Netherlands
External resources
Personal stories
This section consists of personal anecdotes from people living in Germany. Remember to take it as stories, but they can point you where you can do more research.
Cost of living
person 1:
absolute lowest 800€-1500€ monthly for a room in a flat share, depending on the region (randstad being on the expensive end), min wage is about 12-13€ per hour above 21 years old for context
Ease of finding work
person 1:
as long as your visa stuff is sorted out, with just english knowledge it isnt too hard to find certain types of min wage jobs (e.g. delivery). Certain fields are english friendly too (IT), while others won't be
Trans acceptance/tolerance/friendliness
person 1:
the public is relatively okay, though not perfect
Academia
person 1:
dutch higher education is expensive for non-EU citizens (tuition about 10k€ < per year). universities have their own admission requirements detailed on their webpages.
person 2:
Dutch is relatively easy to learn using Duolingo or sth as it's so close to English.
Language barrier
person 1:
most people know english, but learning dutch is still important long term for better opportunities
Access to HRT
person 1:
as a citizen: few month to 1 year waitlist in private healthcare, 3-4 year waitlist at the hospitals, diagnosis required, may not accept foreign diagnoses
public insurance covered: psychiatric care, hrt, bottom surgery, top surgery for trans guys (I think?)
only very rarely covered: ffs
not covered: breast augmentation (there is a govt subsidy until 2026 though)
if you are a resident and work in the netherlands it is mandatory to have health insurance which should cover the same as for citizens, unsure about fresh migrant status
person 2:
The Netherlands will give you a bridging prescription if you bring proof of medication, so you won't have to worry about any gaps. However you'll land on a multi-year waiting list for a gender clinic.
Immigration
person 2:
The Netherlands has a high skilled residency permit, which has a salary threshold, but basically is guaranteed entry if you have a job. A normal job visa below that threshold requires approval, as well as making sure they've already tried finding native applicants before allowing the foreign one. A visa is for entering the country while a residency pass is for staying in the country.
Contact us
If you know about life in the Netherlands as an LGBTQ+ person or would like to ask us questions about the Netherlands, you can reach out to us using the contact form.