Rotterdam is above all an important port city with international society, rich economic and interesting industrial history. In this article, you will find out why it is worth moving to Rotterdam.
About Rotterdam
Rotterdam, with almost 700.000 citizens, is the second-largest city in the Netherlands with the biggest functioning port in Europe. It is located within the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt river delta at the North Sea in the South Holland province.
Rotterdam is a part of the Randstad metropolitan region, together with Amsterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht. This city is very diverse, there are inhabitants from the whole world and the number of foreign-born citizens (51%) is slightly higher than the native ones (49%).
The majority of the foreign-born people and immigrants is from Turkey, Morocco, Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles; there are also many people from China, Serbia and Indonesia. In the whole Netherlands, 47% of the citizens are of non-Dutch origin.
Weather in Rotterdam
Rotterdam has a mild oceanic climate, like the rest of the Netherlands, however, because its located near to the temperatures there are slightly lower than in inland regions. In summer, the temperatures in Rotterdam vary between 17 and 22 °C.
Whereas in the winter months it is usually 3-4 °C and occasional frost and snowfalls. The winter is the season with the most precipitation in Rotterdam, even if it is also raining in the summer. April is the driest month of the year there.
Visas for Netherlands
Whether you need a visa for removal to Rotterdam or not depends on your nationality. Since the Netherlands is a member of the European Union, people from the EU countries will not need a visa to travel to this country. However, if you want to stay for more than three months in the Netherlands, you need to register with a local municipality and apply for a residence permit.
If you are from a country that is not an EU member, you need to apply firstly for a visa. Afterwards, you should inform the Dutch Immigration Naturalization Service within three working days of arriving that you want to apply for a residency permit. If your employment in Rotterdam is already confirmed, then this will normally be done by your employer.
After living in Rotterdam for five years, you can apply for permanent residency in the Netherlands.
