TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Re: O'seas work: confessions of a 10-year expatriate
Subject:Re: O'seas work: confessions of a 10-year expatriate From:Steven Read <sread -at- NIRVANA -dot- NOSUBDOMAIN -dot- NODOMAIN> Date:Mon, 3 Oct 1994 10:05:06 GMT
Great post. Can I pick a few nits/add?
In article <009853E194F8CCA0 -dot- 00000821 -at- software-ag -dot- de>, Jack Shaw
<jsh -at- software-ag -dot- de> writes:
|> * Living standard. If you can give up a townhouse for a two-room
|> flat, a flitzy Toyota for a bike or public transport (usually
|> extremely reliable), and at least one night out at a laundromat
|> because your place has no washer/dryer, you'll probably make
|> the adjustment. This is not to say there are none of the neat
|> conveniences of U.S. living--in fact, they're all here. But
|> they cost like crazy. And you'll have enough to do with local
|> beauracracy and getting your feet planted...to wit:
My living standards have actually improved: I can afford a house here,
and I get a flashy new company car every 3 years, to say nothing of a
35-hour week and five weeks holiday.
|> 1. Local nationals (no matter what Brussels says...)
|> 2. Citizens of other EU countries (sometimes...)
|> 3. Others.
All very true. And it's stupidly difficult to convince them that you're
the boy/girl for the job.
|> Add to this other exemptions for moving/living that you
|> can deduct. The point is, you must file. Always. Every
|> year, the IRS sends me 5 lbs. of forms/instructions, only
|> for me to file a simplified, "Sorry, don't qualify to join
|> your club" form back. But if I don't, they have folks right
|> here in Bonn to remind me... . And to get those neat
|> exemptions, I have to be out of the U.S. a full calendar
|> year, contiguously.
You don't *have* to be out of the country a full year contiguously. You
must be out 330 days out of the year. The other test you can pass is
what the Feds call a "bonafide residency" test. If you can prove that,
yes, you really do live there by things like a house, then the
physical presence is irrelevant.
|>
|> And of course, you pay local taxes. Just like a real, live
|> German/French/whatever person. And since you haven't grown
|> up with the local system, you need a tax accountant. Here,
|> they don't charge by the work they do, but by percentage
|> of my gross income. Right, no matter how much/little work
|> they have to do. Tax accountants here just love high-income
|> foreign workers...
My accountant charges a flat fee. The rest is all too true.
|> Bottom line: if you're freewheeling and gregarious, you
|> just might do fine. If you (figuratively speaking) drive
|> home weekends to do laundry/eat a decent meal/see Grandma,
|> you might be miserable. But you will experience:
|>
|> * Frustration bordering on rage
Yes
|> * Diarrhea from nerves/water/fatigue/bureaucrats
Not since the last time I was in Mexico. :-)
|> * 25-55% taxes
Less than I paid in CA for income tax. Indirect tax makes it about even.
|> * Great bread/beer
Undoubtedly. The wine is okay, as well.
|> * Unsalted butter
Why is this weird?
|> * Pancakes for supper
|> * Pickles for breakfast
Not in England. They'd probably arrest you for crimes against nature.
|> --and a bit of yearning whenever you see someone off at
|> the airport on their way back to Great Bend...