Welcome to Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality

THE GOOD LIFE IN DENMARK - MOVE TO RINGKØBING-SKJERN

When you move to Ringkøbing-Skjern

You are free to travel into Denmark and work and live in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality, if you are a Nordic citizen. The same applies if you are an EU-or EEA citizen or from Switzerland. For citizens from other places in the world other rules apply. Here are currently special rules on: Residence permit under the special law on displaced persons from Ukraine.

In Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality we also have many citizens who have moved to the municipality from abroad. All in all we have citizens from 99 different countries, and a total of around 6,000 citizens from other nations live in the municipality.

 

Use ICS – no Bureaucracy, only Service

Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality is affiliated with a special international citizen service arrangement, which arranges the most important documents for you free of charge and at once, so you do not have to appear at various authorities.

The International Citizen Service – ICS - is a public service office where several authorities are gathered in one place, first and foremost to serve foreigners coming to Denmark to work or study. The office also provides guidance to companies hiring foreign labour.

If you live in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality the closest citizen service office is in Aarhus. You must appear in person bringing several different documents to have the necessary paperwork arranged once and for all. If you bring accompanying family – spouse/partner and children – all family members must appear in person at the same time.

Below  - told in short - you can see what to do step by step, but do always check ICS, so you can use the latest checklists and make sure that you have brought along the necessary papers before going all the way to AARHUS. Or – if in doubt about anything - call the ICS-OFFICE in Aarhus. They will gladly help you in advance. Also with the various application forms, when you turn up at the office.

Please note that you must book an appointment before you show up in person at ICS West, see more on the website. For actual opening hours and telephone hours, please consult ICS.

 

EU-EEA-citizen - step by step instruction

In the instructions below we have first of all taken our point of departure in those of you who are EU-EEA-citizens and who move to Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality, because you have had a job in the area. At the bottom of the page an instruction for other nationals can be found.

At the office in Aarhus you will be assisted on commencement of the processing of your case, which is divided between the three authorities: the State Administration, the Municipality, and TAX.   

 

First you need to apply for a Residence Permit

You must apply for a so-called EU certificate of residence at the State Administration. You can find, print, and fill in an application form, OD1, in advance from the website New to Denmark. Or you can get help for it at ICS Aarhus.

You must bring various documentation, i.a. your passport, your national ID-card, a passport photo, plus documentation for basis for residence. It might for instance be a contract of employment or a declaration by an employer concerning employment. For more information about the application and documentation requirements on the actual ICS-checklists.

 

You must report that you move, and you must have a Civil Registration Number (CPR)

When you have received your residence permit you move on and have your date of entry registered. At ICS in Aarhus it is Aarhus Municipality which, on behalf of Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality, assists you with the moving announcement and with the application for a Civil Registration Number - CPR-Nummer – which is a personal registration number that all Danish citizens have.

You must reside on a permanent address in the municipality when you report moving. A permanent address is also necessary in order to get a Civil Registration Number and you must have moved to the address in order to get this.       

You must bring documentation for your address in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality, for example your rental contract, testimonial from your landlord - click HERE to download an example of this or in some cases your contract of employment if the exact address, date etc. clearly appear. If you are married or divorced, you must bring your marriage certificate and a prospective divorce certificate, even if your spouse does not move with you.

If your potential spouse/partner, and children accompany you they must meet in person together with you and apply for residence permit, have date of entry registered and have a Civil Registration Number. In that case you must i.a. bring your marriage certificate or documentation of cohabitation and birth certificates of children, passport or personal proof of identity, photos etc.

Please note that it is a requirement that any certificates of marriage, divorce and birth are in Scandinavian, English, or German. It is therefore necessary for you to have the certificates translated, depending on which country you come from.

There are special requirements if your spouse comes from a non-EU country outside Scandinavia. Always take a look at the actual ICS-checklists, to ensure that you bring all papers before going to Aarhus.

 

You must have a health insurance card

You are covered by the general Danish national health insurance when you receive a Civil Rights Number and your date of entry in the municipality has been registered. This means that you are entitled to free medical treatment, if you fall ill. You are therefore also asked to choose a doctor from a list of GPs in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality.

ICS in Aarhus will make sure that the necessary information is reported, but only later will you receive the national proof by post that you are covered by the public health service.

We call the proof THE YELLOW HEALTH INSURANCE CARD and it must be brought along when contacting your doctor, hospitals, and other public health offers.

Just as you are entitled to health insurance under the Danish welfare system it is also possible for you to apply for various children- and family allowances if you have children, child care, and education of your children etc. Here you can read more about the Danish Welfare System and in the English version of Borger.dk about offers for families and children.

 

You must have a Tax Card

When your entry, your National Registration Number, and Health Insurance Card have been sorted out you can proceed to the staff of the Danish Customs- and Tax Administration at the ICS office in Aarhus and have a tax card issued. You must bring your passport/ID card, contract of employment and a prospective marriage certificate.

Everybody who works and has an income in Denmark must have a tax card. The tax card is to be used by your employer, who – before paying out wages – automatically has to withhold tax from your wages and transfer it to TAX.

The tax card provides information about how high a percentage of your wages you must pay, minus potential deductions. The tax card is calculated on the basis of a preliminary income assessment, i.e. information from you about your expectations as to income and potential deductions for the remaining year. Click here for more information about the TAX CARD.

 

Digital Signature, digital Post, and Self-service

The International Citizen Service in Aarhus also assists you in acquiring MitID – which is your digital signature, and can guide you in the setting up of an online digital mail box (e-boks).

You must use an online digital mail box, as the Danish authorities send most mail electronically to the citizens, including for instance calling you in for hospital treatment, MOT test of your car etc. A major part of the communication and processing of cases in relation to the citizens is also based on electronic self-service, and in many cases, it is obligatory to use the electronic self-service solutions. This means that via the internet – for instance on www.borger.dk or the website of the municipality www.rksk.dk – you need to fill in information forms, send applications, and documents electronically. You therefore need a MitID.

You also need MitID for the self-service solutions of the banks.

You are entitled to be granted a MitID when you have a Danish Civil Registration Number, are 15 years of age, and can produce valid identification, such as passport, Danish residence permit with photo, driving licence, or e.g. birth- or name certificate plus health insurance card.

For information about the new MitID click here.

 

Nordic Citizens – What to do:

If you are a citizen in one of the Nordic countries, you are free to move in order to work and live in Denmark.

You need not possess a special residence permit, but you must have a Civil Registration Number if you work here for more than three months. If you are only here to work for three months or less all you need is a tax card.

Like other foreigners you can avail yourself of the International Citizen Service in Aarhus, but you can also contact Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality BORGERSERVICE for easy handling of paperwork. Use the actual ICS-CHECKLIST for Nordic citizens so you know in advance what to bring.

 

Citizen outside the EU and the Nordic Countries – What to do:

To stay and work in Denmark you must have a residence- and work permit, if you are a citizen in a country outside Scandinavia and outside the EU/EEA countries. It is important that you are aware that you must apply for and have received the permission before you move to Denmark.

Whether you can be granted a residence- and work permit first and foremost depends on your qualifications. A number of schemes makes it possible for highly qualified foreigners to obtain a residence- and work permit.

Thus a so-called Positive List exists showing the Danish professions which at the moment have a shortage of labour. People, who have been offered a job in one of these professions and who are in possession of the necessary qualifications, especially have easy access to the Danish labour market.

Hier you can read about the various occupational schemes. And hier you can read more about how to apply for residence- and work permit as a citizen from a non-EU country.

There are THREE STEPS in the application process:

  1. You must create a Case Order. You need the Case Order ID to fill out the application form. 
  2. You must pay a fee. You can view and pay the fee on the relevant application page on nyidanmark.dk under the 'Application' tab.
  3. You must submit a digital application

The easiest thing for you to do is to give your employer or another person in Denmark a power of attorney to provide for the digital application on your behalf. To find out how, go to THE SELF-SERVICE SOLUTION for New in Denmark.

The time of processing of the case is normally between one and three months, depending on the work scheme in question.

 

Important to hold a valid Passport

The length of the residence permit depends on the length of your contract of employment, and in the first instance it will normally be granted for four years, if the contract of employment is indefinite. However, the length of the permission can be reduced if the validity of your passport is shorter, in which case you will have to apply for prolongation.

When you have been granted your residence- and work permit you can get assistance at the International Citizen Service to be issued a Civil Registration Number, a tax card etc. Click for the latest ICS-CHECKLISTE

 

 

Charlotte and Ian

 
Danish/English couple:

Wish of living the good life

”Above all, we just wanted to be together and live the good life. We love being together” says the Danish/English couple Charlotte and Ian Coles who have settled down in an idyllic old farm house at Kloster, halfway between the Ringkøbing Fjord and the Stadil Fjord and close to the town of Ringkøbing.

It is not surprising that the couple had a wish of the good life in peaceful surroundings with lots of nature. Ian was a Major in the British Army, which meant the couple had moved around military bases in England and Germany for years. Ian had also been deployed close to the world’s war zones, leaving Charlotte alone and suffering months of deprivation during their first year in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality.

They bought the old farmhouse overlooking the Stadil Fjord in 2013, and Charlotte moved in full-time, while Ian could only come home as work allowed. But now the good life has really started as Ian retired this summer.

Ian is 48 years old and he has just landed a job with Vestas - the wind turbine manufacturer – as a Project Training Leader. 

Charlotte and Ian - Read the full story here

 

Ioana and Sorin

 
Romanian Family:

We have been made very welcome

”We love our country, Romania, but we have also grown very fond of Denmark which has become our home,” says 37-year-old Sorin Ungureanu who - together with his wife Ioana and their two children - find themselves so much at home that in the autumn of 2017 they bought the house of their dreams in Borris. Borris is a town with approximately 800 inhabitants in Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality – geographically the biggest municipality in Denmark.

“We have been living here since 2011 and our children are fully integrated in the local community and gradually, so are we. We have been made to feel really welcome in this town. People gladly help us and we are very happy about living here,” Sorin says whilst simultaneously smiling at Erling Søndergaard - one of the passionate locals who likes to give a lending hand. Erling has helped the family with the purchase of their house, and as a friend of the family he joins our conversation as to why Sorin and Ioana came to Denmark and what it is like for a foreign family to move to Ringkøbing-Skjern Municipality.

”We are also happy having you here. We can tell that you like being here, and you have also done a great deal to become a part of the community,” Erling points out referring to the fact that Sorin among others has been active in leading a father-child gymnastics team and a table tennis team in town.

Ioana und Sorin - Read the full story here