Posted by on March 13, 1998 at 22:49:04:
i'm a usa citizen with no connections in sweden, and i'm dying to live there now! i'm 25, with a degree in general science and creative writing, plus two years teaching experience and two years administrative experience. i speak very little swedish. but i speak spanish pretty well. i've been told over and over by the swedish embassy and consulate that i cannot move to sweden without a residence permit and that i cannot work in sweden without a work permit. and i've been told that the only way to get a residence permit is if i marry a swede (which i have no plans of doing), if i am seeking political asylum (i think that the usa is bad enough to qualify for this, but i don't think that sweden will buy it), or if i have a family connection (and i've been told that aunts and uncles or a grandmother do not count). also, i've been told that the only way to get a work permit is to have a job offer from a swedish company in-hand. i've exhausted any possibilites available via international newspapers and the internet. how on earth am i supposed to get a job in sweden from the usa? i'm totally desperate. my mother is swedish, but she is permanently residing in the usa with my father (who is not swedish, by the way). and i could have been given swedish citizenship had i been informed by anyone at all that i had until the age of 18 to do so! but nobody told me or my family ever, and i missed that opportunity, and i'm on the verge of tears over it. i am swedish in every way, except geographically. and i'm totally depressed that all the news i hear about job and home possibilites is so grim. not only am i told that both take months or a year to come by even if you have all necessary permits, but i am also told that a non-eu citizen who doesn't speak swedish on a comfortable level can just forget about it altogether. can anyone tell me any good news. are the rules total hype, or what? if i go to sweden with a tourist visa and look for a job as a waitress or a salesperson or any entry-level job to begin with, are my chances at all worth considering? and what about a place to live? my e-mail address is pepi@mailcity.com. thanks,
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