Um, passport please.
1. Denmark: 30 weeks of paid uncle leave
Leave it to the Danes to do childbirth right. A brother of the new mother or father gets up to 30 weeks of completely paid time off. And the best part? The parents get to choose one uncle to receive this benefit, or they can split it up between multiple uncles.
2. United Kingdom: Renaming your child “Henry” is 100 percent free
Name-changing fees for families can add up, but in the U.K., parents can rename any son or daughter “Henry,” and the normal name-changing processing fee is completely waived. And there’s no limit to how many free Henry name changes you get, although the fee is only waived when the child’s name is being changed to Henry, not from Henry.
3. Sweden: Monthly stipend if you’re not one of the hot ones
Don’t have those taut Swedish cheekbones, effortless blond hair, or perfectly symmetrical face? Well, the Swedish government will pay you 30,000 kronor a month to soften the blow of your genetic misfortunes. Awesome!
4. Germany: Complimentary tennis safety brochures
While a $20 tennis safety brochure may seem normal and reasonable to us Americans, in Germany, tennis safety brochures are offered to all citizens completely free of charge. As a result, Germany ranks among the lowest industrialized nations in terms of tennis injuries.
5. Norway: The government pays for a team of people to follow each citizen around and gush “How do you do it?” all day
Norwegians pay some of the highest taxes in the world, but this perk makes it totally worth it: Each citizen is followed around by three people constantly gushing at how much that person accomplishes, and yet makes it look so easy. Even the people who follow other people around have people following them around, and so forth. No wonder Norwegians are so happy!
6. Netherlands: Hospitals will bill your rival for your medical procedures
If you need medical care in the Netherlands, put away your wallet, because the entire cost of your procedure will be billed to whomever you designate as your rival to really put the screws to him or her. Free health care? Yes please!
