First of all, you should be aware that even as an EU citizen you need a basis to live in Denmark. The following may apply to EU citizens:
Let´s assume you found a job in Denmark. As me, you would have to register as a worker in Denmark. But you will realize soon during that process that it is not possible to do so, if you do not yet live there. Yep, you need to have a valid address first. This can be your own house or a rented apartment. Under certain circumstances it might be also valid to stay in a hotel or Airbnb. No matter what you decide for, you must have a prove for your housing when you register in Denmark and apply for your CPR number.
The CPR number
A CPR (Central Person Register) number is a personal identification number in Denmark, similar to a Social Security number in the United States or the Steueridentifikationsnummer in Germany. A CPR number is required for several important tasks in Denmark, including:
- Opening a bank account: You will need a CPR number to open a bank account in Denmark.
- Getting a job: Your employer will need your CPR number to pay you and to report your income to the tax authorities.
- Receiving healthcare: You will need a CPR number to receive healthcare services in Denmark.
- Enrolling in school or university: If you want to enroll in school or university in Denmark, you will need a CPR number.
- Paying taxes: Your CPR number is used to identify you for tax purposes.
- For Identification purposes: Danes usually use the MitID app to sign a contract digital. This means you cannot have a broadband contract, for example, before you get the CPR.
In general, a CPR number is an essential part of living and working in Denmark, unlike the equivalent in Germany! It is required for many important tasks. You will need to apply for a CPR number when you arrive in Denmark, and you should do this as soon as possible after your arrival.
The CPR number consists of your birthday followed by a four digit number (ddmmyy-xxxx), for example a person born on the first of december in 1990 might receive a number similar to this one: 011290-1234. Although the CPR number is the same as the tax number here in denmark, applying only for a tax number is insufficient for many things you might want to do in Denmark. The CPR has more
The CPR number is the reason why finding a job and an accomodation has highest priority in your timeline of moving to Denmark. In my oppinion it makes the start in Denmark more complicated. For example, finding an electricity provider who would not need the CPR number was a challenge. If you are supposed to live in Denmark to be able to apply for the CPR number, you also need electricity… right? (Contact Nordisk Energy if you are in a similar situation, they offer to provide you with electricity when you pay a deposit). This danish CPR system might be digital and for those who settled here it might be easy to use, sustainable, and secure. But for newcomers it feels like a huge wall that makes things a lot more complicated and expensive in the beginning until you have the CPR.
renting an apartment
Do not wait starting to look for housing until you have the official working contract. Especially in the area around Copenhagen housing is a) expensive, b) difficult to find and c) not easy to get.
The often used free of charge possibilities to find housing is via Facebook and sometimes also via DBA (the danish Craigslist or Ebay Kleinanzeigen). However, frequently the links provided there to see further information will link you to one of the typically used applications to rent or buy in Denmark: Boligportal, Boligsiden, Nybolig, and they will charge you for using the service of getting in touch with a real estate agent or landlord. This was very surprising for me as in Germany the process until deciding for an apartment or house is completely free of charge no matter what platform you use. For example, the Boligportal offers this to landlords:
Find a tenant for your property quickly, easily and free
On boligportal.dk you can advertise your property for FREE and easily sort the enquiries from interested tenants.
And this to the people who want to look for an apartment:
This is either a subscription for 24 hours for 29 DKK (3,88€ or 4,21$), a four week subscription for 339 DKK (45,41€ or 49,17$) or a two months subscription for 499 DKK (66,84€ or 72,37$) (February 2023).
Sometimes accomodations on Boligportal are marked with a green banner stating „free contact“. So it might be possible to find something without paying though.
Anyway, my opinon on this system is that it is unnatural to charge the group of people with less money.
In my experience, you can find on Boligportal the apartment you like within the first four weeks of subscription. But for this you need to regularly look at offers, compare and evaluate. You should not be afraid to write to the real estate agents or landlords in English and Danish, I have had really good experiences with Deepl helping me to write correct Danish. In addition, you should not fall for scam. Unfortunately, there are also fake landlords who want the deposit for a property that does not actually exist.
Costs for a rented apartment
For someone coming from Germany to Denmark, I found it really expensive to rent an apartment in greater Copenhagen. The reason is that you pay not only a deposit, but also a „Forudbetalt husleje“, which means something like rent paid in advance. Together with the first normal rent and the additional costs, they summarize your initial payment as move-in cost. This is an example of a two room apartment in Lyngby, an hour bike-ride away from Copenhagen center or 20 min by train.
| Danish | DKK | English | € | $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Månedlig leje | 10400 | Monthly rent | 1352 | 1560 |
| Aconto | 500 | Additional cost | 65 | 75 |
| Depositum | 31200 | Deposit | 4056 | 4680 |
| Forudbetalt husleje | 20800 | Prepaid rent | 2704 | 3120 |
| Indflytningspris | 62900 | Move-in price | 8177 | 9435 |
This is almost 10000$. And then you still did not pay the move itself. Enough for today. It´s a bit hard to digest how many stones are on the path to moving into the happiest country in the world even for a EU citizen. There are many more important things to keep in mind when moving to Denmark. This was just the beginning. In part 3 of moving to Denmark I will explain the steps for the registration.