Question for all the Europeans

[USAUAinCZ 37]

Hey all,

Just found out about this website. It's a great resource to have.

My girlfriend and I plan on making the move back from Europe to the USA and only one thing concerns us. We have both gotten used to the extreme amount of vacation time offered to us. We live in Prague and I get 8 weeks of vacation and my girlfriend gets 5.

How do you deal with getting less time off? Is it hard to adjust to? I can imagine my girlfriend who has never lived or worked in the USA will be in for a bit of a shock.

[Illiria 980]

I work for a state employer and I get a 'generous' two weeks plus bank holidays. Some of my bank holidays are worked and the leave moved to between Christmas and New Years so I always get that time off. My husband gets summers off so he gets lots of time but we can't enjoy it due to my leave restrictions.

I am finding it pretty tough, getting home to see family and friends as both myself and my US citizen spouse don't have any family here. So all of our family is back in my country.

I am also used to five weeks as well. I am finding I can't take random days off just because anymore, I have to plan my use of days off over the year. So I recommend planning out all the travel you want to do over the year. Talk now about how often you will go back and how often you will holiday in the US.

I actually get more sick leave than vacation.

Edited September 10, 2016 by Illiria

[millefleur 5,035]

Honestly, the lack of vacation time is just one of the many things you'll need to re-adjust to concerning life in the US vs Europe.

Basically, you can always take a part time job and then you'll get a lot more flexibility, depending on the field you work in. But then, there's the catch: part time jobs don't offer health insurance, so there's that. And the whole health insurance situation in the USA is a whole other can of worms to deal with vs. Europe.

I think the reality is, you kind of just have to accept it as the "American way of life"....the ONLY chance of getting close to European time off in the US is going to work for a company (usually a small one) run by Europeans, in which case, the tend to give the whole office the true European holiday treatment. But this is pretty rare, however, I had a job with an Italian CEO in NYC and we actually got something close to five weeks off, paid, European style. The job was awful and I hated it, but that was the only perk!

Another option is: look for a "work from home"/telecommute job. Then you can travel and be mobile without office hours. This is probably a more realistic variant than finding the rare unicorn that is the company with a European CEO. So, I'd be looking for that kind of telecommute/freelance/out-of-the-office job if I were her. Best of luck!

[theresaL 408]

Which visa type are you or your girlfriend planning to apply for in order to make the move back to the US? As a USC of course you don't need a visa, but your girlfriend will need one to both live and work. There are great guides listed at the top of the menu bar that can help you to decide.

[USAUAinCZ 37]

Which visa type are you or your girlfriend planning to apply for in order to make the move back to the US? As a USC of course you don't need a visa, but your girlfriend will need one to both live and work. There are great guides listed at the top of the menu bar that can help you to decide.

We don't plan on moving for another year or two so I still haven't decided whether or not we should do the k1 or CR1.

It seems that since we already live together we should just go the CR1 route as we have no time constraint and we both have decent enough jobs.

[theresaL 408]

That may be the best route for you since it is less expensive and she would be able to work upon entry into the US if approved. With K-1 there is an additional waiting time and it is more expensive. We are currently waiting on my husband's EAD so he can work. It's a little difficult for him to not work but in the mean time he's going to ESL classes to improve his English.

Good luck!

[Unidentified 2,930]

It takes a while to get used to yes. I'm pretty lucky because I work in a school and get a pretty decent time off in the summer but it's not really useful as my husband only gets about 3 weeks total of vacation (and most of those are federal holidays) and I don't get paid during that time.

But you'll get used to it to some extent. Sometimes it's frustrating and sometimes it's okay.

[N-o-l-a 7,167]

I don't work so I get all the vacation I want, but my Danish husband doesn't really mind the 3 weeks unpaid versus 6 weeks he got before. He could even take less vacation time and 2 weeks of it was a special favor because we had already booked a trip to Denmark before changing jobs.

His father runs a side business in Denmark and it is immensely hard for him to get 2 weeks off to come and visit us and had to work when we were there. He earns more at his side business than his regular job, so it is important. My husband also used to be self employed for a long time and there was no excess vacation then either.

tl;dr is that the Danish half doesn't notice and doesn't care.

Edited September 10, 2016 by N-o-l-a

[TBoneTX 43,058]

Welcome to the forum.

[USAUAinCZ 37]

Welcome to the forum.

Thanks!

[*Snowdrop* 603]

I found it a very hard adjustment - along with other work/labor views and issues over here. Maternity leave is very, very short over here (think six weeks max compared to six months in the UK), and paternity leave practically nonexistent.

If we'd had the option or had the chance to do over then I would have preferred to have been pregnant and given birth in the UK before moving to the US. (although the maternity wing at the American hospital was super fancy and comfortable - we were lucky to have excellent healthcare - would have cost around $80,000 without coverage)

[Lemonslice 4,554]

Depending on what you do for work, vacations are negotiable. I have been able to keep 4+ weeks with all my employers in the USA. Paid now, got one of them unpaid with previous employer. I need time more than I need money...

[charmander 692]

Welcome to the "no vacation land". It is the way it is. Less vacation, more work. Expensive to travel home.

You'll learn how to make use of the long weekends, roll-over vacation days to next years, etc but you will ever never get anything close to what you currently have. First few years would suck but you'll adjust. Hopefully family and friends would be able to visit you guys here too.

I recommend finding job in a city whose airport offers variety of non-stop flights both domestic and international. That way you could dodge taking extra days off on days of your travel.

[mallafri76 1,012]

It's a pain but it is what it is. You'll either have to get used to it or live somewhere else. Or negotiate more vacation.