Setting up utilities as a foreigner in a new country…

It’s been a little while now since I moved into my new apartment. Having a place to call home has really helped make me feel more settled and contented living here. Living in a hotel for the first few weeks was really starting to take its toll. Hotels are great, but they’re really not ideal when you’re here working permanently! Anyway, there are still some things I need to organise for my new apartment. And, living on my own, I am solely responsible for setting up all utilities, etc. So all quite daunting! Especially when you’re setting up utilities as a foreigner in a new country and don’t speak the language!

I’m just lucky and grateful that I’ve moved to a country where people are renowned for their level of English as a second language. When I was living in Spain, I was fortunate that my housemates didn’t mind making the necessary calls to set things up. Now it was all down to me!

First things first, I need a Dutch bank account. Luckily, work has already helped me with this by making the necessary appointment for me to attend to set everything up. Part of the employment welcome package when joining the school. Well, I need to receive my salary after all, don’t I?

There are several banks to choose from in the Netherlands. The main banks specifically for international banking are Rabobank, ABN Amro, and ING. All have a good reputation. I went with ING as it was the school’s suggestion and part of my employment welcome package.

I arrived for my scheduled appointment one afternoon after leaving school early. After waiting in reception for a few minutes, I was led into a room with a member of the branch. He was carrying a folder with a wad of papers in it. ‘Oh my goodness! Do I need to go through all of those and sign each one?’ I just think to myself.

He appeared very organised and used to dealing with expats! The meeting takes less than half an hour. In that time, I’m given information about the bank itself and the branch, given my bank account details, and told that all other relevant information would be sent in the post. ‘Wow, the Dutch are efficient!’ Then, I’m asked to sign some forms. Not entirely sure what half of it was for, if I’m totally honest with you! Then asked if I had any questions before we wrapped everything up. Done and sorted. All set up and good to go!

With my new Dutch bank account and Burgerservicenummer (BSN) number, I was able to set up the utilities for my apartment. The BSN number is what you are given at the municipality once you’ve registered when first moving to the Netherlands. You will need your ID, proof of address and work contract. When I first arrived, I was living in a hotel for the first couple of weeks. So put my place of work as my address, and then once I had moved into my apartment notified the municipality of my change of address.

A BSN is a personal, unique identification number required for pretty much everything to be able to live and function in the Netherlands. From healthcare to setting up utilities. You are given your BSN automatically when registering, if registration is successful. You can then set up your My Digi ID, enabling you to complete most tasks online with the government, healthcare etc, which allows you to identify yourself easily.

As my job is working with children, I also required a VOG (certificate of good conduct). It takes around four weeks for the certificate to come back. This was another appointment HR set up as part of my welcome package. But I’ve found that most employers do help set all of this up, from speaking with other expats. Which is helpful as it can all be a lot to get your head around when you first arrive in a new country.

Obviously, now, since Brexit, if you are a British National, you will also need a work permit. That’s if you’re lucky enough to find an employer who is willing to sponsor you that is!

After moving in and informing the municipality and school of my new address, I needed to sort out the electricity and water utilities.

TV and the internet are other key things to have set up. Ziggo is one of the main providers in the Netherlands. I was fortunate that my landlord offered to set this up for me for a bit extra each month. I would recommend this if your landlord offers it. It’s one less thing for you to worry about!

The water utility was pretty straightforward. In fact, it was the easiest to set up. Your water supplier is dependant on which region you live in the country. There are ten suppliers throughout the country, and you can look up which one you fall under online using your postcode. Once I knew who my supplier was, I could make the necessary changes on their website as the new tenant and enter my bank details.

The next thing was to sort the electricity. My apartment didn’t have gas, so one less thing, but the two can be combined. The majority of my colleagues recommended Eneco. So I thought they were a safe bet! I needed my move in date and the meter readings, which I made sure I took on the day I got the keys and moved in!

I had all the information needed and was ready to make the call…

I dialled the number and made the necessary call. As with any other company, there’s a pre-recorded message before I’m put in the queue to speak to someone in the call centre. I can only guess that it’s the usual ‘Thank you for using us for your energy…’ guff, as I didn’t know an awful lot of Dutch at this stage, and it was all very fast.

Eventually, I get through to an operator. The Dutch are renowned for excellent English. However, I still want to be polite and not just assume that the person on the other end of the line should automatically speak in English to me. So, I say hello, as soon as they’ve done their introduction bit, and ask if we can speak in English, as I don’t speak any Dutch. To which the guy tells me it should be ok, but that he will need to put me through to his colleague. I then somehow find myself back on hold and in the virtual queue once more!

All I can do is sit and wait to get through again. This time, I get through to a lady. Again, I ask if we can speak in English as I don’t speak Dutch. To which she says, ‘yes of course’ before putting the phone down on me! It may have been accidental, of course, but still annoying!

But then, honestly, I feel so ignorant myself. I don’t really blame them for passing the buck or putting the phone down to be honest.

I dial the number again and go through the welcome message guff again before being put on hold once more. Third time lucky! After a couple of minutes, I get through to a guy and again ask if we can speak in English. To which he informs me that he will need to put me through to his colleague. ‘Surely not again?!’ I say to myself as I’m yet again put on hold. This time, I’m put through to another guy who begins the conversation in English on answering the phone. So I assume that the guy before had actually put me through to his colleague and provided him with the relevant information.

I can’t really remember how long the process took, but not that long. He took my details. My address and the date I moved in. He went through the different packages. I’d already looked into this, so could tell him which one I wanted. And finished with the first meter readings. Then told me that I would receive confirmation in the post in a few days. And I think that was pretty much it, after all those phone calls and being put on hold! But after the initial set up, I pretty much did everything else online. Which I found a lot more convenient!

And that’s it! All set up! Hopefully, I have selected the correct packages, and I’m all set up as needed for my small apartment. Well, I’ll soon find out when the bills start coming in. However, it’s another step towards feeling more settled and at home here. So, I can continue figuring work out and finding my feet there as well as continuing to explore and experience the country.