Job opportunities for expats on Ecuador

Larissa0985 wrote:

My husband is in the home improvement/renovation business here in Canada....We are aware it will be difficult for him to find work...We have also considered mining.... What kind of income could we expect from any of your suggestions?

If your husband is looking for a laborer-type job, you're right, it will be difficult.

It's not just Ecuador, but a worldwide trend to combat unemployment, that national governments are highly protective of jobs in this era.  High numbers of young applicants compete for jobs that pay only $400 on average per month.

To keep Ecuadorian nationals employed, the Cancillería requires that a worker not equipped with professional-level skills present an official job offer to work in Ecuador in the form of a legal contract that passes muster with the ministry.  Without that contract or a degree from certain universities, a long-term visa will in all probability be denied.  Doctors and nurses from other countries are currently being sought and can enter on a professional visa.

The Correa Administration's policy has long been clear -- Ecuadorian businesses should give priority to Ecuadorians over foreign nationals in their hiring policies when qualified EC citizens are applying.  The businesses know this and follow it, making it difficult for non-investors and non-retirees to succeed in getting a residency visa.

If you husband seeks to enter the market at a higher level -- at a contractor level, organizing labor crews, for instance -- the language barrier will be an obstacle.

Official Ecuador is highly welcoming to Expats who want to retire here and are willing to invest in a bank CD (25K) or real estate, or who have pension income ($900+ per couple per month).  But it's not welcoming  to Expat workers below the professionally-skilled level.

cccmedia in Quito

Hi there! I couldn't help but notice that you are in Kitchener. My boyfriend and I are in Keswick and are definitely moving to Ecuador sooner than later.  My boyfriend Tony is currently employed in the landscaping business but was a welder. He is also very good at home renovations and just about anything else he tries. I have just started an on-line TEFL course as they seem to always be looking for teachers whose mother tongue is English. You might want to consider that yourself! I recently lost my job after 13 years and just decided that I have no reason to stay in Canada. I am turning 47 on Friday and am ready to begin a new chapter of my life.

I hope that you are still considering moving to Ecuador.
Best wishes,
Lauree

Hi Lauree,

Have you already found a job in Ecuador for you and your husband? Which city you guys plan to live? Do you speak Spanish? Will you keep your Canadian citizienship or permenantly live in Ecuador?

I was just wondering how other people are planning it, because my spouse and I are really considering moving to Ecuador too

Have a good one!

Rebecca

So sorry for the delay with my response.  I am currently ripping through my house and garage getting things ready for a yard sale I am having for 2 days this weekend. My boyfriend is going to stay here and finish out the landscaping season. He will undoubtedly find something to make money at doing there.  He is pretty resourceful.  I am working on my TEFL online course and will be going to Ecuador to check things out in a couple of weeks. My Spanish is limited to getting food and drinks and finding the washroom! It does get better the longer I am surrounded by it.  I tend to mix up my French and Spanish for the most part.

I am going to be a permanent resident in Ecuador. I have had it with the snow here.

You two look young! Any kids? And are you looking at a coastal town too? It just makes no sense for me to move somewhere if I can't see and hear the ocean.

It's my birthday today. Really excited about this new chapter in my life.
Cheers!
Lauree

Happy Birthday, Lauree.

Have you decided which coastal communities you plan to visit?

cccmedia in Quito

LaureeJ wrote:

I tend to mix up my French and Spanish for the most part.
It's my birthday today. Really excited about this new chapter in my life.
Cheers!
Lauree

Wow, it's my birthday today too!  Many happy returns!  Oops I just realized my birthday was yesterday - well, close enough!

When I was a kid and got back to the States from living in Ecuador, my parents made me take French, I forget what the reasoning was...I was always pronouncing stuff in French like it was Spanish.  Thankfully that misguided experiment lasted only 1 year and then it was back to Spanish where I coasted through the classes and mostly never had to learn much grammar based on the strength of my good accent and fluid speech in the language.

I wish I had learned Spanish grammar well then - but it's never too late!  If you can, learn Spanish grammar while you are also building vocabulary.  Once you get started conjugating verbs it's not that hard and when you don't know you can always guess which can often be a cause for great hilarity with the locals...plus it acts as an icebreaker when they correct you!

My two most useful phrases when learning Spanish were to point at something and ask "Como se dice esto?" (How do you say this?) and upon hearing a word I didn't understand, "Que quiere decir (the heard word)?" (What does [the heard word] mean?).

Happy Belated to you! My Spanish will improve pretty fast. I lived in Costa Rica for 2 months back in my 20's and somehow managed then. Phrase books look silly but at least it shows the locals that you are trying!!!
Cheers! Must finish cleaning up from my yard sale this weekend. It was so liberating to sell the snow blower!!!
Lauree

I am really leaning towards Bahia de Caraquez. I have been busy organizing a massive yard sale that I had for 2 days on the weekend. Now that is done I can get my travel plans in order. I am giving myself 2 weeks to check things out. I think most of the flights into Quito arrive later at night so I will just grab a room there and perhaps check out the city for a couple of days. After that, nothing set in stone yet. I will work on that this week.  I met a gentleman at the yard sale who is interested in buying my house privately. That will save a lot of hassle. Hope you are well.
Lauree

Since you can't legally work in Ecuador while on merely a 90-day tourist stamp, Laurie, have you got a plan to apply for a residency visa?  Such as using the proceeds of your house sale to cover a $25,500 investment in an Ecuador bank CD?

cccmedia in Quito

Oh absolutely!! I want to look at some properties when I come for my 2 week reconnaissance. I wasn't sure if I should apply for my residency visa until after I have proof of the required $25K or not.  I mean I could simply show a statement of investments I guess. I have heard conflicting advice on whether it's easier to apply from the Canadian Embassy here or do it in Ecuador. Your thoughts?

LJ

LaureeJ wrote:

I wasn't sure if I should apply for my residency visa until after I have proof of the required $25K or not.  I mean I could simply show a statement of investments I guess.

The foreign ministry will want to see proof that you have $25,500 invested in a CD held in a bank or other approved financial institution in Ecuador.

The extra $500 is required because one of you will be considered a dependent and it's an additional $500 per dependent.

In theory, the money could be invested in real estate, but that would probably delay the submission of your application, and is not advised.  You can transfer the asset class from bank CD to real estate later after the residency visa is approved, if you choose to, and pull out the CD cash at that time.

cccmedia in Quito

I just read I think yesterday on the Expat.com about Ecuador residency visa requirements having gone skyward:  Apparently you now need to show proof of $900 U.S. pension, or the CD/real estate visa requirement has now reached $45,000.

Is this actually true?

HelenPivoine

Ok. Sorry but what is a CD??????

Helen Pivoine wrote:

I just read I think yesterday on the Expat.com about Ecuador residency visa requirements having gone skyward:  Apparently you now need to show proof of $900 U.S. pension, or the CD/real estate visa requirement has now reached $45,000.

Is this actually true?

HelenPivoine

Straight from the llama's boca, the 9-I visa Pension amount is still $800 plus an additional $100 for each dependent:
http://www.cancilleria.gob.ec/visa-9-i- … -exterior/

The 9-II visa Real Estate Investment is still $25,000 plus an additional $500 per dependent:
http://www.cancilleria.gob.ec/visa-9-ii … bien-raiz/
Note that although they show '$2000' they spell out VEINTICINCO MIL or 25,000.

However you may be referring to the $48,000 that the 9-I Trust visa requires?
http://www.cancilleria.gob.ec/visa-9-i- … deicomiso/

It's possible that things have changed but not according to Ecuador's own Cancilleria web pages.

CD=Certificate of Deposit. Maybe someone can explain better than I can. It earns more interest but ties up your money. say for seven years. If you cash it out sooner there will be a penalty

Thank you!!! I felt so silly asking.
Lauree

A CD's term usually is one month to five years. (Investopedia)

At the end of the term, the money can be withdrawn, without penalty, if desired.

cccmedia in Quito

Hi,
This is regarding online TEFL courses. I have had over 30 years of experience teaching ESL in the U.S. as well as EFL abroad. Be aware that some countries do not recognize that certificate as a valid credential for teaching unless you already have a related 4-year (English, Teacher Ed) or Master's degree (Applied Linguistics or TESOL). Of course, those online programs want your money but I would definitely explore how useful such a certificate would be. Most reputable institutions require a degree "in house" in which you also have done student teaching for a certain number of hours. This is the case at both public school and tertiary levels of teaching ESL/EFL in many countries. After all, it is impossible to be an effective teacher without having sufficient practical experience. An analogy: how can one master a sport without practicing it? Good luck.
PS

Peripatetic:

Your background seems solid & your advice sounds very helpful to me.  I have been a teacher also in the U.S.for 30 years and also a school psychologist for another ten. Experience (practice, practice, practice) counts and many online certificate programs are not worth much, sadly for those investing their money in them.

I had a tough go myself in Chile for two years 13 years ago looking for teaching work there -- All developing  countries, of course, want to upgrade their populations and give the locals work opportunities -- makes sense to me --  not great for those immigrants looking for work -- But THink outside the box, is my recommendation and transfer teaching skills to other fields.

Thx so much. Yes, how to transfer those skills, especially in developing countries. Also, I'm no spring chicken. ha Excellent advice!

P.S. wrote:

"it is impossible to be an effective teacher without having sufficient practical experience. An analogy: how can one master a sport without practicing it?"


Don't let this belief discourage anybody.  I didn't believe it for a minute.

A bright person with command of the English language can teach others the language in private lessons, with or without an officially approved lesson plan.

I am not predicting he or she would be hired, just IMO that they could figure the teaching part out.

Many have taught others in various subjects during their lives, paid or unpaid, without having classroom experience as teachers.  That outside-the-classroom experience can count for a lot.

cccmedia in Quito

If I may clarify my post. The comment about practical teaching experience was in relation to obtaining a reputable, online TEFL certificate for those interested in landing a lucrative career position with a tertiary institution (with a bona fide contract and benefits), not one-on-one tutoring. These are not merely my beliefs but derive from graduate studies in Applied Linguistics and TESOL and coursework/empirical research in teaching methodology, pedagogy, etc. 

But certainly, private lessons are a completely different situation and agree with you wholeheartedly, especially when the major focus is on developing aural-oral skills with the purpose of being able to communicate with others.
Best regards,
PS

Thank you for the excellent clarification.

cccmedia in Quito

Your comments appear to be from a person with no teaching experience or knowledge of what is happening today.  Please understand this is not a walk for the unprepared in 2015 in Ecuador.  The folks asking on this blog about work want to make a salary, I am assuming-- to pay them to meet their expenses here.. THat is why they are writing about finding professional level work and trying to get certified online.

You  are talking about non-professional  tutoring and you might be interested to  know that tutoring and teaching are quite different things.  Someone wanting to learn English in QUito , for example, these days has lots of options -- it is quite competitive for students looking for tutors. Any native speaker can say they can teach English, right? . And believe me, the quality of the work is variable also as it is with any non-professional.  Buyer , beware...

Hiring a tutor is tough enough for the student-- keeping the student(s) and GETTING PAID is very tough for the tutor in QUito. I have been stiffed several times in a private pay/contracted situation. -- not paid for services rendered.  This is pretty common in the tutoring marketplace and there is no legal fallback to capture that income.   Teachers within learning programs at universities like La Catolica in QUito which I know are being hired with PhD's or MA's from Spain or other responsible qualifications. Correa's govt is encouraging that  hiring.
And teachers, once hired will receive a paycheck regularly anywhere from $500 - 1200 a month depending on hours worked.   THis is recent informed data and the reason Teachers (capital T) get qualified is so they CAN BE PAID REGULAR  SALARIES.

Nothing wrong with your way.  However,  there is a question of quality for the buyer and a real struggle to make an income stream  for the tutor...

Peri:

did you receive a private msg from me?

Responding to b4bs...

She said tutoring and teaching are different.

False.  Various dictionaries including dictionary.com allow for synonymous usage.  Even if you could differentiate them, both can co-exist and attract different people to private classes compared to organized classes.

She said it sometimes is hard to get paid, that she has been stiffed.

So what?  All independent contractors get stiffed once in a while.  It is part of doing business.  It shouldn't in itself discourage a capable, persistent tutor from doing their work.  In Ecuador, a smart teacher/tutor collects in cash before or at time of instruction, whenever possible.

She said there is a question of quality for the buyer.

Not relevant for a teacher/tutor who is delivering quality and who is committed to doing the best possible for the students.

She implied that I have probably never been a teacher and have no idea as to what is going on.

I teach in my own way.  If sueb4bs discounts the language threads on which I have been teaching on Expat.com, then perhaps I don't meet her standard for teaching or tutoring.  Is that important?

As for having "no idea"...I sat in on a private English lesson recently conducted by a Quito Expat named Tim White of Ingles Con Corazon of a student who was in training to become a tour guide for Gringos.  Tim is someone I have known for two years. In addition to watching the teaching/tutoring going on, I questioned Tim about his work after the class.

Tim, a former manager of South American Explorers clubhouse in Quito, has been teaching/tutoring English for several years here.  He has built his business over time.  No one said it would be easy to build such an ongoing business. 

On the morning that I sat with Tim and his student, he told me he had four English classes he was scheduled to deliver that day, including teaching restaurant hosts in Mariscal Sector how to better serve their customers.

Obviously, the type of tutoring Tim does -- with the continual need to recruit customers and promote referrals in addition to the actual teaching -- is not for everyone.  Of course it takes time and good work to build an ongoing flow of customers.

However, for the motivated individual, it is possible to succeed.  The b4bs post should not discourage anyone who believes he or she has what it takes and is eager to make it work.

cccmedia in Quito