Guide: Moving from Greenland

If you are a Danish or Nordic citizen, you have the right to move to any Nordic country without applying for a visa or a work and residence permit. You can only be registered in one Nordic country at a time. You must follow the rules for civil registration in the country to which you are moving.

You must register your address in your new country of residence if:

• You are moving to Denmark, Norway, the Faroe Islands or Iceland for more than 6 months
• You are moving to Sweden for more than 12 months

If you are resident in two countries at the same time, you must register in the country where you live most of the time.

Please note that some Greenlandic study and training programmes are not recognised in the other Nordic countries. As a result, you may find that you have to retrain or take further training in order to get a job. You should therefore check your possibilities in advance.

The same applies if you have a profession that requires special authorisation.

Remember to register your children for daycare and school as soon as you know where you are moving to. You should also check what public subsidies are available for families with children.

If you are a single parent receiving child support from a municipality in Greenland, you must bring the support resolution with you to your new municipality.

If you pay for electricity, water and heating in your home yourself, remember to deregister with Nukissiorfiit, so that you do not risk paying for consumption after you move out. You can do this with your NemID at Sullissivik.

You should also remember to cancel the day and night waste collection, if you are registered with the scheme. This can be done at Sullissivik with your NemID, or by contacting the Public Service office.

If you move to another Nordic country to work, you will be covered by social security in the new country from the day you start work. You should contact the responsible authority in the country to which you are moving, in order to be covered by social security.

If you have been paying into a Greenlandic pension scheme, you can choose to leave the money there until you retire. You can also have your savings transferred to another pension provider outside Greenland. Please note that a fee is charged for moving your pension savings.

If you are moving to Denmark, your Greenlandic driving licence will be valid for 180 days after your move. After that, you must exchange it for a Danish driving licence. To get it exchanged, you must pass a driving test or take two driving lessons with a Danish driving instructor.

If you are moving to another Nordic country and have a Greenlandic driving licence, you must apply to exchange your driving licence in your new country of residence. There can be various different rules on what is required in order to exchange a Greenlandic driving licence. 

If you are moving to a country outside the EU/EEA, you must have an international driving licence. If you have a Greenlandic driving licence, you  cannot  be issued with an international driving licence. However, you can obtain an international driving licence if you have a Danish driving licence.

Very few people speak Greenlandic outside of Greenland. You should therefore consider whether you need language lessons before you move, or after arrival. Even if you speak Danish well, it may be a good idea to take Swedish or Norwegian lessons if you are moving to a Nordic country other than Denmark.