Even Europeans do not know everything where Slovenia is. It is so small that it is lost among Italy, Austria and Croatia. And then there is Slovakia… is it the same thing?
I once told an Italian that I live in Slovenia and he was surprised. This is a country that borders Italy to the north. Austria? No, near the city of Trieste. Croatia? He still didn’t understand.
Slovenia is the size of the Oryol region and 2 million people live here. The capital is the city of Ljubljana, there are 300 thousand inhabitants. Like Saransk or Vologda.
The country’s main assets are nature and sports. There is access to the Adriatic Sea (an hour by car from Ljubljana), and the Alps are visible from the window. Slovenians ride bicycles and go hiking just like we eat Olivier on New Year’s Eve. Part of their culture is to keep forests green, lakes clean and live in harmony with nature.
This way of life is very close to us: quiet, calm, not crowded and very green.
Moving
I worked in St. Petersburg for 10 years in a pharmaceutical company. Slovenia has several large sites in different cities and an office hub. In May 2022, I received a position that included relocation. I received an EU Blue card – a residence permit for a highly qualified specialist, and my husband received a residence permit for restoration with his family. Two dogs received European passports already here on site.
Preparing the documents took an endless 4 months: there were huge queues to obtain an apostille for a higher education diploma. I found myself on summer vacation and the committee was moving to a new building. At the end of July, I was ready to become a volunteer with them and help organize a document flow system.
In Slovenia, we collaborated with a company that submitted documents for us, and they also made translations into Slovenian with certification. The processing time for documents in the Administrative Office (administration in Slovenia) takes from 1 to 6 months and greatly depends on the location. There are a lot of people who want to move to Ljubljana, and they will have to wait six months for a decision. Therefore, we entered into a housing agreement to obtain a residence permit and actually lived for 2 months in a remote village with 6 houses – they looked at it and made a decision on us within a week. And no matter how remote the village is, Ljubljana is still no more than 2 hours by car.
The main difficulty at the time of processing the documents was the abolition of diplomatic relations between the countries by September 2022. The Slovenian consulate is only in Moscow, it worked in a very limited mode and it was extremely difficult to get there. At first, we waited in line for a month to sign up for biometric data. Then a decision on us is made within a week… but there is no way to deliver the documents to Moscow. We were very lucky that at that time presidential elections were taking place in Slovenia. The documents did not make it to the consul along with the election package, but arrived along with the ballots for the second round in November. It was incredible luck that Natasha Pirts Musar did not get the maximum number of votes on her first try. Otherwise, we had almost no options left.
An important feature of the EU Blue Card specifically for Slovenia is that when moving, you can take your family with you almost immediately. If you receive a regular visa or other options for a residence permit, your spouse or children can receive a residence permit for restoration with your family only after 2 years and you still need to pass an exam for a minimum knowledge of the Slovenian language. In our case, this was not required – and a residence permit for my husband was issued immediately after mine was issued.
Work and salary
I moved for work – I already had an employment contract with the company and I had already started working for them while in Russia. My husband is currently looking for work.
The average salary in the country is 1,450 euros after taxes. This is important for obtaining an EU Blue Card: the salary must be 1.5 times higher than the national average. There is such a requirement when applying for this type of residence permit in all countries, but in Austria and Germany the average is much higher.
My salary is 3000 euros per month without taxes, plus bonuses. I can say that this is much higher than our total income when we lived in Russia. However, the standard of living and what we can afford with this money have decreased. We are actively looking for opportunities to increase income.
The tax rate in Slovenia is progressive. If you compare it with the amount specified in the contract, it turns out that about 40% goes to taxes and other social payments.
Housing
Most of our expenses are rental housing. Citizens of third countries cannot buy real estate in Slovenia. Although the mortgage rate of 4.5% seems fabulous.
When looking for housing, it was not easy for us: there are not many people willing to rent out an apartment for a long time to foreigners with two dogs. The only saving grace was that everyone loves corgis and understands that the Yorkshire terrier is something very small.
We looked for an apartment for about a month with the help of an agent who communicated with the owners in Slovenian and also helped with drawing up the contract. We were thinking about living in the suburbs or small towns near Ljubljana, such as Domzale or Kranj. There were almost no options there. Ljubljana is also a small city, the housing market is quite limited. There is one website where all advertisements are posted. And don’t expect to see beautiful and clear photographs, detailed descriptions and all the conditions at once. If this is the case, then most likely the apartment is being rented out by an agent and you will need to pay him for the work – usually the cost of rent for 1 month.
Initially, we planned to rent a two-room apartment not in the center of Ljubljana for up to 1000 euros/month. We started searching while still in Russia, but there were no such options: either without furniture, or very small areas. We both planned to work from home, so we didn’t consider one-room apartments for ourselves.
As a result, by the new year we found an excellent option, but it was more expensive than we planned: 1200 euros/month. For this money we got a large 4-room apartment (living room, bedroom and 2 offices), with a large terrace/garden, a garage (which is important, parking is paid almost everywhere) and storage space. We are most pleased with the area. Koseze is part of the Šiška district – in five minuses we have a huge Rožnik park/forest, a pond with swans, a large farmers’ market and a large new shopping center. It’s a long walk to work – about 40 minutes, but otherwise everything is very convenient, quiet and green.
A special feature of our deal was the need to leave a deposit of 3 payments, and we also pay in advance for 3 months. That is, we had to pay 7,200 euros one-time, and then we pay once every three months in advance. But it’s worth it.
Life
We think that Slovenia is very convenient for moving. Everyone here speaks English, even postmen and plumbers. We are learning a little language, it is as complex in grammar as Russian. We have learned to guess the meanings, but so far we understand and do not speak much. At the same time, we feel quite comfortable.
What has changed compared to St. Petersburg:
1. Movement
We don’t use public transport. In Ljubljana there are only buses, one trip costs about 1.5 euros. We walk or drive more. I go to work several times a month to the office – walk 40 minutes, walk. The rest of the time I work remotely.
Most Slovenians ride bicycles. Ljubljana is one of the ten countries with the most developed infrastructure for bicycles. Champion road racing cyclist Tadej Pogačar is the main idol and one of the most famous people in Slovenia. Many people here engage in mountain biking and simply ride long distances.
2. Peace and tranquility
You’re in no hurry; no matter how hard you try, you won’t be able to sign up somewhere tomorrow – wait a couple of weeks, or even months. My colleagues and I go on hikes instead of restaurants. We walk more ourselves.
3. Expenses
In Slovenia (as elsewhere in Europe), services are much more expensive compared to Russia. And this change greatly affects the quality of life and the feeling of prosperity.
For example, a taxi home to the city center will cost 15 euros and will take a long time. Uber doesn’t operate here. You have to take a bus or car share.
A “Russian manicure” without coating will cost 25 euros if you sign up a month in advance and it will be an inconvenient time during the day for you. And so in all areas of services, such as massages, sports, training.
After 10 years with very good VHI, we are wary of medicine. Here you need to be assigned to one attending physician, who is not so easy to find. All places are taken, we waited several months for a place to open up. Also with the dentist: we found a dentist in May and made an appointment for the first professional examination on September 18th.
Our main entertainment here is travel. All summer we went to Croatia to the beaches (1.5 hours), Slovenia itself has beautiful nature, mountains, caves and lakes. You can get to Austria in an hour, in Venice in 3. Hungary is also not far away, but we haven’t been there yet.
Budget
Basic expenses per month:
- Apartment rental – 1200 euros,
- Utilities – 150 euros in summer / 250 euros in winter,
- Internet – 34 euros,
- Telephone connection – 10 euros,
- Medical insurance – 37 euros,
- Crossfit subscription – 85 euros,
- Car (fuel) – 150 euros,
- Groceries – 150 euros/week,
- Tobacco – 40 euros,
- Dog food – 80 euros,
- Manicure – 25 euros/1 visit,
- Household expenses – 50 euros,
- Cosmetics – 50 euros.
Mandatory car expenses:
- Car insurance – similar to compulsory motor insurance (annually) – 750 euros,
- Registration of documents for a car (annually) – 150 euros,
- Vignette – toll roads (annually) – 130 euros.
Additional expenses:
- The fine for speeding is 250 euros,
- Appointment with a paid dentist – 60 euros,
- Ski pass to the ski resort (season) – 550 euros.
Apart from basic expenses, we spend a lot on the car (insurance, parts, repairs) and camping gear.
Pros of living in Slovenia
As one local woman told me: Slovenia is wonderful for retirees and families with small children. On our own behalf, we can add – for dog owners.
To many, after a large metropolis, Ljubljana may seem small and boring, but for us this is a huge plus. We practically don’t go to the center; more often we go out of town on weekends. 1 hour – and you are in the Alps. 1 hour in the other direction – sea and beach. Forest, thousands of lakes and a very temperate climate.
In winter there is snow, but it is sunny and never less than 10 degrees. It’s colder in the mountains, of course, but there are ski resorts. They are not far behind the Austrian and Swiss ones, but they are much cheaper. It’s hot in the summer, but once a week there will definitely be a little rain, so all the trees and grass are bright green, as if the brightness in the photo was turned up.
If you want to go to a metropolis – Venice, Milan, Zagreb, Vienna – all this is very close.
The locals are very sporty. There are always a lot of people on the nearby trails, even on weekdays. I really like the tradition in memory of World War II. Ljubljana was occupied and there were fences and wire on the city border. In place of this ring around the city, small pillars are now installed and the Path of Life runs through. On dates around May 8, races for adults and children are organized here, and on Saturday all residents go out and walk this 29 km path around the city. This is a tradition in which everyone participates: from children in kindergartens and schools to pensioners. Of course, you don’t have to go all the way, but you can get a medal.
Disadvantages of living in Slovenia
I will name the only negative – opportunities for business and earnings.
Obviously, with a small population, the number of clients will always be lower than in a large metropolis – no matter what business you are in.
At the same time, the average income level will still be much lower than, for example, in neighboring Austria. www.numbeo.com shows the cost of living in different cities. Yes, in Austria prices for everything will be 13.8% more expensive, but the average salary will be 50% higher. At the same time, rental housing is comparable, if not with Vienna, but with another big city.
What’s next
Not long ago I saw a vacancy in the USA that was suitable for me. City of Indianapolis, the salary would be directly 2 times higher. But we decided that we are not yet ready to leave Slovenia even for this – the proximity of nature, skiing, the Alps and simply a measured lifestyle in greenery and without cars is important to us.