debt free overseas!

jt2k6

had the chance to live abroad (vietnam of all places) with work for a significant period of time (10 years). it's all at the very early stages of negotiation but will include full ex-pat package, (house, car, driver etc....)
can anyone give me any information about becoming ex-pat in general, do they normally pay wages into UK bank accounts? would it be in my best interests to become debt free before i leave? anything else that might be usefull to know,

reason i'm asking here is that I'm on three weeks leave from work and want to get things sorted in my head before I speak with HR when i return.

look forward to your advice

ttfn

*zippy*

bumping for you JT for the morning crowd.

Think one of the other boards might be able to help with ex pat advice, perhaps the employment and job seeking board?

pariskate

Hi there, we're expatriated but no where near as exotic as Vietnam unfortunately. Specific contracts vary from firm to firm but things you might like ot ask about are school fees, travel to and from home, cost of living allowance, removals and re-patriation at the end of the contract, exchange rate fluctuations (you may be paid in pounds but it's usual to send money to your account abroad), medical costs and standards of medical care - repatiation for medical reasons, language lessons. Also ask if they are going to employ a relocation agent on your behalf - this can be really useful if it's a very different culture/language.
Also, don't auomatically expect to be rolling in it if you live abroad. It can be more expensive than you think and there's an expectation that you maintain a certain 'standard' of living which costs more.
HTH
Good luck

se999

We've not worked abroad. But we nearly did.

Things I can remember to watch out for are:

If the contract ends early for whatever reason, will they pay for costs to get you back to the UK.

Is your contract a UK contract with UK benefits etc., or is it subject to local employment law.