Working without a work visa

[Ehearn]

I'll be living in Buenos Aires for a year starting in August. I've done a lot of research on the work visa process and have accepted the fact I may have to work "under the table". Any advice for a newcomer on how to go about finding work in Buenos Aires without a work visa? If anyone has any specific experience and can tell me places that will hire without a visa that would be fantastic as well. I'm: willing to do any kind of work, will be able to work part time (20 - 30ish hrs a week), fluent in English and have advanced knowledge of Spanish, and 19 years old. Appreciate the help.

Also, I just joined and I apologize if this is in the wrong thread, please let me know if I missed a section of the forum that's better for this kind of thing.

 

[Xeneizes]

Why do you want to come to Buenos Aires? Did you look for a job before deciding to come here? Are you taking a year off school?

 

[Ehearn]

Yes, I'm taking a year and a half away from school. I left college in December and I've been working full time since then, so I do have enough cash to last a while in the city; it's not imperative (though it would be nice) that I find a job the first day. I'm currently talking to a couple organizations that might be able to offer me an internship during my stay there, but I need a plan if that doesn't work out. I'm willing to work in any environment, I just want some advice on the process of finding a job that will hire you without a visa.

 

[el_expatriado]

Most small Argentine companies will be happy to hire you under the table if you can actually perform a useful service for them. They'll save the 40% social security charges that go with having an employee "en blanco" as they call it here.

 

[earlyretirement]

Most small Argentine companies will be happy to hire you under the table if you can actually perform a useful service for them. They'll save the 40% social security charges that go with having an employee "en blanco" as they call it here.

There are plenty of companies that will hire people in black. As a business owner, I never did as I never wanted the hassles in case you had some work dispute and the employee reported it. The employee will ALWAYS win any work dispute. The system is screwed up in Argentina.

It SUCKED paying the 40% social security/other various taxes/mandatory retirement plans, etc. for having employees in white but I never would hire someone in black.

The biggest issue I've seen with most ex-pats that come to Argentina with no real work/life experience is most of them can't speak any Spanish so they are useless in many service industries. If you speak "advanced Spanish" you will have a big leg up on others.

 

[Crema Americana]

Many businesses won't hire under the table unless they know the person (usually it's more of a "gray" deal where they're on the books but earning more than what's reported.) Lawsuits are common here and many business owners don't want the hassle. I've witnessed two guys looking for work at a chain restaurant, and one was turned away on the spot for not having papers. So it seems just walking in and asking for a job "en negro" isn't that uncommon if you want to try it.

You may get lucky, but it's not easy to just land in BA and find a job especially if you don't have experience or knowledge in particular field. And being hired in negro and not having a work visa leaves you somewhat unprotected - if something were to go wrong, you could sue, but that's probably not going to be worth your while if you're planning to stay only a year. Justice is slow. You'll most likely be earning less than those that are getting paid en blanco and chances are you'll be treated like an illegal worker (little rights and recourse)... You could always try to work for yourself here, teaching English or something similar, but chances are it's not going to be very lucrative or enough to live on. BA is expensive.

My suggestion would be to try to secure a job before coming, and make sure you always have enough cash to buy a plane ticket out of here. Expenses may be higher than you think... so make sure you plan carefully.