# Any advice gratefully received



## Alison19802 (Jul 9, 2015)

Good morning all

We are potentially relocating to Amsterdam for a min of 2 years for my husbands job, we should know for definite in the next week.

I have been doing some research but was wondering if someone could clarify a few things. Will our credit history carry across, I have read that it's much like the U.S. And we will be starting from scratch?
We will be learning Dutch before we go but my children do not speak Dutch so will be attending an international school. My issue is I have a 16 year old son who was due to start 6th form to do his A levels , I have read that some schools have a similar curriculum is this true?

Final question 😀 we are potentially looking at living in Almere , has anyone got any other recommendations of areas nice for a family please.

Thank you in advance
Alison x


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## cschrd2 (Oct 31, 2011)

The Netherlands does not use the credit ratings like in the US. If you have a fixed income and a bank account you can get a cc easily with a decent spending amount (no prepaid or collateral system either).
According to their website the British school is the only one that supports A-levels (http://www.britishschool.nl/page.cfm?p=536), however I would do a double check at the school near Almere. 
Sorry I never lived around Almere so can't help you there. 
Good luck


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## Dutchess (Jun 30, 2015)

Almere is a great choice for a family. It has a lot of facilities, bike lanes everywhere and "easy" access to Amsterdam and Utrecht. However Almere, according to may Dutch people though, lacks "soul". The city was newly built and lacks the old style city center that many Dutch people like. Also my in-laws live there. A definite downside for me, but maybe you don't mind at all 

Don´t let distances in The Netherlands fool you. There really is no such thing as easy access to anywhere in Holland during rush hour so depending on where your husband´s company is located, he may want to consider going by train.

There are a few other towns in the Amsterdam area that are nice for families but they have no international schools that I know of. The nearest international schools are in Almere, Amsterdam and Den Haag (The Hague). Here´s some information on the school system with a link to all international schools:

Education in the Netherlands | Education | Expatica the Netherlands

Once you have chosen a school and you have the location of your husband's office, that should help you find the right location to live in Holland.


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## Dutchess (Jun 30, 2015)

ps. Your credit history is not carried across, however if you make debts in Holland or do not pay your bills in time, it will be registered and may affect future loans. I don´t know if the previous poster has had any recent experience in The Netherlands, but the rules for credit cards have been a bit tighter in the last few years. Credit cards are not a preferred method of payment for most Dutch. We typically use debit cards and just keep a credit card for emergencies. It stems from our traditional parsimonious nature. Many Dutch people don´t like the idea of spending money they don´t have and they most certainly don´t like the idea of paying interest. It´s a bit more uncommon in Holland than in most countries to loan money for luxury items. We´ll get a morgage for our house or a loan for a car if the need is dire, but that is about it. The expression going Dutch really does have its roots in Holland.


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## cschrd2 (Oct 31, 2011)

I have as I am Dutch (but live abroad) my kids live in Nl and the cc details are actually from them. My son has an ING account virtually no money but was offered a cc (this is 2015 info). The registration at BKR is indeed a fact, however in general the cc system is much easier then the U.S. system according to my experience in the U.S.


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## Alison19802 (Jul 9, 2015)

Thanks everyone so much for taking the time to reply


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