Job Discussion Forums

[Bounder]

Hi. I'm presently teaching in China. I plan on travelling to Peru and
Ecuador in June, ostensibly just to visit but I would like to find some
work there. What are the chances of picking up casual or full-time work while I'm there at that time of year, say if i just drop-in at some schools with my cv? Can a tourist visa be converted to a work visa easily enough? Do some schools even bother converting the visa? I know that in a few countries, they hire without even bothering with a work visa ( at least they try to get away with it).
Thanks, Bounder

[naturegirl321]

Work visas are difficult to convert and most schools don't want to pay for them. At least here in Peru. Casual work is easy to find, head to the big cities, Lima, Arequipa, Trujillo, Cusco, Chiclayo, Piura (but super hot here). Just don't expect to make a fortune and be prepared to work under the table. If you can get private lessons, they pay ok. A friend of mine supports his wife and son only on privates, so it can be done.
See the link below for a list of schools.

[gmjones]

Hi,

I worked in Ecuador for a few years. It is nigh on impossible to get a work visa, and you can be pretty much sure that you wont get a tourist visa turned into one if you go there on spec looking for work. Most schools, if interested in your application from your home country, will help you get an intercultural exchange visa, or if they are one of the less reputable ones will take you on on a tourist visa (which will last you up to 6 months if you get it extended while there). However, if you turn up, get offered a job and the school giv es you the paperwork you can make an appointment at your embassy closest to the Colombian or Peruvian border and make a day trip to collect it.

I can totally recommend Ecuador as a place to work. It's small enough to travel around cheaply and easily, pretty stable and amazingly diverse. My contracts ranged from $600 a month fixed to $7 an hour... always managed to get by but it's impossible to save much. Would recommend staying away from inlingua (worked there for a year but only so I could get my return flight paid for... a school with a lot of issues and basically no support) but rate Key Language Service and the Experiment in International Living very highly. June to September will be a quieter time of year, but you should still be able to pick up a fwe classes. Good luck!

[Bounder]

Thanks very much for the replies, I think that gives me a clearer picture.
One more question, sorry.
With some countries such as Thailand, a visitor can just fly in and get a tourist visa at the airport, unlike say, China where on has to go to the nearest consulate and apply for a visa. Can a visitor do this for either Peru or Ecuador (just go there and pick up a visa at the airport)?

Cheers, Bounder

[naturegirl321]

Usually at least for Ecuador and Peru you get the visa upon arrival.

[jpaulin11]

Hey. I think most countries get an automatic tourist visa for Peru. I know thats the case for NZers anyway. Ive heard that you cant change from a tourist to a working visa without jumping the border. I managed to get a business visa while I was in NZ and now thats getting converted to a working visa, which is taking a blimmin long time!!!

[keepwalking]

Converting from tourist to working visa in Peru is a bureaucratic nightmare (then again, buying toothpaste involves filling in a form with your name and id number!). I am currently going through this with the help of a very understanding employer but I still spend ages in immigration waiting to sign something else and have my fingerprints taken again, and I face the prospect of having to go to Ecuador to change my visa and then it's off to Lima for some more paper work. To be honest, for short-term contracts (under a year) it isn't worth it. Just station yourself somewhere reasonably close to a border so you can do the run in a weekend.