Thomas(34)

After six years at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs I passed the EPSO competition — the selection procedure for EU officials. I was hired as a policy officer at DG CLIMA of the European Commission. It was a dream come true: working on European climate policy, in the heart of the EU.

The special thing about working at EU institutions is the tax regime. You don't pay Belgian or Dutch income tax, but an internal EU tax that's lower. This makes the net salary significantly higher than a comparable position in the Netherlands. But note: as soon as you have income outside your EU job — rental income, investments — Belgian fiscal rules fully apply.

Registering at the Brussels municipality as an EU official goes through a special desk. You receive a special residence card and a rijksregisternummer (national registry number), which you need for everything: opening a bank account, mutualiteit, signing a rental contract. The municipality of Elsene (Ixelles), where many EU officials live, is accustomed to this process.

I live in the European Quarter, near Schuman Square. Rents are high here by Brussels standards — €1,400 for a two-bedroom apartment — but still lower than comparable locations in The Hague. The neighborhood is international: my neighbors come from Italy, Greece and Estonia. During the day it's business, in the evening Place du Luxembourg comes alive with officials having aperitifs.

The cultural adjustment was surprising. Brussels isn't a Belgian city in the traditional sense — it's an international bubble. You can live in Brussels for years without speaking good French or Dutch, because English is the working language in EU circles. Still, I enrolled in French classes at Alliance Française, because outside the bubble French is essential.

My tip for aspiring EU officials: start the EPSO competition early, it often takes a year and a half. And don't underestimate the practical side: even as an EU official you need to register at the municipality, choose a mutualiteit (EU health insurance covers a lot, but not everything in Belgium), and open a Belgian bank account. The EU bubble is comfortable, but you do live in a Belgian city.