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Anyone from outside the European Union who wants a residence permit in the Netherlands has to pass a Civic Integration Exam before leaving. The Netherlands is the only country which requires future immigrants to do so. But not everyone finds the exam easy. Dutch entrepreneurs have discovered that giving integration courses abroad is a gap in the market. 

Dutch is a difficult language for foreigners. The unfamiliar diphthongs and the strange pronunciation of the g, as well as the strange word order in sentences make it a difficult language to learn. But in order to come to the Netherlands, you have to be able to pronounce around 1,200 words more or less perfectly. This is an obligatory part of the integration exam. A general knowledge of Dutch society is also one of the requirements.

At his Dutch Culture Centre in Bangkok, Pieter van de Ruitenbeek and his Thai wife help small groups - usually women - prepare for the exam. The women all have a Dutch partner and very much want to live in the Netherlands. All the women can do is study hard, because if they don't pass, then they cannot come to the Netherlands.

 source: Wereldomroep http://www.rnw.nl/english/video/want-live-netherlands-pass-exam-first Published on : 7 May 2010 - 11:24am | By Marijke van den Berg