Annual Report 2020 The welcome centre

The International Welcome Centre • 1637 internationals registered with their Region (IWCUR) believes that starting municipality at the civil affairs desk. a new life abroad should be easy and • 497 internationals received current and enjoyable. It is our mission to create a accurate information in English about region where internationals enjoy living, living, working and studying in Utrecht working and studying. Through our Region at the information desk. services, we help them navigate this new The number of internationals visiting the chapter in their lives. welcome centre fell during the months The IWCUR received 3834 visitors in 2020: March to June due to the COVID-19 • 1700 internationals conveniently arranged measures. In line with the government their residence permit at the Immigration restrictions, we continued our services in and Naturalisation Service (IND) desk. a way that is safe for our visitors and staff, either online or offline. Building connections

In 2020 we worked on increasing our brand of followers on Facebook increased by awareness. Our aim is to help internationals 291%, on LinkedIn by 58% and on Instagram find the IWCUR as a place where they can by 150%. receive information and support. We improved our offline visibility by Marketing sharing information with internationals and companies via brochures and magazine We increased the IWCUR’s online visibility advertisements, and by developing and through: distributing IWCUR merchandise. • improving our website, which resulted in more website visitors: 17,327 in total, which Events is an increase of 38% relative to 2019. Our events provided internationals with opportunities to meet fellow internationals, • sending six newsletters to internationals the IWCUR team and our partners. In 2020 and three to our partners with an average we organised webinars, virtual networking open rate of 51% and an average click rate meetings and the online Living & Lifestyle of 24%. Event. The events were successful and • our activities on social media: our number well attended. Moving forward together

Partners intentions. More municipalities will follow The IWCUR collaborates with companies in 2021. from Utrecht Region. Our partnership program helps companies increase their Regional and (inter)national brand awareness among internationals initiatives and connects internationals with trusted The IWCUR has participated in various providers of high-quality services that are initiatives in the and abroad tailored to their needs. We also provide to promote our region and further improve international staff members of companies our services for international citizens. We with useful information. In 2020, we are, for example, part of a national network partnered up with 50 businesses active in a of expat centres and work closely with wide range of sectors: coaching, culture and regional initiatives and national ministries. leisure, education, employment, finance, healthcare, housing, law and relocation. Social issues The IWCUR is actively involved in Utrecht Region’s municipalities addressing several important social issues The IWCUR offers its services to in Utrecht Region. We have established internationals living not just in the of an ambassadors club consisting of WeUtrecht look but in theforward whole Utrecht Region. to mee17 internationalsti ng who you! help foster the Every municipality within the region can internationalization of the region. join our centre so that their international Furthermore, we have joined the Utrecht Follow us citizens can benefit from the IWCUR’s Omarmt Network and we have started to Subscribe to our newslett er on our website and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and services. In 2020 the municipalities of collaborate with an activity app to reduce InstagramWoerden, to keep track of and our Stichtseexciti ng eventsVecht andloneliness stay up-to-date among internationals. on everything Finally, you needhave to expressedknow about their living, commitment working and and studying we inoffered Utrecht graduation Region. internships for and Oudewater have indicated similar students. IWCUR Internati onal Welcome Centre Utrecht Region IWCutrechtregion