Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Work

Chat with other users about all things related to working life on our Work forum.

Job abroad - what do we need to think about?

16 replies

Rojak · 30/03/2006 15:09

DH is meeting someone to talk about the possibility of a job abroad next week. I would be keen to go (for the experience and also because I'm not from the UK and may have lived in one of countries on the proposed list).

But I want to ensure we have thought this through completely as it will mean uprooting a family of four with DS (4) already in P1.

In particular, I want DH to be sure he would be happy to move (not just because I want him to) as he would be a nightmare to live with if he wasn't happy.

I'm putting together a list of questions we can ask ourselves (for some serious soul searching) and potential employer, can anyone else think of anymore?

  1. How would you cope with leaving your mates, football, Radio 5 Live, house and car?
  2. How would you cope with living with kids in a foreign country and having to cope with local bureaucracy, new housing / education arrangements?
  3. How do you feel about being away from your family?
OP posts:
Rojak · 30/03/2006 15:15

Sorry the job is not next week - the meeting is next week....

OP posts:
yomellamoHelly · 30/03/2006 15:25

I'd be most concerned about the tax situation tbh. Lived and worked in Germany for 18 months. Officially I was based in the UK, beause I would have had to pay 47% of my salary (I was on £14,000 ffs!) for the first year to cover me in case I needed to claim benefits from the second year on, and even then those benefits would have been at a reduced level to me being a German.
Would also query what happens in terms of your state pension and benefits etc if you're not resident for x number of years.
And what would happen to the profit from selling your house if you leave the country?
Otherwise would incestigate the cost and practicalities of flights home for visits to friends and family. Would also want to consider schooling options and costs, expat community etc. Finally what about health insurance?

yomellamoHelly · 30/03/2006 15:31

Should add have friends who left for the far east a couple of years after uni (10 years ago) who are currently investigating buying somewhere here because of the rising property market and a desire to keep their options open if they want to come back to the UK in the future.

Rojak · 30/03/2006 15:36

Thanks Ymelly - hadn't thought about the healthcare insurance bit - GOOD POINT!

OP posts:
Hausfrau · 30/03/2006 15:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Hausfrau · 30/03/2006 15:43

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Rojak · 31/03/2006 12:37

Thanks for this - have made a comprehensive list for DH to think about before the meeting!

OP posts:
arfissimeau · 31/03/2006 12:53

Where is the job abroad (if you're able to pin down a set location)?

I'm British and have worked in Holland, Italy, Germany, Thailand & Australia and have been living abroad since 1999 (so both EU which is easy and further afield which is more tricky).

It does very much depend on which country. Each country in the EU and overseas has different tax laws/healthcare policies/expatriate groups.

What is the job abroad? The more you earn, the more you will get out of it with good offshore advice & tax advice (as an individual).

If your company is relocating you then what is the package? Do they do the relocation, pay the moving costs, private health insurance, private school fees? Which country will be employing you (laws change - like leave and SSP).

How long will the posting be for? Is it long enough to justify the upheaval for DS?

Where are the offices? Where would you live - are there good schools there? Where is the nearest decent expat community? Local doctors/dentists (again, this does depend on location - not so important in Western Europe).

What will happen to your house? If you rent it you will have to pay agency fees & tax on the income.

Don't forget your child benefit, NI payments, child trust fund etc. Working abroad means I have to keep topping up to ensure I get my state benefits in the future.

I think there's loads more - let me know if you have any idea of the location and I can come up with some more. Have also exposure to US & Scandinavian working if that's relevant.

Rojak · 31/03/2006 13:02

Job is in SE Asia - they haven't specified location but I'm from SE Asia. Think they're flexible enough to let DH decide which country.

I'm angling for Singapore as it's handy for flights for DH's work and the schools are fairly decent (if they don't stump up for International school) and I could enroll DS for Mandarin lessons which I would be keen on.

I used to work in Singapore so I have some friends there (both expatriate and non-expatriate).

I think they're asking DH because they know I'm from that region and we have both worked there before. While I would like to spend some time there, I no longer see it as home and wouldn't see it as a long-term solution.

Short-term it would be nice to let the kids see what it's like growing up in the tropics (although Singapore is a bit of a cop out really!)

OP posts:
LIZS · 31/03/2006 13:17

Our biggest issues were :-

private health insurance - I was pg at the time the offer was made and not all insurers cover it as a pre existing condition, although locally I could have got basic care anyway

schooling - is private english speaking/bilingual education or an international school (following the IB syllabus) an option , especially if you may move on again in a few years time and want continuity, would you have to fund it or use the local system

housing - perhaps a change of living style to apartment living and sharing facilities with others. Location - near other expats or not - and size/cost

integration in terms of language (does the employer fund any tuition for spouses as well as employees) and culture shock , there may be specialist companies who organise courses in the practicalities for newcomers.

As regards your specific questions, you have to detach yourself from UK life and have an open mind. We had to sell our car , and didn't get a great price tbh, but kept the house which we let out and most of our stuff went with us or into storage. it felt odd havign someone else livng among our things and took some of their comments re decor etc a bit personally for a while.

Treat it as an adventure, take advantage of any local opportunites for scenery and sports and try not to get down in front of the kids. There would be ups and downs and ds , who was 3 , had a hard first 6 months but eventually didn't want to leave. Visits from family and friends helped as did emails and letters. Invite people to stay (there will be an initial influx then a lull the longer you stay).

Use Sky if needs be (we survived on BBC prime, CNN and the occasional dual language programme for a year and really appreciated UK tv when we got Sky ! ), but the local cable stations wherever you go may have BBC1 and 2, BBC World et al anyway, so check beforehand. We also used to listen to BBC World Service radio before we got Sky. Use Amazon.uk to get English books, films etc, if you are lucky local VAT will be lower , offsetting much of the shipping costs, or use one of the other Amazon sites which stock English books. You may find locally based internet sites which stock UK or US food stuffs etc , but probably at a premium ! You do eventually adapt your cooking to suit the locally available goods, or ask visitors to bring supplies !

As regards bureaucracy dh and his hr dept did most of the organising, mainly because I had no local language and as a trailing spouse lacked status . He started work a month ahead of our arrival so had organised bank account, car, permits etc before we got there. You tend to pick up the rules as you go long but I was very fortunate to have a fellow Brit (the wife of a work colleague of dh), living in the same apartment block with children the same sort of ages , who was very happy to help and point me towards paediatricians, supermarkets etc.

Sorry it is a bit long but hope this helps !

arfissimeau · 31/03/2006 13:36

Oh bugger! Closest I did was Thailand.

How long would it be for? I know Singapore is great for expats. I tried to get my stopover there for my flight to Oz (ended up in HK but that was great too).

It sounds like you're in quite a good position, with people you know there already and company sponsorship.

One of the reasons I was happy to drag DD around the world was for the experiences she'd get away from London.

Good Luck, I think it's a perfect opportunity for you all.

Rojak · 31/03/2006 13:56

Arfissimeau - were you based in Bangkok? And were you there with your DD? I'm wondering how child-friendly Bangkok would be?

I like it as a city (but that was pre-kids) but I'm not sure how well we would settle with kids and no language.

Friends who have lived in Bangkok (again all pre-kids) have loved it.

OP posts:
arfissimeau · 31/03/2006 14:48

I wasn't in Bangkok for any great length of time, just a few weeks at a time inbetween postings in other parts of Thailand. I spent the longest in Chiang Mai. DD was 15 months at the time, so not too hard to amuse. There were a lot of soft play centres and pools.

Surat Thani (in the south) was more difficult. It was very unusual for foreigners to be there and people would point and laugh at us for being white (not in a nasty way, but because we were unusual).

I would definitely go back with DD now she's older (3.4). There are lots of expat groups and I think several international schools.

Rojak · 31/03/2006 15:25

I like the idea of Bangkok but the thought of driving in Bangkok traffic to do school runs terrify me!

Must keep doing more research before Tuesday

OP posts:
arfissimeau · 01/04/2006 13:38

Very good point. Bangkok traffic is unbelievable, and disgustingly polluting. I thought Paris and London were bad until I got to Bangkok.

Could you wangle somebody to do the school run as part of the contract? It sounds over the top in the UK but would work in Thailand.

Rojak · 05/04/2006 09:46

DH had his meeting yesterday and what's on offer is Singapore.

Has anyone lived in Singapore with kids? How family-friendly is it? What are the state schools like? What are the International Schools like? What areas are good to live in which would be easy to get kids to and from school?

How much does a car cost these days in Singapore? Used to be exorbitant IIRC

Thanks

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page