Marta moved to Brussels three years ago for the Swedish pharmaceutical company she works for. Her husband and two children came with her. KBC Brussels was involved from the very beginning in order to ensure that her transition went smoothly.
A new start
When Marta decided to take the big step of accepting a job in Brussels, her company suggested a relocator that helped her with the move. 'We received direct help with the administration and with finding a new home in Brussels. She also arranged all kinds of information packages and a language course. Not every expat has it so easy,' admits Marta.
'She was actually the one who recommended KBC Brussels to us. And we certainly didn't regret the choice. I didn't have to worry about our bank accounts, payment cards, insurance policies and security deposit at all.' The family's investment portfolio was also taken care of: 'My husband uses the Bolero app to manage his investments through his smartphone, while I rely on the Employee Benefit programme, which also runs through the KBC group.'
A network of expats
A bank alone is not enough to make you feel at home in a new city. That's why KBC Brussels also put Marta in touch with its network of privileged partners for expats in Belgium.
Marta explains the personal impact of this: 'The network was a huge help, especially for my family. We found answers to all kinds of practical questions there, and we also made our first Belgian friends. What’s more, we found plenty of important information about the guidance and support offered to diabetics in Belgium for our son.'
We received all the support we needed to get ourselves set up here.
Marta (40)
Safety and certainty
As an expat, you start off only knowing a few people in your new country, and this can be a source of additional uncertainty. Marta explains how her home assistance service helped with this: 'During the first month we had to deal with a leak in our water mains. We only spoke Swedish and English, and we hadn't made any friends in Brussels at that point. So we were very happy that we could call our insurer late at night to find a quick solution.'
Marta now already speaks excellent French and has become very familiar with the idiosyncrasies of Brussels. When we compliment her on her French, she hastens to add that she has also already learned a little Dutch!
