Re: work permit Catch-22

[Buck & Tilly Buchanan <writer -at- WF -dot- NET>]

Jim

In my more than 20 years of o'seas work, less than half the jobs were
"legal."  The requirements ranged from a quarterly visit to the
immigrations office for renewal of my "tourist" visa (and standing in
line with several other expats who were doing the same thing), to a
bi-weekly six-hour, 4-wheel drive trip up the beach on the Island of
Borneo to Brunei--cross the border, make a u-turn, back across and
another 2-week tourist visa.

On most of these jobs I worked for the Government in question (or for a
government entity, such as Pemex, the Mexican National Oil Company when
I flew the Campeche Bay oil search survey out of Isla Del Carmen).  The
different government agencies couldn't get their collective acts
together to permit issuance of a work permit.

In Mexico, I finally tired of these trips and paid an Immigrations
official $100 to issue a one-year work permit.  Legal?  Hah!

Overseas work is exciting.  Just remember the metaphorical buckets that
you're issued when you arrive in-country (which I previously mentioned
here).  One contains offal, the other honey.  When the S--- outweighs
the honey, Honey, it's time to go home.
--


Buck Buchanan
writer -at- wf -dot- net
Sunset, TX

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