Expats welcome!
The Düsseldorf region is a popular location for international investors and businesses. Following that, an increasing number of professionals from abroad, the so called expats, are settling in the area. Johannes Grünhage and the Expat Service Desk help them to call the city home.
An increasing number of international businesses decide on a location in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to Orbis, the enterprise database, 20,000 of them have already settled in NRW. The wider Düsseldorf region is especially popular, and it ranks after Greater London and Paris, îIe-de-France as one of Europe’s most attractive region for direct foreign investment. Along with the companies come the expats, short for ‘Expatriates’, highly qualified, foreign professionals or executives, who live and work here, temporarily or permanently. One of the international employers based in Düsseldorf is the Japanese chemical group Asahi Kasei. “Currently we have about 106 staff and 30 of them are expats. By that we mean our Japanese colleagues, who have been posted here. Furthermore, we are a highly diversified company, with our employees coming from a range of different countries,” tells Karl-Heinz Deichelmann, General Manager Human Resources at Asahi Kasei.
152,232 individuals from 193 nations were registered in Düsseldorf on 31.12.2019 and 4,136 foreign businesses are recorded with the trade register of the IHK for the county of Düsseldorf, which is comprised of the regional capital and the district of Mettmann. On top of that the city has 6,900 foreign small businesses. The top three countries of origin of all these are China, the Netherlands and the UK – France is placed 6th, followed closely by Japan.
And talking of Japan – the Japanese community has a long and strong tradition in Düsseldorf. As early as the mid1950s the first Japanese company arrived in the city, and until today the community has been growing steadily. Also other cultures are becoming more visible in the city.
Around the Hauptbahnhof a large number of Chinese Restaurants and supermarkets point towards this constantly growing community. Düsseldorf is known to be the most dynamic location for the Chinese – next to innovative medium-sized businesses the global company Huawei is also situated here. Most of the businesses recorded with the trade register in the Rhine valley region are run by people originating from the Netherlands, as Düsseldorf is the most popular location for Dutch investors in the whole of Germany.
Düsseldorf is known
to be the most dynamic
location for the Chinese
Düsseldorf is considered one of the largest Japanese communities in Europe. The most important cultural and religious centre of the Japanese community is the EKO house in Niederkassel. Here you will find a Buddhist temple, Japanese gardens and a house in traditional Japanese style with a tea room.
But going back to the expats – the city of Düsseldorf together with the district of Mettmann and the IHK Düsseldorf have founded the Expat Service Desk as first point of contact for expats and their employers. International professionals and executives, their families and small or medium-sized companies based in the region can ask for advice there. Johannes Grünhage, Project Leader for the Expat Service Desk, says “We are an institution, which is being supported by the Office of Economic Development of the city, the IHK Düsseldorf and the district of Mettmann and we see ourselves as a sort of guide in the jungle of administration.” The needs of expats are very varied: how do I apply for a Blue Card, how can I have my educational qualification or driving licence verified, how does it work with regards to family reunification and residence status? “Our work is unique – we are an official, administrative and English-speaking service, and on top of that it’s free,” says Grünhage.
Asahi Kasei, too, has taken into consideration that starting a new life in a new country as an expat is bound to bear challenges. “The preparations taking place at the HQ are very extensive, however, getting to grips with the local way of life is always and in every individual case a challenge. Hence, our company supports our new employees very intensively, especially in the first couple of weeks, and accompanies them to the crucial meetings with landlords, departments and authorities.”
The education of their children is very important for expats. The International School in Neuss
prepares its students for entry to the best universities – from kindergarten to the Abitur.
The Expat Service Desk moreover gives advice to the families of the expats and works together with the education authority of the five international schools located in the region and bilingual nurseries, gives out information with regards to further training, language courses and career development. “This is especially interesting to partners accompanying expats.” According to Grünhage the high number of international networks in Düsseldorf such as business clubs and friendship societies are also incredibly important: “Düsseldorf ranks very highly with expats with regards to the quality of life and work,” he says. “If you then also take into consideration the local cultural events, like designated days celebrating France, China and Japan, the Europatag, the English library and theatre… there is an incredibly high number of interesting stimuli, from which our region can only profit.”
“The demand to receive
advice has increased
massively this year.”
Johannes Grünhage
Projektleiter Expat Service Desk
The Coronavirus pandemic has created a new set of challenges for all involved. “The demand to receive advice has increased massively this year: travel restrictions, closed public offices, reduced working hours… we do our best to continue to support everyone concerned – also by telephone and online,” promises Johannes Grünhage. •
www.expatservicedesk.de
Words: Katja Vaders
Pictures: PR, iStock, EKO Haus Michael Kuhl, ISR International School on the Rhine, Eko Haus Michael Kuhl, Expat Service Desk