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cotuncloud

Sep 30, 2013, 3:45 PM

Post #1 of 19 (482 views)

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Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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I want to pick up to Mexico and find a job down there (Mexico City).

Do I HAVE to have a job offer before I go down there? I have a place I will be staying until I find a job and get on my feet. All expenses paid.

Is it possible to get a different type of Visa just to get down to Mexico until I find a job, and then from there, apply for a visa that will allow me to work?

Maesonna

Sep 30, 2013, 4:30 PM

Post #2 of 19 (473 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Some people were suggesting in another forum that you could go down as a tourist, find a job, wait (still in Mexico) for the employer to submit their application to get approval for hiring a foreigner (you), and then just return for a quick trip back home to pick up the papers once your working visa is granted. But I don’t know if it can be done with as little time out of Mexico as that. I’d expect you’d also have to submit your application to the consulate in person – then pick up your papers in person – and how much time would you have to wait around outside of Mexico between submitting the application and receiving the papers?

(This post was edited by Maesonna on Sep 30, 2013, 4:32 PM)

richmx2

Sep 30, 2013, 11:28 PM

Post #3 of 19 (408 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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You DO know that the Mexican job market is even in worse shape than the one in the U.S., don't you?

http://mexfiles.net
http://editorialmazatlan.com

AlanMexicali

Oct 1, 2013, 6:34 AM

Post #4 of 19 (380 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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If you get a preapproved Residente Temporal visa good for 6 months at a Mexican Consulate by showing about $1900.00 US steady income or a large investment account to them then you enter Mexico to finalize the RT visa at a local INM office.

You can find an employer to submit with you once you have your INM RT card for a tramite to a RT with a "Permiso para Trabajar." They will evaluate you on a point system and you will need proof you are, for example, a professional. If you have no degrees or specialized skills I presume even if the employer wants to hire you and gives the local INM office a letter stating this you will not meet the point system criteria and not be approved if another Mexican citizen can do the job.It would be very hard to find employment if you are not very specialized in a field in the SEGOB INM´s point system for getting a RT with a "Permiso para Trabajar" and have the documentation to prove it.

Here are their classifications for RT card holders who qualify under certain circumstances:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/...mp;ct=clnk&gl=mx

(This post was edited by RickS on Oct 1, 2013, 8:30 AM)

cotuncloud

Oct 1, 2013, 6:57 AM

Post #5 of 19 (358 views)

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Re: [AlanMexicali] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Thanks for the replies. That link you sent was interesting. I have a bachelors in a mixture of Spanish and Business (I am fluent in Spanish), I've done some translation and have a portfolio of said translations. So I think I have that up my sleeve for this point system. However, at least to start, I'd like to get my teaching certificate at CELTA and teach English...

Another user on MexConnect has said to tell the consulate that you are going down there for non-working reasons. Once you get to Mexico, tell the INM that you are planning to work/teach English, and they will give you the work authorization on your visa.... Sounds to me like that's more or less what you are saying as well (well, at least the first part)

(This post was edited by cotuncloud on Oct 1, 2013, 7:00 AM)

AlanMexicali

Oct 1, 2013, 7:14 AM

Post #6 of 19 (350 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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You will still need a letter from an employer with a job offer to go with you to the local INM office to tramite from RT Rentista to RT with a "Permiso para Trabajar. I have a RT with a "Permiso para Trabajar" and got it when I had a letter offering me an English Teacher´s job and went to a 3 month, 8 hours per week course and got a Cambridge TKT certificate [English teacher knowledge test]. It is used by many universities here.

I also got a TOFEL certificate.

The TKT course costs $12,000 pesos but the university gave me a 40% discount. I also had to show my university degree and my college degree first and got approved as a "Professional".

The "native tongue teacher" issue which was on the letter offering employment carries some weight and the lady at the INM knew this

My 2 degrees were technical degrees, not teachers degrees, but that didn´t matter.

(This post was edited by AlanMexicali on Oct 1, 2013, 7:21 AM)

cotuncloud

Oct 1, 2013, 7:22 AM

Post #7 of 19 (339 views)

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Re: [AlanMexicali] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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So you completed the English teaching course, waited for the job offer, and then took that job offer to the INM?

Why did you do both certificates?

Why did they give you a discount?

AlanMexicali

Oct 1, 2013, 7:32 AM

Post #8 of 19 (330 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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So you completed the English teaching course, waited for the job offer, and then took that job offer to the INM?

Why did you do both certificates?

Why did they give you a discount?

No. I got my "Permiso para Trabajar" because I was classified as a "professional" from the INM and then took the 3 month course. I already had a TOEFL which the university requires.

They gave me the discount because that is the university that I work for and gave me the letter of a job offer and went into the INM office with me.

They obviously would not give me a discount if they thought the INM might not give me the work permit.

The whole thing took 2 weeks, approved the next day after submitting the documents [copies] and originals for them to look at. They take your INM RT card and give you another one.

In your case you might not need anything except a job offer letter and have them go in with you.

The university had to be registered with the INM to hire foreigners.

esperanza

Oct 1, 2013, 7:42 AM

Post #9 of 19 (313 views)

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Re: [AlanMexicali] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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OK, the course you mentioned cost 12,000MN before the 40% discount, plus the cost of the TOEFL course you took before you arrived in Mexico. Assuming the OP has to pay the full cost of the course...my question is this: just to give the OP an idea about salaries in Mexico, can you give us a ballpark figure of how long it took you to recoup (by your teaching earnings) the cost of the two courses?

http://www.mexicocooks.typepad.com

AlanMexicali

Oct 1, 2013, 7:54 AM

Post #10 of 19 (305 views)

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Re: [esperanza] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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I live in Mexico and took the TOEFL test only, no need for their 6 month course, at the main university UASLP language center and it was 2 hours and cost $48.00 US.

I found out it was not very hard for native tongue English teachers to get a job at any university here with a TKT certificate as some advanced students ask for native tongue teachers only. They pay is 2X for a native tongue teacher here. It appears the native tongue teachers move around a lot and there are always openings. The language schools pay very poorly. The private schools and universities pay by the hour and it is not much and not many hours per week for rookies.
Many take in students after work at coffee houses or their home or the student´s home and charge about $200.00 pesos per hour or less.

Buying the students work books is not a problem from a Cambridge distributor but the university language center coordinator said they have to order 5 student books to get a teacher´s book for free for each level. I cannot order a teacher´s book. Also with a teachers book you get a DVD with all that level´s student´s book to use the computer to project with a video projector on the screen any page you are working on. They also sell students homework books for all levels to anyone. Each student book costs $300.00 pesos here and online in the US $20.00 US plus shipping.

Many teachers take the books we get from the university library to a copy shop and copy them they put it in a plastic spiral booklet and give them to after hour students and keep the teacher´s book for themselves.

There are 9 levels and each student book/homework book is 3 levels and 2 final books are a review book for the TOEFL exam. I think this is optional and is from another publisher, Macmillan. Macmillan also has a full set of English language course books called Sky High which I have and it is a bit tedious and slow to learn from. English Unlimited uses them.

(This post was edited by AlanMexicali on Oct 1, 2013, 8:34 AM)

AlanMexicali

Oct 1, 2013, 8:29 AM

Post #11 of 19 (282 views)

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Re: [esperanza] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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I do it to get out of the house and meet other teachers and the university staff, we party a lot and have barbeques at our house. Basing it on part time employment and I am at the rookie level getting classes to teach I figure a couple of years at this rate if I didn´t get a discount. Of course I do not seek out students as we travel sometimes on the weekends to close by spots being in San Luis Potosi and centrally located.

JuanCha

Oct 1, 2013, 8:34 AM

Post #12 of 19 (273 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Without knowing your particular bi-lingual bicultural preparation, experience and abilities, my experience in Mexico (I am MexAmer, born in USA, parents were native Spanish speakers, I've been bilingual/bicultural all my life, have worked in Mexico for many years, and live in Mex for last 7 years, I volunteer tutored Spanish-speakers in English/TOEFL) has been that:
MOST NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS (e.g. USA, Canada, etc) OVER-ESTIMATE THEIR SPANISH FLUENCY AND THE NEED/OPPORTUNITIES IN MEXICO FOR EMPLOYMENT AND INSTRUCTION BY/OF ENGLISH SPEAKERS. (I have 4 USA-born first-cousins who are tenured Spanish professors in USA universities; 2 are directors/chairs of that univ. dept.).

1. Do not enter on FMM Tourist Visa to work, as one is generally not allowed ANY employment for compensation in Mexico on an FMM without addtional work permits. While many have (illegally) worked in Mex on an FMM, they ARE subject to permanent deportation if caught.

2. Check the TSOL reqmts; this is often a minimum for English instruction.

3. Spanish fluency among English speakers (regardless of years of instruction and preparation) is usually mediocre-to-poor. English speakers are generally not qualified to gauge Spanish fluency.

4. Mexico has a huge over-abundance of native English speakers with varying degrees of Spanish fluency and preparation; not to mention native Spanish speakers who have been immersed in English for many years (i.e. lived in USA, Canada or other English speaking country).

All that said, I wish you well, but I suggest you be realistic about your expectations. You might consider an extended visit to Mexico to your destination(s) of choice and carefully checkout the relevant opportunities, BEFORE more long-term immigration.
JuanCha de: Santa Fe NM, San Cristobal de Las Casas Chiapas, San Diego CA

richmx2

Oct 1, 2013, 11:08 AM

Post #13 of 19 (233 views)

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Re: [JuanCha] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Mexico has a huge over-abundance of native English speakers with varying degrees of Spanish fluency and preparation; not to mention native Spanish speakers who have been immersed in English for many years (i.e. lived in USA, Canada or other English speaking country).

Thanks for pointing this out, JuanaCha.

I moved here for "ulterior reasons", but like so many others who needed to earn a living if they were going to pursue other interests in Mexico, teaching English seemed an obvious choice. I did teach English for a time, back in the "bad old days" when my MA in English Literature was considered more than enough in the way of qualifications. But, without some sort of ESL teacher training, and always aware that when people told me that I spoke good Spanish, what they were really saying is that I wasn't not totally incomprehensible, I am not convinced that I did my students much good. And, they have to consider their "lifestyle". Being single and a permanent grad student at heart, I could get by, but it was tough.

Putting aside the bureaucratic issues, and realizing the original poster is well qualified in certain ways, it seems one needs to want to teach as much as one wants to live in Mexico if they are going to do well. There are more than enough qualified English teachers (and translators), especially in Mexico City, and "near native proficiency" speakers (if not native ... having grown up bilingually) can be found just about anywhere in the Republic these days. Just to give you an idea, I live in Mazatlán ... more or less a cultural backwater... where we recently hired a grade school English teacher as a part-time store manager: obviously, what she is paid by a private school is not enough for her to support herself and her children.

As a translator, everyone who speaks Spanish thinks they can translate it. What knowledge base to you bring to translation? The nuances of Spanish poetry (I wouldn't even try)? News writing (I've done some of that... Mexican news articles are nothing like AP Style, and it's more rewriting than translation)? Commercial real estate contracts (did those too... dull work and a long sleepless weekend, but it paid for a small washing machine)? Are you also a technical writer, fluent with legal terms, cognizant of the nuances of political discourse in Latin America, a medical writer, or in some way qualified to do translations in some specific field? Otherwise, you're competing against a very large pool of people who can adequately translate what needs translations... enough to "get by" for their purposes, although you might have a very difficult time getting by yourself.

Not that you shouldn't go for it... just be prepared to have to radically change your plans or life goals--- and, by all means --- give up any thoughts of getting rich, or doing much more than getting by.

http://mexfiles.net
http://editorialmazatlan.com

Maesonna

Oct 1, 2013, 11:47 AM

Post #14 of 19 (225 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Quote

… tell the consulate that you are going down there for non-working reasons. Once you get to Mexico, tell the INM that you are planning to work/teach English, and they will give you the work authorization on your visa....

That’s how it used to work until this year (except that it wasn’t enough to ‘tell’ IMN that you planned to teach English, you also had to have documents to prove that you were eminently qualified to do so). Now, however, you have to make the application to get work authorization from the start of the process, at the Mexican consulate in your home country.

Anyone who says they have done the above procedure is surely referring to 2012 or earlier when it did still work that way.

(This post was edited by Maesonna on Oct 1, 2013, 11:51 AM)

addtocart

Oct 1, 2013, 11:54 AM

Post #15 of 19 (218 views)

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Re: [Maesonna] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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There's a kid who works in the local Burger King who speaks flawless English. Whether he's qualified to teach or even wants to is another matter, but bi-lingual people are all over the place.

cotuncloud

Oct 1, 2013, 11:56 AM

Post #16 of 19 (218 views)

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Re: [Maesonna] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Maesonna- the individual that recommended I do this said he did so last May.

Can you share what your experience has been?

YucaLandia

Oct 1, 2013, 12:11 PM

Post #17 of 19 (213 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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This is one area where you will get different answers on what is allowed, depending on the INM office you use.

In Merida, they insist that since Nov. 2012, applicants who know they have job offers must start the process at their Mexican Consulate. MexicaliAlan's approach of getting a Residente Temporal jubilado/rentista also works, if you already have the funds/income to qualify. In contrast to Merida, first person reports from Jalisco, Guadalajara, Chapala report that their INM offices have allowed foreigners with visitors visas to change status when they find work here.

Because of the variations of the policies of the differing INM offices, I would find out the policies of the INM office where you plan to work and live - which some of the DF Mexconnectors might offer. If you cannot pre-qualify for a Residente Temporal rentista, then INM rules as applied by many INM offices may require that you must have a formal job offer first, and then use a properly formatted letter from your employer to qualify at a Mexican Consulate for a Residente Temporal con permiso de trabajo. The formal offer letters are required to contain specific information about the job, about the person offering the job, and about the firm offering the job.

For details, check out:
List of Items Required by Some Mexican Consulates to Apply for Residency

General INM Qualifications for Working in Mexico by type of INM permit
and
Other Categories/Qualifications that Permit a Foreigner to Become a Residente Temporal, including OFFERS of EMPLOYMENT

Happy Trails,
steve

-
Read-on MacDuff
E-visit at http://yucalandia.com

(This post was edited by YucaLandia on Oct 1, 2013, 4:09 PM)

Maesonna

Oct 1, 2013, 12:33 PM

Post #18 of 19 (209 views)

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Re: [cotuncloud] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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My experience was over 10 years ago – I moved from family dependent category –> work permission sponsored by an employer –> independent permission to work.

I based what I wrote – which apparently isn’t as universal as I’d been led to believe (thanks, Steve, for setting the record straight) – mostly on what people have been posting at the Mexico branch of the Dave’s ESL forum (which I can recommend for detailed info for English teachers).

(This post was edited by Maesonna on Oct 1, 2013, 12:36 PM)

cotuncloud

Oct 1, 2013, 3:46 PM

Post #19 of 19 (167 views)

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Re: [YucaLandia] Find a job in Mexico AFTER I leave USA?

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Thanks Steve! Very helpful!