Expat Community > Denmark

Expat0tony
Joined 2009
Posts: 41

Need work-permit/residency advice asap!

14 years ago

Hello all,
I, a US citizen, am only going to Europe to hopefully work and be able to stay permanently somehow. I think I have a place to stay temporarily but no job yet, and I know I need to get a work-permit before 90 days(?) on a schengen visa or I must leave the EU schengen states for 180 days before returning to try again. I also realize work-permits are supposedly difficult to obtain unless I have a rare specialty or a Masters degree or a ton of money(?).
Can ANYONE PLEASE help me discover how so many uneducated immigrants can obtain a work permit/residency and stay permanently and we middle class people supposedly can not as easily? I fear I can't even get a silly restaurant job (far below my education level) because the employer is supposed to hire a EU national first, thus eliminating(?) my chances at getting a work permit unless I get very, very lucky?
I would really appreciate any kind advice to my fear as I am relocating to Europe very soon and have no other place to move to yet if I fail during my first 90 days? Do you have any strategic ideas? Can a german resident (non-employer) simply 'sponsor' me with an invitation letter? Or, is it much easier than I think to get a work permit? Are there certain 'hidden' jobs that I should pursue (as there are NO current job openings in my line of technical work and my childhood EU languages needs to be re-learned for a while first) PLEASE ADVISE ME! Thank you!

William Russell

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