EXPAT Contract Guidence for Indian Expats

Dear Indian expat,

Hi. I'm a Indian Citizen who is having more than 6 years of experience in South Africa, Congo, Angola & Tanzania. This TOPIC is dedicated to the all the Indian expats (not limited to them only) who is trying a Job here or already having an offer from Employer in Africa.


Following are very IMP points to discuss & know from Employer

1. Try to get reference from someone for the company you are going for
- Salary on monthly basis (Many employers do not pay monthly salaries & they keep your money on hold)
- USD Transfer to India (It cost you to transfer)
- Company reputation
- Work permit (many employer do not make WP & keep rolling to save money)
- Type of accommodation
(They talk good in interview & promise many things but once you are here NOTHING happens same way)

2. Take CONTRACT in writing (these are MUST
)
- Basic family medical (Med. treatments are expensive here)
- Company vehicle
- Child schooling
- Paid house expenses(Electricity+Water charges)
- Yearly Paid leave + paid family travel to India

3. Work profile (In here Nothing is fixed , they will ask you to do anything !- BEWARE), you can not change a job in abroad as its ban by law here, so they use this as a weapon against you

4. Working hrs (Many companies work for 12-15 hrs, no time limits, even Sunday & holidays are working days!, I worked same way so BEWARE)

5. Increments (Most of the companies do not have this system, you keep working for same salary for years)

Basically I did not see any much of professionalism, all customized, & this is I have seen with several employees & not alone my experience.

If you need information on any companies in Africa write me back, I will happy to give you true report.

CLEAR WITH EMPLOYER - THEY WILL NOT HOLD YOUR PASSPORT & THAT IS ILLEGAL TO HOLD SOMEONE'S PASSPORT- BEAWARE.

Hi,

The info provided was useful.I am Pradeep from India.I have been offered a job in tanzania with a consolidated salary of
$140000/annum.Housing car etc are not provided addiationally.I need to find them.

I would like to know if it is difficult to find a decent housing,furnish it and buy a car in tanzania.How much will it cost?
assuming that my family will join me (wife and son),Is this a good option I can consider?

you had also mentioned that sending money to India is costly.tell me approximately how much dollars will I be able to save and send to India monthly.My montly salary will be $12K

Please give me a revert in [email protected]

Regards,
Pradeep.K

Hi guys,

I'm Canadian with wife and 2 girls 3-5 y.o. being in discussions for a job in Tanzania in telecom. Most likely it'll be in DES.

My main concern about Tanzania is the security of my family. Can you give me more info about? Is it secure? Can my wife take the kids alone and go to the cinema or shopping safely?

Is it safe outside DES? Is it safe to visit countryside?

Sorry for my ignorance, I worked only in Europe and Canada.

Thanks,

Epsilon

Hi epsilon,

I'm very glad that my AFRICA experience is getting utilised by other EXPATS.

DAR es Salaam means - HEAVEN OF PEACE, & its true also. Dar believed to be safest place in Africa until you do not move somewhere where EXPAT should not go. very big EXPAT communities are here WHICH INCLUDES almost Europe, UK, USA, Canada ,India & so on.
This is the reason TZ attracts millions tourist each year. For safety concern I do no see much problems as like other African countries. For outing one has lots of choice- Beaches, Zanzibar, National parks, Zoo etc.

Yes, your wife can drive & go to Cinema here with Kids, there are superb Malls & Dolby-Digital Cinemas (4 halls) here. You can get almost everything here but expensive than Canada.

Hi MUliving,

My husband is in talks to accepting a job in Dar Es Salaam. I am very supportive of him and his career, but I am six monhts pregnant and I am quite concerned with the level of health care for me and my baby.... What should I worry about? Private health care is provided in the expat package he will receive, but how safe is this? Is all the necessary medical help included? What about malaria? Would you have any tips or suggestions? We first thought of me giving birth to our first child in Belgium and only then joining him, but to be honest, I cannot bear the thought of not having my husband with me for 3 monhts and him missing the birth.
Thank you so much for your reply, its great to be able to speak to someone who lives there, cause even though I lived in Dubai and Amerika, it still scares me to move to Africa.
I look forward to hearing from you.

Kim

Hi Kim,

Thanks for writing me. Before giving you any information I have a condition (This is I learned recently because someone got info from me about Angola & promised me to describe his GHANA experience but did not do that), as you lived in Dubai & America, kindly create/participate in respective Country Topic under COST OF LIVING & other related matters so users of this BLOG can use it.

I hope once my condition is full filled I will let you more than you need - Promise.

Thanks

Hi Muliving,


Myself taher ,Iam Indian &  working for NSN ,qatar on contract I got an offer from Tanzania on a contract of 6 months for NSN & the client is Vodacom ,Are you employee of vodacom ,Please let me know so that I can know more about the operator & tanzania


br,
taher

Hi Tahir,

I can give you good information about this but read my previous Post to KIM, write your Qatar experience in Qatar forum & I will send you details.

Dear MU (Temee ur name first, mail me if dnt wanna disclose here) i wanna know if thrz any gurudwara in Tanzania and if you can give me any information about Tunakopesha Ltd. i have been offered a job by this company in Tanzania, wanted to know wt kinda employer they are.........they are negotiating hard on basic savings part, i know that how much exactly one can save in Africa depends upon kinda employer you are working for so pls temee how Tunakopesha Ltd. treats thr expatriate employees

vikas

Hi Muliving ,


Qatar is a good country for work ,but the cost is living is similar to  Dubai,good work environment ,

working days are from sunday-thursday(8 hours).
handsome salaries,Good education for children,no security issues
there are about 500,000 indians in qatar.

In all the aspects its a nice country


br,
taher

Hi Taheer,

Can you write this at Middle east section?
Once done let me know so I can provide you info.

Hi Kim,

Level of health care is quite okay (not compare to Europe),in Dar es Salaam 3-4 well equipped Hospitals are there including ICU unit( The Aga Khan Hospital, Regency Hospital etc.) In my personal opinion Pregnancy can treated well here (if you do not have any major complications), you should carry all your reports & medicines for safer side. Its quite safe also but your family member should over see all the treatment you are getting in hospitals.
In Dar you will not have much mosquito problem & its also depends where you are going to take house & how good it is.


All together Dar es Salaam is good place to live.

Good luck.

Hi all, i got an offer from Tunakopesha Ltd Tanzania and they offering me $1200 as a savings part plus the local salary with accommodation + basic medical + Children education. Just I want to know is this a good deal ? Also I would like to know more about the Tunakopesha Ltd. Can anyone revert to me at the earliest on this please.

-Sridhar

Hi Sridhar,

This Co. is in finance field. I do not have much of info for the same. Read my Contract related BE AWARE notes above & make sure you get all in written. 1200 USD is not very good deal (if you have liabilities in India) as 300-400 USD will be your family expenses alone. Are you getting Local currency also? If so 1200 USD is still minimum salary.

Try to get minimum 1500 USD savings + local expenses + paid house (water+electricity) + child edu (make sure which school - you shld get for Indian School) + Basic Medical + a month paid leave

Good luck.

Thanks a lot MU for your kind revert. Yes i am getting local salary too with family accommodation with elec+water, Child education, Basic health cover and a paid monthly holiday/annum.
It would be better if I get more info on Tunakopesha Ltd. Once again thanks MUliving.

-Sridhar

Hi. I do not hv much of info at present, it wl take time to get more info as you want. Try to get company profile from Employer.
Make sure they release your Salary Each month.

Thanks dear....If everything went smooth will try to meet you there...

-Sridhar

Hi there,

Thanks for all the helpful information you provided. There is something in the pipeline for my husband and if all goes well we might just move. My worry is my 12 yrs old son's education, are there good international school? Also any info that you can provide on medical facilities, housing, house-help etc will be appreciated.

Thanks

HI MUliving

I WANT TO ENQUIRE ABOUT CO. CALLED M/s. Plasco ltd Deals in Plastic pipes . How is the company doning what is future of the empolyeee. what is the standing of company in market .

Hi Santosh. You can ask this detail from Company itself.
e.g. Turnover, no of expats working, Co. started, present business status & company profile. There are NO GURANTEE of any firm about its future. I do not think that if Co. is not doing well & than also they want to hire someone, ned of expats alsways becasue of work amount & skilled work required.

Hello Tanzania expats!
I will be in Tanzania for a month and will like to know if any of you have contact info for people from the Art of Living Fundation (Sri Sri Ravi Shankar). Thanks! Luzyanah

Hi,
I'm  a Canadian citizen of Indian origin. I see your detailed responses to many expat queries and feel that you are one with altruistic totally selfless interests. I deeply appreciate that and would like to approach you for help with a few questions I have in mind. My husband and I were in Tanzania, Dar, from 1998 up until 2001. I worked for a TV channel and husband for a company there. We then moved to Canada and became Canadian citizens here. Now we have two children, a boy aged 8 and a second boy aged 9 months. We have thoughts of moving back to Dar for a few years. My husband is in sales and is seeking a General Managerianl position. I was earlier into marketing and sales when I worked in Dar. But I moved here and have educated myself again to become an adult English teacher. My questions are as follows:

1) How do we go about getting jobs in Tanzania? Are there any known recruiters?
2) What are the salary ranges for General Managerial positons?
3) Are there a lot of teaching opportunities for expat wives?
4)Are there any good International schools apart from the exhorbitantly expensive IST? We can't consider Indian School because my son is used to the Canadian curriculum now.
5) What is the scene of the power outages and water shortages?
6) Are there any specific websites or  certain employers that we must approach directly and what do you think is a decent amount of money for local expenses ( I know there are local and savings components with Tanzanian companies)

Will appreciate any kind of advice you may have for us.

Thanks:)

Hi

Very kind of you, your posting helped to know more knowledge, could you plz help me for the below queries too which will be more help to take decision for me

1. I am planning to move with my family ( 2 kids ) how the safety aspects would be ?

2. Schooling for kids especially i heard DPS is there, could you help me in getting the contacts

3. How you suggest me on mediclaim for medical treatments at hospital

4. Is the employee contract is for 3 years once renewal or yearly renewal

I would appreciate to reply here or to my mail id.

Thanks

You can check TOPIC in this forum where most of the query fullfilled. You can contact indian school on [email protected] (this is old ID, but one can try).

Hi, I got an offer from Aua Industria. Please provide details abt the company. The company is in tanzania, wht abt the expenses . I am offered $1500 Per month +acc+conveyance+medical+leaves.

Please let me know the living cost in tamzania and environment out there.

regards
A

Dear MUliving,

Have a Nice Day !!!

I am GK from India, I really feel very proud to be in touch with you...Nice to meet you as well

Well,I am IT Professional with 7+ years of experience in IT Infrastructure Management (ITIL/ ITSM ) / IT Project Management  / Project Management IT Infrastructure Focus / IT Service Delivery Management / IT Security Management / Data Centre Management / Server and Network Management / IT Operations / IT Budjet management / IT Research etc., with 7.10 years

I am very much interested to work in Tanzania or any other country as well

Can you please help me to get any of the suitable job, It will be a great help for me and i will be always grateful to you

Awaiting for your reply

Thanks and Regards
GK

Hi MUliving

Thank you very much for all the information and inputs provided by you.

I have received a response from the company yesterday.

I am trying to get some more clarity from them before taking a decision.

Regards

Hi MUliving

I need your help. I got an offer as a Teacher at Der es Salem @ $2000 per month and accommodation + basic medical + annual return airfare to home country. Is it fine for one person to stay there? What's the salary structure for teachers in International Schools? What kind of quires I need to confirm from my employer? Please I seek for your help.

Thanks & have a nice day.

Hi Chandan, Which school is it? Can you send full detail to guide you?

Hi Friends,
I am from India and I need advice.
I have an offer from a plastic industry from DES.
I wants to know the following details from forum.
(1) How much usd/month required for a family with a kid including food, house utilities expanses, general expanses, etc. ?
(2) What points i would clear with my employer ?
(3) How much school fees will be for a kid in nursary class in indian school ?

Need advice on above immediately as i have to give confirm reply to my employer by tomorrow.

Regds

ZPV

(1) How much usd/month required for a family with a kid including food, house utilities expanses, general expanses, etc. ?

1500 USD savings + local exp. 300 USD
Rest all on TANZANIA forum here abt expnses.

(2) What points i would clear with my employer ?
Read my POST fully.

(3) How much school fees will be for a kid in nursary class in indian school ?

450 USD per 4 months approx.

Good luck.

Hi MUliving I have read your blogs and the useful info that you have provdided freely like others I also have queries regarding Tanzania hope u can offer some advice

I have recently got a job offer from an Indian Company based in dar e salaam (Pristine global).They are giving me a salary of $3500 montly, out of which i have to pay $1200 towards accomodation .I would also be paying taxes.No written contract has been signed.What all points should be considered.Is it possible to take Indian Car there.What do you think about this offer.Would it be possible to save anything .My family includes wife and baby.Would b waiting for ur reply

Cheers
Anupam

Hi MUliving

I'm Mukesh from New Delhi, India.

I read your answers in the forum. It seems you carry lot of information about Tanzania.

I just got an offer from a company named Techno Brains Ltd (technobrainltd.com). And the offer is as under:

Salary bracket will be 1500-1800 (i'm asking for USD 1800)USD Net salary per month + Furnished family accommodation + Utility bills paid by the company + Transportation + VISA Processing + Travel (To and Fro)+ Child Education allowance + Medical reimbursement+ Taxation.

·         In Addition, Performance incentive + Statutory benefits (as applicable to local govt. rules) will be given.

As mentioned by you also in some of your blogs, working hours would strech & it could be sunday working alos somtimes.

May I request you to please let me know about the company & the salary package offered by them. As informed by the company, monthly expense for a family of 3 (self+wife+child) would be 150-200 USD.

They told me that, apart from the groceries other most prominent expenses are taken care by the company that includes my taxation as well.

Please suggest. Would it be to take the offer.

Awaiting your revert. Pls feel free to ask if you have some query.

Thanks/...........Mukesh

Hei Mukesh,

Sorry for delay... Present salary should be NOT less than 2000 USD per month + all you specified. School fees should actuals.
Present monthly family expenses can not be less than 500 USD, so one who is telling you 150-200 USD pls ask him if he is not eating at all or eating for one time? This is real surprise that Indians themselves are creating low level for himself & their brothers. Learn something from others- DO NOT LOW DOWN SALARIES JUST BECAUSE YOU WANTS YOURS TO BE HIGHEST. PAY WELL & EARN WELL.YOU GET PEANUTS IN PRICE OF PEANUTS.

I did not see long working hrs issue with most of the Tanzanian companies but ú never know, so be clear.
Do discuss House Rent value, in present situation getting house in 600-700 usd per month is like impossible.

Good Luck

Dear MUliving,
I really appreciate the time n effort you put on this forum.Helps a lot of people...My wishes to continue your support to others.
**I also have few questions to ask.

a)Can the employer hold the passport of the employee(expat) without mentioning the same in the offer letter.??

b)My employer is holding my passport and using it as a tool or suppression against me..is this correct.??

c)Iam in dar now..scared to reveal the companies name... iam under tremendous pressure due to this passport issue,i am tormented by the thought that i will not be able to go to india, even for my vacation,coz the company says they will hold 2 months salary, only when i come back they will give it...tell me if they hold 2 months salary how will i spend my vacation in india...??? i am quizzed...

d)also without any writing or mention in the work contract, they take away the passport and woo us or pressurise us to work long hours and treatment is very bad.

e)mental torture or threatening is high and they pay the expat salary as they wish.like its 15th every month,but we get it after 20th or even end of the month.

f)other benefits like medical,entertainment,school fees... all are done as per their mercy..we need to keep on begging for a long time to get one months benefits..always some amount is held there also.

**I request you MUliving to answer my queries as early as possible as what should i do to make my things better here.Please..

regds,
Daya..

Dear Daya, you'r in real shit! Actuly this is the reason I wrote max negtive points about working in Africa.
First of all- Keeping someone's passport is NOT PERMITTED BY LAW, so you are PROTECTED by the LAW, only issue is using LAW is hard & you must have lots of guts to do that. You can go to INDIAN EMBASSY & give written Application about it. I'm sure you will get help if you will try hard. Post me employer name in inbox here so I can make aware others without using your name.

Dear MUliving

Thanks a ton for your kind revert.I'll try to negotiate for USD 2000 + all benefits as suggetsed by you.

And as you mentioned that for a family I need USD 500, but thats not my worry cause initially I'll move alone without my wife. For Single male (with little hard drinks/whisky habit) I hope USD 300-400 would be enough for a months food * geocery items.

Rest most of the expenses would be covered by the company (as the company is mentioning).

MUliving, could you please help me to know more about the company which I'm about to join "Techno Brains Ltd"(technobrainltd.com), they are a part of Export Trading Group, established in 1967 in Tanzania (exporttradinggroup.com). As you have good knowledge about Tanzania & corporates here.

It would be of great help if you can inquire about the company from your siurces & friend. I would be highly gratefull to you for this act of kindness.

Awaiting your reply.

Thanks......Mukesh

Techno Brains Ltd (technobrainltd.com).

Dear MU Living

May I request to please share you contact no. I'll call you at your convinience & we'll discuss.

My Email is "[email protected]"

Thanks Awaiting your revert

Mukesh

Hi Mukesh.
Learnt by experience - you can not decide about company just getting some info about them. I suggest everyone to GET everything in WRITING & have a very PROPER contract. That's only evidence with you can fight back if required.

DO NOT TAKE ANY VERBAL PROMISES - YOU ARE WARNED.

TO ALL Expat-Blog users

There are many EXPATS are complaining about these issues:

-Employer is holding passport
-Employer is holding salaries
-Employer is not paying salaries for the leave
-Forcefully making them working for long hours

Many consultants are helping these employers to get employees for making money without proper investigation about them, thus employee is suffering.Pls note because there is a consultant inbetween that does not mean that you are SECURE. Just ask consultant if they are taking responsibilities of you will well treated.

Do post this kind of activities here so others can save themselves to fall in similar bad experience.