THE STUDENT

HANDBOOK

This handbook is made for the international students coming to

study in Aalborg; as a help this will be provided for you with all the

information needed regarding moving to Aalborg, Denmark.

By Anna Høite Meersohn

2

A great, warm welcome…

…to our town, to your dream education, and to some of the

best years in your life!

The time we spend studying is a wonderful and exciting time

– it is fun, challenging, difficult, and simply fantastic all at

once.

I am proud and delighted to wish you a warm welcome as a

student in Aalborg. I am, of course, pleased that you have

chosen Denmark as the country for your studies – but I am

even more pleased that you chose Aalborg as the city that

will set the scene for your studies in the coming years. And I

am glad, too, that you chose us, because Aalborg is a city

that really has a lot to offer you.

In Aalborg we really appreciate all our students – whether

they come from abroad or from Denmark – because every

one of you helps to add color to the city and bring even more

life and high spirit.

In return, we make a very special effort to make it an attrac-

tive town to study in.

I hope you enjoy your studies and the town, and I hope you

will have some fantastic years here in North Jutland. We will

do our best to help you feel at home in our town.

With best wishes

Thomas Kastrup-Larsen

Mayor

3

Content

Accommodation .......................................................................................................................... 6

General about accommodation in Aalborg ........................................................................................... 6

Prices ................................................................................................................................... 7

Deposit ................................................................................................................................. 7

Heating, water, electricity and gas .................................................................................................... 8

What if I can’t find accommodation before I have arrived in Aalborg? ............................................................. 8

Internet ................................................................................................................................ 9

Furniture ............................................................................................................................... 9

Complaints about your housing situation ........................................................................................... 10

Costs of living ............................................................................................................................ 11

Transportation ........................................................................................................................ 11

Places to shop for groceries in Aalborg .............................................................................................. 12

Tips for when buying groceries ....................................................................................................... 14

Facebook pages for students ......................................................................................................... 14

Fitness centers and Sport activities in Aalborg ...................................................................................... 15

Health system and emergencies ........................................................................................................ 16

Emergencies .......................................................................................................................... 16

Medical ................................................................................................................................ 16

Pharmacies ............................................................................................................................ 17

Dental ................................................................................................................................. 17

CPR, taxation and S.U. in Denmark ..................................................................................................... 17

What to do when you come to Denmark? ........................................................................................... 18

Bringing a car with foreign number plates to Denmark ............................................................................. 20

What is S.U.? .......................................................................................................................... 21

Events in Aalborg ........................................................................................................................ 23

Annual events ......................................................................................................................... 23

Places to visit in and around Aalborg ................................................................................................ 24

4

Welcome to Aalborg

There is a lot to learn about Denmark and we hope that this handbook will show you the way through

some challenges and give you some knowledge about how it is to live in Denmark and especially Aal-

borg.

Denmark is a small country placed in Northern Europe, just north of Germany, surrounded by ocean

and the other Nordic countries. It’s a country consisting of 5,6 million inhabitants who were known

back in history to be the dangerous Vikings.

It’s a country filled with stories and places to see our old history but at the same time one of the most

developed countries in the whole world, in regards to technology, medicine, etc. Today we are very

known for being the happiest people on earth; this is affected by feeling safe… the government in

Denmark has always put the welfare of the people as high a priority as possible, which means that our

taxes are very high but with this, you can get a university

5

degree without paying for it, everyone can go to school, go to the doctor without having to pay, we

get help if we have children, we get help if we become unemployed or homeless; no matter what

happens there will always be a way to get help; this makes us feel safe… that we don’t need to worry

all the time and that we are living in a safe country filled with opportunities.

We are also known for our culture and attractions, like our monarchy which is the oldest uninterrupt-

ed European monarchy, or Hans Christian Andersen, a world-known writer who wrote tales like “The

little Mermaid”, which we have a statue of in Copenhagen; we also have the best restaurant in the

world!

We have a lot more to see all over Denmark, you will be busy when coming here!

So what about Aalborg? Aalborg is the fourth largest city in Denmark, placed in the Northern part of

Jutland with over 200.000 inhabitants. A long time ago Aalborg was a Viking-city!

Aalborg is a very international city with around 30.000 students, of these there is around 3000 inter-

national student from over 20 different countries all over the world.

Years ago Aalborg was mostly known for the industry, which created a workers city; since then it has

changed into a city known for the culture, music and art affected by people coming from all over the

world of all ages, implementing a little piece of their traditions into Aalborg; still this is a city filled

with history and Danish culture, this mix makes it an interesting city filled with events and exiting

things to see.

Because there are so many students in Aalborg, the city is always working hard to improve the city to

make the students who lives in Aalborg feel at home and give them plenty of possibilities for hobbies,

activities, night-life and events throughout the year, so there is always something to do!

In this handbook you will find all the information you need to prepare when planning to move to Aal-

borg.

6

Accommodation

When you get your acceptance from your uni-

versity the first thing to think about is accom-

modation.

Aalborg is a university city, which means that

there are plenty of opportunities for accommo-

dation; but where should you go? What should

you expect? There are many questions when

trying to find a place to live in another country

and here you will find all the information you

need.

General about accommodation in Aal-borg

In Aalborg there are more than 6.000 dorms

and youth-apartments, moreover there are

plenty of single rooms and private owned

apartments rented out for students. Further-

more, Aalborg is always planning and building

new and modern facilities for new-coming stu-

dents to develop the city to become more stu-

dent-friendly and attract more students from

all over the world.

When you start searching for accommodation

in Aalborg you have to go to www.aku-

aalborg.dk where you sign up as a candidate

and start searching; and don’t worry, the web-

site is also in English!

When you have signed up as a candidate you

are now inside the AKU-register of all student

accommodations in Aalborg; here you will see a

map which shows the various areas of Aalborg,

where you should click on the area which you

would like to live in and look through the vari-

ous possibilities for accommodation in that

specific area.

The red area is the center of Aalborg, where

you will find the city center, which is the most

expensive area to live in.

Next to the center you see the yellow, brown,

light brown and green area, which are the clos-

est to the center and the various schools and

7

are of course cheaper than living in the center

of Aalborg.

In the areas around the above mentioned are

outside of Aalborg and far from the city center,

this means that you will not have the same ac-

cessibility to the schools and the city center.

When you click on the areas you will be able to

see a list of various possible apartments or

rooms which you will be able to click on and

look at the specific information about prices,

size, etc. When you have found a place which

you would like to sign up for, you add it to you

wish-list, which will then lead you to infor-

mation about your queue-number etc.

Please just add the wishes for your accommo-

dation, which you are interested in and can

afford.

One thing you have to remember is that if you

say “No, thank you” when you get an offer from

AKU-Aalborg about an apartment or room

which is now available for you, there is a limit;

if you say “No, thank you” four times your ac-

count at AKU-Aalborg will be deleted.

Prices

Living in Denmark is more expensive than most

countries; this is especially regarding the prices

for rent. In Aalborg you will find

accommodation from 2.000 – 4.500 and the

most expensive place to live is of course the

city center. If you want to find the difference-

between your city and Aalborg regarding prices

of accommodation etc. look at

www.numbeo.com.

Deposit

In Denmark, before you move in to your new

apartment or room you have to pay a deposit.

The deposit is insurance for the landlord, so

that if you damage the apartment, you haven’t

paid your rent or the apartment needs to get

new inventory the landlord will subtract the

money from the deposit which you have paid.

The deposit is normally the rent of the accom-

modation for 3 months; this means that if the

rent on your apartment or room is 2.500 Danish

crowns, you would have to pay 7.500 Danish

crowns before moving in.

8

The deposit varies from place to place, some-

times it is only 1-2 months’ rent or more than

three, which means that the deposit can be up

to 20.000 Danish crowns, but it will always be

stated in the description of the accommodation

when you search for them online.

If you are offered an apartment, where the de-

posit is called (in Danish) “Indskud”, you can

apply for a loan from the municipality. (Please

notice, it’s only the type of deposit called (in

Danish) “Indskud”, to which you have this op-

portunity. Ordinary deposit you will have to pay

by yourself). You can find further information at

www.borger.dk This means that if you lend this

money from the municipality, so that they pay

for the “indskud” and you move out, the land-

lord will pay the money back to the municipali-

ty, resulting in that you don’t have to pay any-

thing unless you have made damage in the

apartment or similar, which means that you will

have to pay the money for reparation, etc. back

to the municipality.

Heating, water, electricity and gas

Here is something you have to be aware of

when looking for accommodation, cause in

Denmark normally the heating is included in

the rent but not the electricity, gas and the wa-

ter usage.

For example when looking at AKU-Aalborg’s

database of accommodation you will find this

when clicking on a specific apartment or room

which you have found:

This shows the rent, which is 1.912,00 Danish

crowns and heating (A conto varme) 165,00

Danish crowns, which makes the total amount

of rent: 2.077,00 Danish crowns. But as you can

see it says nothing about the electricity, gas and

water. This is because the water, gas and elec-

tricity are provided by a private company in

Aalborg; therefore once or twice a year you will

receive a letter from these companies who will

either ask you to look on a monitoring device

and write to them how much you have used or

they will tell you when they will come to check

and you would have to be available and be at

home in that period of time; this will then show

how much you have to pay to these companies

for your consumption.

What if I can’t find accommodation be-fore I have arrived in Aalborg?

If you still haven’t found accommodation be-

fore coming to Denmark, we have a housing

guarantee which means that you have a place

9

to stay at a hostel in Aalborg for a very low

price until you find accommodation.

There will be a bed provided for you with bath-

room and kitchen facilities for 80 DKK pr. day,

which is a very low price in Aalborg.

This offer ends the 15th of November, after this

date you would have to pay full price for the

accommodation at the hostel, which is 210 for

students under 26 years and 315 for students

above.

To be able to get this offer, you have to have a

membership at AKU-Aalborg.

After getting your membership at AKU-Aalborg,

you will be able to see your applicant number

in your profile on AKU-Aalborg’s website, which

you have to use when booking at Danhostel

Aalborg to get your guarantee for housing.

You will be told more about this offer and the

specifics from the international office at your

place of education.

Internet

In Aalborg we have around 10 different inter-

net-suppliers, which means that there are plen-

ty of possibilities for various prices and speed.

To see and compare the various possibilities

you have there is a website made to compare

the various prices and services from the differ-

ent suppliers, it is called

www.bredbaandsguiden.dk.

This website is in Danish but with a little effort

and help from here you will not have any prob-

lem figuring out where to look.

Under “Bredbåndspriser” you will be able to

find a list of all suppliers and their prices for

their various services. On the side you will be

able to set your requirements to find the per-

fect match for you.

Furniture

There are plenty of possibilities to find cheap

furniture for your new apartment.

Other than IKEA placed in the south of the city

you will be able to find plenty of second-hand

shops where they sell all from books and

clothes to all kinds of furniture at a very low

costs.

In the picture below, showing a map of the cen-

ter of Aalborg you can see all the second-hand

stores and IKEA-Aalborg. If you want to find the

10

specific address you can go to Google Maps and

search for “Genbrug”.

Moreover we students in Aalborg have a very

good network on Facebook where we sell all

kinds of things to each other, from books for

school, clothing, electronics and furniture; they

are called “Aalborg Market”, “Girls’ Marked

Aalborg” and there are many others, it’s just

about searching and you will be able to find a

lot of things at very low prices.

Complaints about your housing situa-tion

You should always feel free to ask your landlord

if you have any doubts about your housing situ-

ation (maintenance, rent etc.). Furthermore

your place of education can help you with

questions and queries. You have rights as a

renter in Denmark – these rights are defined by

law and in the agreement in your leasing con-

tract.

But in some cases it may be necessary to con-

tact one of the public housing boards – the cost

to bring a case to these public housing boards

will be around 20 euros (140 DDK) – see de-

scription below:

Beboerklagenævnet (Only subsidized housing/

social housing):

Deals with: Formalities regarding rent/ rent

increases, interior condition when moving, lack

of maintenance, renovation on vacation, re-

payment of deposit, payment of utilities, swaps,

sub lettings and continuation of the lease, rules

and regulations – what are you allowed to do,

the legality of decisions of tenants' democracy.

So if you have any problems with something

mentioned above contact them by using the

contact information below.

Contact: Aalborg Kommune, Postboks 462,

Boulevarden 13, 9100 Aalborg, tab@aalborg.dk,

Phone: 9931 1742

Huslejenævnet (Private landlords only):

Deals with: Rent size, rent increases, water and

heating accounts, renovation on vacation, view-

ing of the apartment when moving out, no re-

fund of deposit, lack of maintenance. So if you

have any problems with something mentioned

above contact them by using the contact in-

formation below.

Contact: Aalborg Kommune, Boulevarden 13,

9000 Aalborg, husln@aalborg.dk, phone: 9931

1616

If you have any further questions for accom-

modation in Denmark, feel free to contact oth-

11

er students on Facebook, the International Of-

fice at your place of education or the municipal-

ity of Aalborg, we will be happy to help you at

any time!

Costs of living

Denmark is an expensive place to live, especial-

ly for students and there are plenty of expenses

to think about when you don’t live with your

parents and when it’s in another country with

another language, it’s hard to know where to

go to get the best discounts or where the

cheapest places to buy groceries are.

In this section of the handbook you will be pro-

vided with information about different expens-

es and what possibilities you have around Aal-

borg.

Transportation

Transportation is known to be expensive in

Denmark but there are ways to get around

without spending all your money.

Bike

This is the cheapest and most student friendly

way of transportation. Fortunately Aalborg

Kommune has provided very good bicycle

routes everywhere. This means if you have a

bike you can save around 4200 DKK a year. The

winter season (which starts from mid-October

until mid-March) is a bit rough if you are riding

a bike.

There are plenty of bike-stores around Aal-

borg’s city center where you can buy new bikes,

but it’s quite expensive. Another opportunity

you have is to go on the students Facebook-

sites and ask if anyone is selling a bike, there is

always someone selling their bike, and here you

have the opportunity to find a bike for a very

low price.

Aalborg Kommune bikes – You can find Tourist-

bike all around Aalborg and they are available

for 20 DKK, which you receive back when you

return the bike to the specific stands.

Taxi

This is the most expensive way of transporta-

tion of all. For example, a taxi-ride from the

airport to the main bus-terminal in the center,

which is a taxi-ride of around 7 km, will cost

you around 200 DKK, where you could take the

bus for 20 DKK for the same starting point and

destination.

Bus

A single ticket for the bus costs 20 DKK and it’s

valid for 1 hour and it covers 2 zones – which

means the whole center, Nørresundby and the

12

south part of the city where you can find IKEA.

Tickets can be bought from inside the bus, only

with cash. If you want to use the bus as every-

day transportation, you can buy a monthly tick-

et, which costs 378 DKK for 2 zones in all busses.

If you need to see how to get from one place to

another with public transportation you can use

www.rejseplanen.dk, it’s a website where you

can enter your starting-point, destination, time,

etc. and it will give you different possibilities for

transportation. Don’t worry, it’s also in English!

Train

To buy a train ticket you can go on www.dsb.dk,

which is also in English, you will be able to type

in your starting point, destination and time;

from there you will be able to look at your vari-

ous possibilities and prices for the travel.

You might get really good deals if you book

your ticket around 2 months in advance from

the day of your journey; these tickets are called

“Orange tickets” and can be bought only online.

With these you can take the train from Aalborg

to Copenhagen for 159 DKK instead of the

normal price of 419 DKK.

If you will travel with the train often it’s better,

economically, to buy a DSB Wildcard, which is a

card for people under 26 years and with this

you can get up to 50% discount on your tickets,

depending on the day you will travel.

Rejsekort (Travel-card)

This card is a magnetic card which you can

charge with money online or at the main bus

terminals or the train stations. This you can use

to pay for transportation both for trains, met-

ros and busses in the whole country. This is a

cheaper solution than paying cash.

Airplane

We have an airport in Aalborg, which you can

reach easily with the bus which goes directly

there.

From here you can reach Copenhagen, Amster-

dam, Alicante, Barcelona, Greenland, Istanbul,

London, Malaga, Mallorca, Oslo, Nice, Reykjavik,

Split, Stavanger, Stockholm and Torshavn.

There are around 16 daily flights to Copenha-

gen which takes around 30 minutes and costs

around 349 DKK for a one-way trip.

IMPORTANT: TRAVELLING WITHOUT A TICKET

WILL RESULT IN A 750 DKK FINE!

Places to shop for groceries in Aalborg

ALDI

This supermarket is with a smaller assortment,

cheap and good quality products.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 08-20 Weekends: 08-18

www.aldi.dk

13

BILKA

This is the biggest shop in Aalborg. The prices

are similar to the other shops but there are

more brands and a very big assortment. You

can find not only groceries, but also other

things, such as electronics, bikes, etc.

Opening hours: 08-22 all week

www.bilka.dk

FAKTA

Good prices, always open, you can find it al-

most on every corner.

Opening hours: 8-22 all week

www.fakta.dk

KIWI

There is a lot of nice offers and discounts. It’s

the shop with the longest working time.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 07-23 Weekends: 08-22

www.kiwiminipris.dk

LIDL

This is a shop with a big assortment and very

low prices.

Opening hours: 08-21 all week

www.lidl.dk

NETTO

Here you will find a lot of nice offers, low prices

also on organic products.

Opening hours: 08-22 all week

www.netto.dk

REMA 1000

Very well organized shop with a lot of quality

products for low prices.

Opening hours: 08-21 all week

www.rema1000.dk

Føtex

They have a lot of high-quality products for a

medium-high price and a big assortment and a

lot of ecological products. They also have a

bakery in the store.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 08-21 Weekends: 08-21

www.foetex.dk

SuperBest

They have a big assortment of high-quality

products for a medium-high price range; they

also have a bakery inside the store.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 08-20 Weekends: 08-18

www.superbest.dk

14

Eurospar

They have a big assortment of low-medium

quality products in a low-medium price range.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 06:30-20 Weekends: 07:30-20

www.eurospar.dk

Super Brugsen

Big assortment of high-quality products for high

prices; here you will also be able to find a lot of

ecological products.

Opening hours: 09-22 all week

www.superbrugsen.dk

Salling Super

Salling Super is located in Salling and here you

will be able to find very high-quality products

for high prices, but here you will also find ex-

traordinary products which you will not find in

other supermarkets; if you want to cook some-

thing special.

Opening hours:

Weekdays: 09-20 Weekends: 09-18

Tips for when buying groceries

You can find more and better offers in

the shop if you go around 1 hour before

they close. Sometimes the food with an

approaching expiration date gets a big

decrease on their prices.

If you are looking for a specific product

on discount, but you don’t know where

they have it on discount, you can go on

www.tilbudsugen.dk and write the

name of the product; here it will show

you if there is a discount and in which

shop you can get it.

Facebook pages for students

Roommate in Aalborg - The best place when it

comes to looking for flats and place to live.

From students for students. (English)

Aalborg Marked – Buy and sell group (English)

Girl’s marked Aalborg – The same as Aalborg

Marked, but for girls (English)

International Aalborg – Everything that is hap-

pening in Aalborg (English)

International network Aalborg – for students,

jobseekers, who have just arrived in Aalborg

and seek to form networks and ease their inte-

gration in Denmark (English)

Salg af tøj, sko osv. For Nordjylland og Aalborg

omegn! – This is a huge market group for eve-

rything you can think of. NB: It’s in Danish and

most people who post there are Danish (it has

around 25,000 members)

15

Aalborg free stuff - Page for free stuff.

Fitness centers and Sport activities in Aalborg

Fitness centers

Fresh Fitness - This is a low-price fitness center

with a lot of different possibilities and offers.

They are open 24/7 and are placed in the cen-

ter, right next to the train station. The sign-up

fee is 299 DKK, and then the monthly payment

is 149 DKK.

www.freshfitness.dk

Fitness World – This is the biggest fitness chain

with a lot of different opportunities for differ-

ent kind of training.

Here there are different kinds of membership

prices according to your needs and the sign-up

fee is 299 DKK.

www.fitnessworld.dk

DGI Huset in Nordkraft – This is a small fitness

center located in Nordkraft. Here there is no

sign-up fee and the monthly payment is 149

DKK.

www.dgihusetnordkraft.dk

Fitness DK – This is a big fitness chain with a lot

of opportunities. The sign-up fee is 299 DKK

and the monthly payment is 169 DKK if you

train between 09:00 -16:00 in the weekdays; if

you want to train in the weekends or earlier

than 9 in the morning and later than 16 in the

afternoon you have to pay 130 DKK extra.

www.fitnessdk.dk

Butterfly Fitness for women – This fitness cen-

ter is only for women, they have various possi-

bilities for membership.

www.butterflywomen.dk

Sports activities

Aalborg offers a great variety of sports in dif-

ferent sport clubs, here are the most popular:

Badminton – www.abc-aalborg.dk/Cms/

Basketball – www.aalborgbasket.dk

Football – www.fodbold.aabsport.dk

Handball – www.aalborghaandbold.dk

Karate – www.shikon.dk

Running – www.aalborg-roadrunners.dk

Swimming – www.aalborgsvommeklub.dk

Volleyball – www.aalborg-hik.dk

If you want to see a full list of all sports and

sports clubs in Aalborg, you can visit

www.studyaalborg.dk/sport-og-fritid.aspx

16

Health system and emergencies

When travelling to another country you should

have a Health Insurance, which will cover you

for the first month when you come to Denmark.

Afterwards you will receive your CPR number,

which will include a Danish Health Insurance

Card.

This card, which you will receive around a

month after you come to Denmark, will give

you free medical care for the rest of your stay

in Denmark.

Emergencies

In case of emergency you can call 112 which is

free to call from your own phone or public

phones. This is the number for the ambulance,

police and the fire department.

When you call you have to tell your name, the

address you are calling from or where there is a

need for help and the phone-number you are

calling from, after that you have to stay on the

phone until the information you have given is

confirmed and help is on your way.

If something has happened which is not a life-

threatening situation you can call the police on

114.

If you need treatment if you have had an inci-

dent, occurred within the latest 24 hours, for

example broken arm, illness, need for stitches

or something alike you can call the hospital

which is open 24/7, see the contact information

below:

Aalborg Hospital South

Hobrovej 18-22

Phone number: +45 99 32 11 11

Police station

Jyllandsgade 27

Phone number: +45 96 30 14 48

E-mail: aalborg@politi.dk

Medical treatment

As mentioned before when you arrive to Den-

mark you will receive your Health Insurance

Card which will give you free access to medical

treatment by doctors and in the hospital.

When you are registered in the National Regis-

ter you will be asked to choose a doctor, here

you will be able to choose a doctor according to

the area in Aalborg you want your doctor to be,

if you want a male or a female, etc. You can

also go on the internet and search for recom-

mendations for a good doctor in Aalborg; oth-

erwise you will always be able to change your

doctor if you are not satisfied.

17

When you go to your doctor, always remember

to bring your card, since it contains all the in-

formation about you which the doctor will need

to treat you.

If you haven’t received your card yet but need

to go to the doctor you have to bring your

Health Insurance papers.

To get an appointment with your doctor you

can call them, normally between 8 and 9 in the

morning; you will be able to find their number

on your Health Insurance Card.

Normally the doctors are available in the week-

days between 8 in the morning to 4 in the af-

ternoon; but closed in the weekends and in the

holydays which means that if you have an issue

which you have to talk about with a doctor you

can call “Lægevagten” which is a doctor availa-

ble at any time the normal doctors are not, this

doctor is normally situated at the hospital; the

phone number to get in touch with this doctor

in Aalborg is +45 70 15 03 00.

Pharmacies

There are several pharmacies around the cen-

ter of Aalborg.

Normally they are open from Monday to Friday

from 9 in the morning to 17:30 in the afternoon,

and on Saturdays from 9 in the morning to

14:00 in the afternoon.

Thought there is the “Budolfi Apotek”, which is

open 24/7, it’s placed on the corner of Vester-

bro/Algade in the center of Aalborg.

The phone number to reach this pharmacy is

+45 98 12 06 77.

Dental treatment

Dental treatment is very expensive in Denmark,

of course depending on which treatment you

need and it also varies from dentist to dentist.

There are some dentists in Aalborg who offers a

discount for students, for example the dentists

“Anneli Paludan & Anja Krogh” who are placed

in Nørresundby, right next to the city center, on

Østerbrogade 142; they offer a discount of 41%.

You can search for a dentist and to make an

appointment you have to call them in the

morning, to have the best chance of getting to

talk to the dentist as fast as possible. If you

need to get in touch with a dentist in the week-

ends or in the holidays you can call “Falck” on

+45 70 10 20 30 and they will tell you which

dentist is available for you.

CPR, taxation and S.U. in Denmark

The Danish Welfare state is mostly based on

the concept that we all have equal rights and

should all have access to various services,

which will be paid through the taxes.

18

If you are coming to Denmark to live, you have

to provide the Taxation System information

about your incomes even though it’s from a

source outside of Denmark.

It’s based on:

That everyone must be able to get help

in situations, such as unemployment or

illness.

All children must attend school and

have the possibility of completing an

education.

All citizens must have access to infor-

mation and guidance, like libraries or

media.

The tax rate in Denmark is one of the

highest in the world, as Denmark has a

very large public sector.

The public sector looks after many ser-

vices.

All citizens use the public sector; therefore it is

a general principle that therefore, all citizens

have to pay for it. The tax funds pay for differ-

ent expenses, such as: welfare benefits, state

pension, child benefits, schools, hospitals, li-

braries and the police.

The Danish taxation system is progressive,

which means that the more you earn the more

you should pay.

As soon as you get your Health Card in Den-

mark (your CPR) the taxation system will be

automatically provided with all the information

they need, moreover when you get a job in

Denmark your employer will provide infor-

mation about your salary, the banks will pro-

vide them information about your income and

expenses and last but not least the unemploy-

ment funds and unions will provide information

about your membership payment etc.

What to do when you come to Den-mark?

When you come to Denmark, as mentioned

before you have to get your CPR number, which

gives you access to the healthcare system in

Denmark.

To get a CPR number, you need to go to the

local municipality’s Citizen Service Centre and

there you need to bring:

Valid registration certificate or residence

permits.

Passport/ID card with picture.

Nordic CPR number if you are from a Nor-

dic country

19

A proof of your address in Denmark, for

example a rental contract or a letter from

your landlord.

Marriage certificate, if you are married.

Children’s birth certificate if you have chil-

dren.

The blue health insurance card, if you are a

student.

After a month or two you will receive your CPR

number and your Health Card in your mailbox;

which looks like this:

After getting your CPR there are a few other

things which are important for you to get a job,

salary, etc.

You need to get a tax card, which whoever

will pay your salary will provide for you.

This is a card with a limit, which means that

if you have 42.000 Danish crowns on this

taxation card you can earn up to 42.000

Danish crowns pr. year. without paying full

taxation, this would normally be 8%.

If you earn more than 42.000 Danish

crowns pr. year you have to pay 39% of

your income to the taxation system.

You need to get a bank account called

“NemKonto” which is an “Easy Account”.

This account is used for your salaries,

therefore it’s very important you have it,

otherwise your employer will not be able

to pay you your salary.

This you can get at any bank.

You have to get “NemID” (EasyID), which is

a common log-in solution for Danish inter-

net banks and government websites. This is

very important to get since you will not be

able to go on any Danish internet bank site

or pay your bills, etc. without having this

card.

You can get it fromwww.nemid.nu/dk-en/ and

order one for yourself.

20

Bringing a car with foreign number plates to Denmark

If you have a car and want to bring it with you

to Denmark there are certain things you need

to be aware of.

What you can do if you bring your car with for-

eign number plates to Denmark is:

1. Apply for permission to drive your vehicle

in Denmark without paying registration tax.

2. Seek permission from SKAT to pay quarter-

ly a proportion of the normal vehicle regis-

tration tax.

3. Import it and have it registered to Danish

number plates.

These various options vary depending on how

much you use your car here in Denmark or

what you are here in Denmark for.

The taxation also varies according to which kind

of car you own, how old it is, how much it pol-

lutes etc. The calculation to find out how much

you have to pay in taxes is made from a basis of

information collected by a car-service; here

they write down all information about your car

and send it to SKAT, who then sends you a let-

ter saying how much you have to pay, depend-

ing on whether you choose option number 2 or

3 mentioned above.

If you want to apply for permission to drive

your vehicle in Denmark without paying Danish

registration tax you have to be staying in Den-

mark because you are a student or because of

short-term employment.

You are allowed to drive a foreign vehicle in

Denmark if:

The vehicle has temporary stickers that

are valid for a maximum of seven days.

The stickers must have been issued by a

competent authority in an EU/EEA state,

the Faroe Islands or Greenland.

The vehicle has been rented abroad for

a maximum of seven days; the driver's

name must be listed on the rental

agreement, and the driver must drive

from the border directly to the destina-

tion in Denmark where the vehicle is to

be delivered according to the rental

agreement.

The registered owner or user is a pas-

senger of the vehicle.

If you want to seek permission to pay quarterly

a proportion of the normal registration tax you

can apply if:

If you are a foreign national and live in

Denmark for a period of one to three

years, you can seek permission from

21

SKAT to pay quarterly a proportion of

the normal vehicle registration tax.

You are considered a foreigner if you

are not a Danish citizen.

Citizens from the Faroe Islands and

Greenland are not regarded as foreign-

ers.

If you want to register for Danish number

plates you must bring your car for inspection; if

doesn’t pass through inspection it cannot be

registered as a Danish vehicle; this will be done

at an inspection center, like a car-service. After

the inspection, all the information about your

car will be sent to SKAT and they will make an

evaluation of your car and decide how much

you have to pay in taxes and for registration of

the car so that you can get your number plate.

If you need more detailed information you can

go to SKAT’s website (www.skat.dk) and search

for “Bringing a vehicle with foreign number

plates to Denmark”; there you will find all the

forms you need to fill in and more detailed in-

formation. Otherwise you can always ask at the

municipality offices for help.

What is S.U.?

S.U. is an economical help which the govern-

ment provides for Danish students every

month; lately they have changed it to also be

valid for international students.

Every month the Danish students receive a

monthly payment from the government be-

cause they are students; this is valid from when

they turn 18 years old.

So not only is it for free to get a good and long

education in Denmark, but we also get paid to

study! You might find this weird but the Danish

government has seen this as an investment for

the future of Denmark; they give all people, no

matter their family-background or economical

situation the opportunity to get a good educa-

tion. Moreover they pay them so that they

have the opportunity to be stable economically

so that they can live wherever they want to,

have money for books, computer and whatever

else they need for their education and living,

since living in Denmark is also very expensive.

If you are not Danish you must fulfill some spe-

cial conditions to be placed on an equal level

with Danish citizens and also be able to receive

the State Education Support, which is this eco-

nomical support payment from the Danish gov-

ernment.

There are two different sets of rules; one set of

rules is according to Danish rules and the other

is according to EU rules.

22

If you are a foreign citizen and apply according

to the Danish rules you must fulfill one of these

requirements:

1. You came to Denmark with your parents.

2. You are married to or living in a registered

partnership with a Danish citizen.

3. You have worked in Denmark.

4. You have resided in Denmark for a mini-

mum of 5 years.

5. You belong to the Danish minority in

Southern Slesvig.

If you are a foreign citizen and apply according

to the EU rules you must fulfill one of these

requirements:

1. You are the child of an EU or EEA citizen

with a residence in Denmark or if not, is

working in Denmark.

2. You are married or are in a registered

partnership with an EU or EEA citizen,

moreover you have to be employed in

Denmark and live with your partner

while working in Denmark.

3. You work or have worked in Denmark.

4. You have resident in Denmark for at

least 5 years.

5. You are a parent of an EU EEA or Swiss

citizen; your child must be employed in

Denmark and you must be supported

and live together with your child.

Remember that you can only get S.U. if you

study in Denmark and in addition to that you

must fulfill one of these requirements.

Most of you will be able to receive S.U. because

of being an EU or EEA citizen in Denmark and

working here as the requirement number 3

according to the EU rules.

If you wish to apply to receive S.U. in this case

you have to:

1. Be an employee or self-employed in

Denmark, or

2. have previously been an employee or

self-employed in Denmark (there must

be a connection as regards content and

time between your work in Denmark

and the study program for which you

are applying for SU), or

3. Have been an employee or self-

employed in Denmark, but in need of

re-training as a consequence of involun-

tary unemployment

When you want to apply you have to be able to

prove that you are employed in Denmark ac-

cording to the EU-law.

23

In order to be regarded as an employee in

Denmark according to the EU-law, you have to

have had a minimum of 10-12 hours or work

per week; moreover you have to provide doc-

umentation that you have been employed by a

genuine and effective workplace, which means

that you have to be able to present as a mini-

mum that the company is registered in the Dan-

ish National Register (CVR) and have had a

turnover.

A proof can be for example an employment

contract or documentation of payment from

the company you have been employed by.

Remember that when you start receiving S.U.,

it will also be taken into account as a salary;

therefore it will be included on your tax-card,

as mentioned in the section regarding salary.

If you need more information you are always

welcome to ask your place of education, go to

the S.U. website (www.su.dk) and find more

information.

Events in Aalborg

Annual events

Aalborg in Red Festival – This is a weeklong

festival which is held in the first week of Sep-

tember. It takes place all around the city and

includes many different activities, such as music

concerts, musical events, markets, children’s’

games, sports events and competitions. Most

of the events are for free.

Aalborg Carnival – This is the largest carnival in

Northern Europe, with up to 25.000 partici-

pants from all over the world. Here everyone

participates in the parade at the end of Carnival

Week in the end of May, which is held all over

the city.

The Blue Festival – This is a four day long jazz

and blues festival, also called “The Mini New

Orleans Festival”, which gathers Danish and

International musicians at several places

around Aalborg. This is one of the biggest festi-

vals in Denmark and most of the events have

free entrance.

24

Places to visit in and around Aalborg

Aalborg Zoo – This is the second biggest zoo in

Denmark and one of Aalborg’s most popular

attractions. There are more than 1.500 animals

from all over the world.

Aalborg Historical Museum – The museum is

located in the city center and is open from

Tuesday to Sunday. The price for students is 15

DKK, but remember to show your student card!

Lindholm Høje Museum – This is a Viking burial

site, located in Nørresundby and is usually open

during the daylight hours.

Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art –

This museum is called KUNSTEN museum and

has a permanent collection of Danish and for-

eign art. They also have different special exhib-

its, concerts, movies and lectures. It’s opened

from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00.

The price for students is 20 DKK, so remember

your student card!

Event organizations

Studenterhuset (The student house) - is located

in the center of Aalborg on Gammeltorv. This is

the most popular place for students, to gather

and get to know new people, study, play games,

party and go to concerts. The student house is

run entirely by volunteers who, in their daily

life are students in Aalborg. At the Student

house there are a lot of concerts, competitions,

karaoke-nights, etc. during the whole year and

every Wednesday they have the International

Night, where a lot of international students

gather at the Student House to have fun.

25

I-Life – This is an organization which is estab-

lished for students for arranging trips and

events for both Danish and international stu-

dents. They work to integrate the international

community in Aalborg through organizing vari-

ous trips, activities, events and parties.

For more information regarding what’s hap-

pening in and around Aalborg you should look

at these links:

www.visitaalborg.com

www.studenterhuset.dk

www.facebook.com/ILifeAalborg

www.visitnordjylland.dk