Hi, to anyone who knows stuff and is able to offer any advice. My wife and I are planning (would that we had a plan) to move from bloody boring East Anglia to drink lots of beer in the Poperinge area if Flanders.
To be honest we are pretty clueless about what you need to do. Presumably you register with some local government geezer? And how do you go about getting a doctor and dentist for instance.
Anybody who knows about banking - I said banking - would also be useful.
To sum up this message: "Help!"

You register at the local stadhuis (city hall). You have to do this within nine days, so it goes. It's fairly straightforward. You have to show your passports and fill in forms. After that you get a visit from the local police to see if you live where you say you do. Then about a month later you get an appointment to go back. It take a little while to receive your ID though. You can sign on with any doctor or dentist once you have your health insurance. You pay some money on visit then claim most of it back. It's pretty easy to open a bank account if you have a job. Just take your passport, proof of job, address etc. If you want to take out a loan you will need your official ID. Fortis and Ing are good for bank accounts and Ing for loans.

Hope that helps.

Many thanks Ria T. Sounds encouraging. Owe you a Leffe, or Floreffe, or even an Urthel, or maybe an Augustijn Grand Cru etc, etc, etc.