Job Offer

[NikT]

Simon,

Not sure how familiar you are with the banking system here; in case you're not, just keep in mind that it is very complicated to wire money to Argentina from abroad. The money will get here, but then you'll have to go through a maze of justifications, and bank statements from abroad, and proving you're not laundering money ... etc. And you will need to have all the documentation (CUIT/CUIL, DNI...).

I've lived in several countries, first time i've seen such a rigid system... In the end, my transfer was justified as salary payment ... only I am tax exempt anyway, so it doesn't change anything for me, I dunno what would happen in your case.

If you'll be receiving your salary in a bank abroad, I suggest you make sure you know how it is going to reach you here. Perhaps your employers can advise. Also ask them if they intend to help you get the CUI/CUIT (magic number that you need for several official things...incl bank accounts) and DNI (ID). And talk to them about the garantia, as Mini suggests, otherwise you'll be "condemned" to short term rentals, which are quite more expensive.

Cheers
N.

 

[elhombresinnombre]

The company is going to wire the money straight to my english account so i won't pay any taxes.

Is this company, this job - you know - koff, koff - totally legit? Will you be in Buenos Aires with all the paperwork stamped or will you be a wetback gringo? Whether you answer yes or no to either question may make a huge difference to the accuracy of the answers people can give you.

Unless your English Account is a US dollar account, you are going to pay conversion charges each time money is paid in and unless your English Account is a Nationwide Flexaccount (and AFAIK they don't do US$ accounts) you are going to pay conversion charges every time you take money out of a Bs As ATM.

 

[mini]

The company is going to wire the money straight to my english account so i won't pay any taxes.

Is your company going to do the paper work for your residency papers? If so, they will not be able to pay you in your foreign account. If not, your housing expenses will be really very high. In which case your best bet if that you get them to pay your housing.

 

[citygirl]

Since it sounds like the offer is uh..on the hazy side of legal , my answer honestly would be that you are not going to be saving anything and while your quality of life would be okay, it's not going to be great. If you have no guarantia, you're going to have to rent a short-term apt. And that rent is going to be in dollars. Unless you are at a place in your life where you are willing to have roommates, etc, you could easily be spending $800+ a month in rent.

Then you have medical expenses (add in another $100+ USD) a month, cellphone (maybe $50 USD) plus eating, shopping, etc. And cost of living has gone up a lot here - drinks, grocery shopping, buying clothes - they are all pricey.

 

[RWS]

I think we've scared away this novice poster. And I doubt we'll see him in Bs. As. anytime soon.

 

[steveinbsas]

RSW is probably right, but here's some additional info. Perhaps it will help others.

The company is going to wire the money straight to my english account so i won't pay any taxes.

Are you sure? You won't pay taxes anywhere?

If you aren't being paid in Argentina (and paying taxes) you obviously won't be working legally here. You won't have any employee "rights " as a result (legal employees here have very strong ones).

How well do you know the company you will be working for?

If you are terminated, there will be nothing you can do about it here, and finding another job with the salary paid out of the country could be very difficult (though I don't know what your line of work is). Finding work here (with decent pay without legal status) is almost impossible.

The idea of renting long term is problematic even if the employer can provide a guarantee for the apartment. You will pay less rent, but those leases are for two years and it isn't legal for you to sign one while you only have a tourist visa. Those apartments are almost always unfurnished and I doubt you'll want to spend the money to furnish one....or be able to get the utilities in your name. If your employer will rent and furnish an apartment for you, that would be ideal.


If you arrive on a tourist visa, a return ticket is required by migraciones.

Will you have a return ticket that you can change? Even if you do, I believe they are only good for a year from date of issue. If you plan to stay longer you may lose it.

Your salary of $1500 per month might be enough to live on now, but a year from now you will probably find yourself paying more for everything. A lot of prices have doubled in the past two years. A few have doubled in the past six months. Will your salary increase to offset future inflation?

Two more questions:

Have you ever been here before?

If you haven't, there is a possibility you will love BA. There is also the possibility you will hate it.

Do you speak Spanish?

Speaking Spanish can make a big difference in the quality of your life here, unless you only associate with expats or are a loner.

 

[simonmicheal]

I've been doing a bit of research, finding out the average salary of somebody living in argentina and i quoted from this site.

Well, I can tell you that nowadays the average salaries are between 1.000 and 1.200 pesos (US$ 315 and 378) for young people.

But, for those jobs you describe the average salaries are higher. An office manager receives 1.800 / 2000 pesos (US$ 567/ 630) and a secretarial/admin gets something like that or a bit lower.

A software engeneer, and an IT manager are getting paid about 2.500 and 2.600 pesos (US$ 788 and 820).
I'm almost sure that none of the positions you mention exceed the 2.800 or 3.000 pesos (US$ 883 / 950).

However, I can see that you're asking for highly qualified people, so, you have to know that a top salary for any of those would be 3.500 (US$ 1104); but more than that would be just crazy.

So 1500 is not a bad wage, nearly double of an average worker in argentina. Also finding a cheap apartment will be difficult as in any city but I know 2 bed apartments in the city center exist for around 300 US a month as my friend who owns one rents it out for that price. So that leaves me with 1200 US a month to play around with?

 

[steveinbsas]

I've been doing a bit of research, finding out the average salary of somebody living in argentina...

...So 1500 is not a bad wage, nearly double of an average worker in argentina. Also finding a cheap apartment will be difficult as in any city but I know 2 bed apartments in the city center exist for around 300 US a month as my friend who owns one rents it out for that price. So that leaves me with 1200 US a month to play around with?

Do you have any idea how many average Argentine workers live in an average apartment?

A two bedroom apartment in the center for $300 US a month could be an absolute rat hole in a building full of prostitutes and crack addicts. Have you asked if it is available and how much more per month for the expenses and utilities?

Have you seen any photos of this bargain? He doesn't rent to foreigners at that rate, does he? If so, he is either very generous or a very poor businessman.


Unless you can get your friend to rent you that apartment you will likely pay almost twice that for a decent studio (furnished). Most of the small temporary apartments in the center are at least $500 per month and usually come with plenty of noise and other problems. How fast do you want to be ripped off...and how often?

It looks like you are well on your way to convincing yourself that you are going to be just fine here. You may be able to "beat the system" and live and work illegally here, but you'll never live as cheaply here as you hope unless you plan to have flatmates.

 

[Lenny]

Assuming you don't mind living in an apartment with other people, USD$1500 is more than enough to live on in BA. You'll be able to eat out as often as you want and still have cash to get drunk. The majority of my argentine and foreign friends earn less than this and we are all very happy!

If you need help finding a room send me a PM, I might be able to help out.

 

[NikT]

Simon,

To my knowledge, 1,000-1,200 pesos is rather the minimum salary. Officially the minimun wage is at present 1,240 pesos. I suppose it also depends on the sector. I know that a car washer, in one specific company, working full time gets 1,440 net per month plus the respective benefits (part of my job is connected to finding work for disadvantaged groups). Minimum hourly wages would be 4,90 to 6,20 pesos now. My cleaner gets 10.

Re entry visa, I entered Argentina in August with a one-way ticket and they gave me a tourist visa at the airport without any trouble (it was then turned into another type of visa through the office). I am not sure if it depends on the nationality though (I´m EU citizen).

If you rent in pesos, you should be fine with USD 1,500; but you probably will not rent in pesos. If you rent in USD, budget will be tighter. An apt for 300 USD?! Probably a rathole indeed. Btw, for when u look at apts : "x ambientes" doesn't mean x bedrooms, rather "x spaces"...you may find 25m2 studios presented as "2 ambientes".

Don't forget what I said about wiring money into Argentina.

Good luck
N.