering to pay a full year rent in advance didn't help!

Any suggestions how I can break this deadlock? I need to have a place by Nov. 1st. latest and am looking in the Espoo/Helsinki/Vantaa area. Anything up to €750pcm will do as long as it has at least one seperate bedroom and lies in a quiet area.

Thanks for any suggestions, Ted



Catch 22 - need some advise

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Guest

Post by Guest » Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:52 pm

Your previous employer is your 'ex' employer?
You could get some kind of recommendation or have him make some phone calls here. That could help.

Or...
You don't happen to have a Finnish gf or wife or partner whom you trust? You can open an account in his/her name.
That's how I started before I moved here.

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Thu Sep 04, 2003 10:02 pm

There is more banks than one.

And, do yoy try doing the opening from abroad or making a scene here?
Cheers, Hank W.
sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.

Guest

Post by Guest » Thu Sep 04, 2003 10:37 pm

Hank W. wrote: And, do yoy try doing the opening from abroad or making a scene here?
Indeed... Making an 'act de présence' might be of help for the credibility. You could flap around with some of those bank-notes to state your point :wink:

Ted
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:17 pm
Location: Richmond, Surrey

Post by Ted » Fri Sep 05, 2003 2:11 pm

Thanx for the ideas. I did make personal presence but Nordea and Osuspankki don't seem to be interested in €40k! What about commercial accumen? And am not so lucky (yet :wink: ) to have someone I can use to open account in her name...

Any particular banks that might work better? Will be over again in 3 weeks to try to sort out the living situation, so will try other banks at that time. Maybe foreign banks with presence in Finland?

Cheers, Ted

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Kemars
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Location: Kouvola

Post by Kemars » Fri Sep 05, 2003 2:20 pm

Ted wrote:Thanx for the ideas. I did make personal presence but Nordea and Osuspankki don't seem to be interested in €40k! What about commercial accumen? And am not so lucky (yet :wink: ) to have someone I can use to open account in her name...

Any particular banks that might work better? Will be over again in 3 weeks to try to sort out the living situation, so will try other banks at that time. Maybe foreign banks with presence in Finland?

Cheers, Ted
those banks shoved their noses up in the air for that amount of money??? :shock: good god. :shock:
Tell the next bank you contact that they did that and see what happens. I am very surprised that they did that to you, especially Nordea..they never say no to cold hard cash!!!
however it is important to get that social sec. # so that at least you can tell the bank that you have been registered here in finland. that tends to help a bit. Get your ex employeer to help, if possible, in giving assistance in finding a place in Finland to live and writing a letter explaining that you are relocating to finland and need some "slack" in finding a place and getting a bank account.

I thought money talks and !"#¤% walks... I guess not anymore.... :)
How much wood would a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood?

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Fri Sep 05, 2003 2:33 pm

We could try my co-op bank if you're in town. They have an office right across Stockmann's. Also Ålandsbanken (they don't serve poor rifraff, you have to have a minimum balancxe of 2000 to get a debit card...)

And of course we could make a deal you can rent my couch :D
Cheers, Hank W.
sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.

PeterF
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Post by PeterF » Fri Sep 05, 2003 2:57 pm

The postal address in Finland is the key factor.
I have been racking my memory cells trying to remember how I did it.
I think it was this process.
1: Went to my UK bank and said moving to Finland I will be moving most of money there but will keep an account open here, which Finnish bank do you recommend. My Bank in UK is Lloyds..they said Merita (now Nordea).
2. Came to Finland walked into a Merita bank..took a Finn with me because my Finnish was then sqrootswFa. told them I was moving to Finland an wanted to open an account.
3. When asked for address gave her address. (I was still living in UK)
4. Account opened .
5: Return to UK Money transfer from UK initiated.
6. Came back to Finland cash was here safe and sound so I Rented a flat.
7 Went to bank an notified change of address.

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Phil
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Post by Phil » Fri Sep 05, 2003 3:08 pm

Ted wrote:Thanx for the ideas. I did make personal presence but Nordea and Osuspankki don't seem to be interested in €40k!
You might want to try "The Bank of Phil Schwarzmann" - We're very interested. :wink:

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AndyJ
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Joined: Wed Aug 27, 2003 10:23 am
Location: Vantaa, Finland

Post by AndyJ » Sat Sep 06, 2003 3:08 pm

Yes, Nordea were able to help us too (eventually).

OK my partner is Finnish, but she'd been out of the country for approaching 6 years. We were living in the UK and wanted to buy a house here. We sold our place in England. I was not working but she was.

She applied for a mortgage on the basis of her UK income and the deposit we had and got an immediate yes from one woman working at Nordea. Even when we explained we'd both be out of work when we arrived in Finland (and still are) she said it was no problem. She opened the account and we transferred the money from England. We duly moved over, and while living with my partner's mother, went and found a house we wanted to buy.

The woman at Nordea had told us she would be on holiday but that she'd briefed her colleague, so we contacted the colleague. She ummed and ahhed and referred the matter to her boss, the branch manager. The manager called us and said no way. We protested that we'd been told it wouldn't be a problem, that we had a huge deposit to put down (over 40%) and then we waited. An hour later the manager called back to confirm they would give us the mortgage!

Moral of the tale is it's always worth a try!
Controversy? You've come to the right place!

Niall Shaky
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Post by Niall Shaky » Sun Sep 07, 2003 1:46 pm

Hi Ted,

Apart from getting the bank account sorted you need to get to work quickly on the residence permit and social security ("KELA" number). This is the way it works:

1) Get down to the police station (in Helsinki it's near Etälä Esplanaadi/Rikhardinkatu) and apply for a residence permit. As an EU citizen this should be almost automatic: as long as you can prove you can support yourself (a bank statement from the UK should do that).

2) You will get a receipt from the police, showing you have applied for residence. Take this and walk straight down to Maistraati (just off Bulevardi). This is the place where you register yourself with the authorities. Your receipt from the copshop should be enough to get yourself registered with them. They will generate some more paper work. I can't remember if they do this on the spot or if it takes a few days.

3) Once you get the paperwork from Maistraatti you can then scoot off to KELA and get registered with them. They will send you a card with the magic KELA number. Then you officially exist in Finland and you can get a bank account etc. However, I've heard it can be tough to get a credit card, at first they would only give me VISA-ELECTRON (a bit like SWITCH). I had to re-apply after six months to get a Mastercard/pankki card.

Check also this from the Ministry of Labour:

http://www.mol.fi/migration/engopas.pdf

Good luck,
Niall

Niall Shaky
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Post by Niall Shaky » Sun Sep 07, 2003 1:47 pm

... anyway, my point was that when you're over here for 3 weeks, that should be enough time to apply for residence.

Marjan
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Good luck Ted..

Post by Marjan » Sun Sep 07, 2003 2:19 pm

Hi Ted,

I'm interested to keep in touch with you and see how you get on.. I am Dutch,lived in the UK for over 3 years and thinking of moving to Finland with my Finish boyfriend (who has lived here for 9 years)..

I have heard from my bf's sister that there's some neutralisation law that when you're in Finland for longer then 3 months, they want you to:
1) have enough savings
2) check you out with Interpol
Apparently having a working partner doesn't make a difference with regards to the money matter.

Anyway, hope you'll get out of that vicous circle.. my email address is below..

Marjan.

Marjan
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e-mail

Post by Marjan » Sun Sep 07, 2003 2:25 pm

It wasn't, but here it is: [email protected]

Ted
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:17 pm
Location: Richmond, Surrey

Post by Ted » Mon Sep 08, 2003 1:19 pm

Thanx to all for the advise! I suppose I know what to do when I'm back in Helsinki in a few weeks time. Probably will spend most of my time filling out forms and trying to convince people that I really want to move to Finland. :roll: Well, I knew it wasn't going to be easy.... But after all getting my NI number in the UK also took me 6 months and then I was still employed! Suppose you need to go through some pain if you want to live in the best place in the world.

Anyway, I will keep you informed about the progress and maybe we can have a few beers and laughs when I'm over.

Cheers,Ted

If you want something done, you gotta do it yourself


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