Despite temperatures close to 0 degrees (for our readers outside of Spain: yes – it DOES get cold in Madrid!), the reckless Just Landed team ventured into the Sierra de Madrid this weekend.  On our winter team event, we tested our physical fitness (especially on uphill hikes) – and learned how fast one can run once night falls in the mountains. Just before having to set up a nightcamp, we reached the safe haven of civilization again.

Thanks to everybody’s fearlessness, our mountain adventure gave us (yet) another opportunity to prove our team capabilites of managing challenging situations. The well-deserved dinner in front of the fireplace was a great roundup of the day – and proved that some of our team are not only great on the computer – but also in front of a cooking stove.

We are pleased to announce the launch of our Malaysia expatriate guide. It includes information on visas, jobs, health, and more, making it the perfect resource if you are traveling or moving to Malaysia.

Recently recognised as a newly industrialised country, Malaysia not only has a booming tourism industry, but is also attracting a rising number of expatriates. With living costs far below Western standards, a highly advanced technology infrastructure, and a warming and diversified culture, expatriates enjoy all advantages of A Western and an Eastern world.

A noteworthy aspect is the country’s “Malaysia My Second Home Programme”. This government promoted residency scheme allows all foreigners and their dependents who fulfill certain criteria to stay in Malaysia on a 10 years visa. This visa can be renewed after expiration. Expatriates with this visa enjoy various incentives, whilst receiving the same treatment as Malaysian residents.

Since English is widely spoken, it is much easier for expatriates to get used to their new life in Malaysia than in many other countries. Nevertheless, the challenge of moving to a country as distinct as Malaysia should not be underestimated. The hierarchical culture, which characterises both social and professional life can make the starting period very difficult, and the hot, humid climate with heavy rainstorms is hard to adapt for many foreigners from northern countries.

To be best prepared for your move to Malaysia our guide will help you with everything you need to consider. You can also join our Malaysian expatriate community to meet other expats and to get advice about moving there.

Yesterday was the birthday of Scotland’s National poet, Robert Burns. Born in 1759, the poet is known for his beautiful love poems as well as for his blunt social and political critique.

Today, every year on the 25th of January, Scots celebrate his birthday by eating Haggis, ceilidh dancing and drinking whisky, while reciting Robert Burns poems and ceremoniously addressing the Haggis, “Great chieftain o’ the puddin’-race!”. This is not solely done in Scotland, as the Scottish community abroad is actually bigger than the population of Scotland, counting 9 million members against 6 million in Scotland. So we all hope you had an excellent Burns night!

In Just Landed, we too celebrate Burns night, as this coming week end (sadly we could not do it on the 25th for professional reasons) the Scots of Just Landed, Lesley Rennie from Stirlingshire and I will dance the Slosh and the Gay Gordons in the streets of Madrid!

We are happy to announce the launch of the Sweden expat guide. The guide is the perfect tool if you are planning to settle in Sweden. Find information about visas, jobs, housing and much more.

Sweden is a very attractive destination, often topping the world rankings for its healthcare system, education and its standard of living. The country boasts a very rich culture, from its Viking heritage to its top fashion and music. If you enjoy beautiful landscapes, Sweden has plenty to offer with the dramatic and wild sceneries of Lapland.

Sweden is a very welcoming country. Nevertheless, it does have some peculiarities such as its social renting system. Our expat guide will provide you with all the information you need to settle. If you have more questions or want to meet other expatriates living in Sweden, check out our Sweden expat community!

Some expats believe they are receiving a higher level of evacuation cover than is actually the case, which could leave them or their families seriously exposed in the event of a medical emergency.

In some cases expats are forced to leave their spouse and children behind because their evacuation cover was inadequate. Other people were refused evacuation because their condition wasn’t considered ‘life threatening’ even though local facilities were inadequate.

When purchasing a health insurance plan be sure to check if the emergency medical evacuation cover entitles members to be accompanied by their partner and all of their dependent children in the case of a medical emergency. Many plans only allow a single adult to accompany the patient.

A good health insurance plan must also provide unaccompanied, non-emergency evacuation to a high quality medical facility for more minor medical conditions if no adequate treatment is available locally. Many plans will only provide evacuation if a condition is ‘life threatening’ leaving expats exposed to the risk of poor quality treatment or a deteriorating medical condition.

As Peter Rousseau, Business Development Director of InterGlobal put it:

The acid test of an international PMI plan is whether it delivers when the chips are down – and we have gone to great lengths to ensure that our plans will perform whatever emergency befalls our members.

We are excited to announce the launch of our Brazil expatriate guide. It includes information on visas, work, housing, health, and more, making it the perfect resource if you are travelling or moving to Brazil.

Brazil has a huge growth rate and experts predict that it could become one of the world’s top five economies. In recent years Brazil has made an enourmous economical and financial progress. It managed to reduce its inflation, introduce a new currency and today offers a stable and attractive economy. Brazil’s predicted blooming future is sure to make investments pay off.

With its diversified landscape, ranging from the impressive rainforests to its long beaches, Brazil offers lifestyle options to suit everyone. With a culture which is as at least as manifold and welcoming as its flora and fauna, nobody will feel a stranger in Brazil.

Yet moving to Brazil is not all easy. The poor health and education sectors can be a daunting prospect for wannabe expats. Furthermore, you will need to learn Portuguese, as English is hardly spoken in Brazil.

Brazil is undoubtedly different from your home country, and our expat guide will help you organize your move. If you have more questions or want to meet other expatriates living in Brazil, check out our Brazil expat community!

On October 23rd, Leonard Orban, European Commissioner for Multilingualism made a plea. He maintains that languages are crucial bridges between cultures. To learn a new language is to explore new ways of thinking, new value-systems and to open our horizons to the richness of other cultures and ideas.

As the European Commissioner for Multilingualism put it:

We should use this diversity to Europe’s advantage. A culture of multilingualism promotes a culture of openness and tolerance. These are crucial values not only for Europe but for the entire world. Any realistic international vision for the future of our world has to be founded on acceptance and appreciation of different cultures – and languages are at the heart of any culture.

Everybody should learn languages

Multilingualism can play a key role in intercultural dialogue; in creating more cohesive and more sustainable societies. Of course it is important for migrants to learn the language of the host-country to gain access to jobs and to the life of the community. It is a means to becoming an active citizen who is engaged with society.

But everybody needs to learn more languages to bring about a more open society. Each of the many national, regional, minority and migrant languages add a facet to our common cultural background. Is this not the meaning of the European motto “Unity in Diversity”?

Languages for all

Multilingualism has a strong educational dimension. Universities and schools are essential. But language teaching must not be confined to academic institutions. Not only young people, but adults too, should be encouraged to carry on learning foreign languages, with facilities on hand to make this possible. Workers should have the opportunity to improve the language skills relevant to their working life. Language learning is for all citizens, throughout their lives.

According to the BBC, 5.5m British people live permanently abroad – nearly one in ten of the UK population. Only in 2008, 172,000 UK citizens permanently left Britain.

Countries with most British expats:

If you are wondering how many Brits live abroad and where, have a look at the BBC’s Brits Abroad guide. The guide gives a general overview of where Brits have gone and provides interesting info on expats in every part of the world.

If you are an Italian living abroad, remember to register with the AIRE (Anagrafe degli Italiani Residenti all’Estero). This is particularly important if you live far from Italy and lose your identity documents. If you are registered at your local consulate, you will be able to get new documents made in your country of residence. Otherwise, you will be forced to go back to your home town in Italy before getting a new passport!

Another good reason to do so is to vote! Since 2001, Italians residing abroad can vote and are represented in the Parliament. If you are registered, you will receive a postal vote and will be able to complete the whole procedure from your couch! For parliamentary elections you will even be able to choose your representatives, as 7 deputies and 6 senators are elected for the “abroad” constituency.

To register with the AIRE, contact your local consulate.

Italiano all’estero: registrati!

Se sei un italiano residente all’estero ricordati di registrarti all’AIRE (Anagrafe degli Italiani Residenti all’Estero). Questo è particolarmente importante se vivi lontano dall’Italia. Se ti capita di perdere il passaporto o la carta d’identità, il tuo consolato potrà rilasciartene uno nuovo solamente se sei iscritto all’AIRE. Se per caso non sei registrato, sarai obbligato a tornare al tuo comune di origine per ottenere un nuovo documento.

Un’altra buona ragione per registrarti è la possibilità di votare. Dal 2001 gli italiani all’estero possono votare per tutte le elezioni italiane. Per le elezioni parlamentari puoi anche eleggere i tuoi rappresentanti , visto che dal 2001 ogni circoscrizione mondiale è rappresentata da almeno un deputato e un senatore. Allora registrati ! È un dovere/diritto di ogni cittadino italiano!

Per registrarti all’ AIRE contatta il tuo consolato locale.

Thanks to all our users and customers for their support this year.

We just launched a new feature today which means you can now share your adverts with your social networks on Facebook, Orkut and LinkedIn, or even Twitter them. So for example if you are posting a job offer on Just Landed you can now push it out to people who might be able to help you fill the position. This works for expat jobs, housing and classifieds – click on ‘My posts’, select one of your ads and you will see the options on the right hand side. While I am talking about promoting ads, we are looking to a talented developer at the moment, click here to see the Ruby on Rails Developer position details.

Over the last year, we have done a lot of work to make out services better and easier to use. We are looking forward to making life better for even more expats in 2010!