Job Discussion Forums

[James_T_Kirk]

Hello everyone,

For any of you that follow the General Discussion forum, you might know my story: once upon a time, I taught English in China. I only did it for one year, but I loved it. I was tempted to stay for another year, but societal and family pressure forced me back to the United States and into graduate school. Fast forward to the present: I have a well-paying, steady job, nice stuff, etc. That�s all well and fine, but I really miss teaching and living abroad, so I plan on heading to Asia to find a teaching job in late August.

Until this week, I was almost 100% positive that my destination was Vietnam. However, the last few days, it seems that higher powers are conspiring against me going to Vietnam, so over the weekend I started reexamining my options. As I was looking at the spreadsheet I created for all the destinations I had been considering initially, I started to wonder why I eliminated Taiwan as my first choice. It appears there are many positive reasons to teach in Taiwan:

1) You�re not necessarily going to get rich, but it is possible to save some money and/or send money home to pay bills
2) You get health insurance
3) You can study Mandarin (I see this a big plus considering I studied Mandarin during my year on the Mainland)
4) The weather is great (I hate winters and used to live in Florida, U.S.A. which has similar weather)
5) Mass transit is fantastic in Taipei
6) If desired, many of the creature comforts of home are available (high-speed internet, cable television, etc)
7) Plenty of gyms around for working out
8 ) Good expat community
9) Cool clubs and organizations (including an Ultimate Frisbee club!)
10) Dating women doesn�t seem as problematic has it is on the Mainland

Negatives:
1) Since I will arrive after June 26th, I will get screwed on taxes
2) Teachers don�t get a lot of vacation time (or is this statement inaccurate?)

Upon further review, I�m starting to believe that Vietnam is out and Taiwan is in! I think six months ago when I was initially trying to decide on a destination, I was overly concerned with the two Taiwan negatives. However, I think I can live with getting screwed on taxes for the remainder of 2004, and, after reading some posts here and on Taiwan Ho! yesterday, I�m thinking that perhaps I will get more days off than I think. Can anyone clarify how many days off you have as a teacher in Taiwan (meaning holidays and vacations)? Is there adequate time to leave and vacation in other countries? Also, are there any obvious pros and cons that I am overlooking? Any feedback is appreciated!

Cheers,
Kirk

[johnslat]

Dear James_T_Kirk,
Can't you file for an extension (you get an automatic one until June 15th,
but you can get another extension to August 15th) and then file when you will have had enough time overseas to be a "Bona Fide Resident" - or will be able to pass the "Physical Presence" exclusion:

Q - Do I have to file for an extension if I've just moved overseas?

A - Probably. While overseas filers get an automatic extension from April 15th to June 15th (but you must be certain to pay any taxes due by April 15th to avoid penalty interest) your initial qualifying period of 330 days abroad might not fall within an easy tax year. You need to file this Form 2350, requesting an extension to January 30th the following year. This way you can file earlier if you qualify earlier, or you can qualify under a Bona Fide Expat rules.

and

Taxpayers living and working outside of the U.S. on April 15 have until June 17 to file their income tax return this year. The IRS does ask overseas taxpayers using this automatic two-month extension to include a note with their return when it is filed stating that their tax home
was in a foreign country on April 15.
By filing a Form 4868, "Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return," taxpayers abroad can extend their tax due date to August 15.
That Form 4868 must be filed by June 17.
Still another two-month tax filing extension, to October 15, is available on a case-by-case
basis. That extension requires filing a Form 2688, "Application for Additional Extension of Time
to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return." Form 2688 should be filed no sooner than 30 days following the filing of the automatic extension Form 4868.

also:

"When your foreign employment begins or ends in mid-year, similar to the bona fide foreign residence test, the $80,000 exclusion is pro-rated for the number of days within each tax year that you qualified. For example, assume that your foreign employment is for a two-year period from July 1, 1996 through June 30, 1998. Here is a simplified scenario:

For the 1996 tax year, your 12-month qualifying period is 7/l/96 through 6/30/97. In that 12-month period, you need 330 full days of foreign physical presence. You may then prorate your exclusion as July-December 1996 = 6 months or 50% x $80,000 = $40,000 exclusion.

For the 1997 tax year, your 12-month qualifying period is 1/l/97 through 12/31/97. You again, need 330 full days of foreign physical presence. In this case, you may exclude the full $80,000

For the 1998 tax year, your 12-month qualifying period is 7/l/97 through 6/30/98. In that 12-month qualifying period, you again, need 330 full days of foreign physical presence. You may then pro-rate your exclusion as January-June 1998 6 months or 50% x $80,000 = $40,000 exclusion.

see also

http://www.nysscpa.org/cpajournal/1999/0899/features/F46899.HTM

The way I see it, with the extensions. you could file for the 2004 tax year under the physical presence exclusion. But then, math was never my strong point.
Hope this helps some, though.
Regards,
John

[Taylor]

Dear Kirk,

I don't know about Taipei, but Kaohsiung offers cheap rent and cheap food. However, as far as rent goes, anything that is advertised in English is going to be expensive/overpriced. You will need to enlist the help of someone who can read Chinese and speak English.

I've never thought of Vietnamese people as being overly-friendly. (Maybe I am wrong). Nevertheless, you will likely feel quite welcome in Taiwan.

As far as taxes, see if your future employer is willing to report only half of your income--thereby halving the actual tax rate---and paying you the other half in cash--"off the books."

It rains a lot in Taiwan and there are typhoons, so I am not sure many people would say the weather is "great." Taipei can get pretty damp in the winters, I have heard.

If you are working at regular children's language schools, then you should not expect much extra vacation time. The kids are used to attending classes about 300+ days of the year, it seems. Since most teachers are in Taiwan only short term (1 to 2 years) just to make money, this is usually not an issue.

There will always be more red-tape than you expect, so be prepared for that. Make sure you are not the "first" foriegn teacher to have ever worked for the school you decide to sign a contract with. It takes a bit of experience and a savvy local person on your side to get all the paperwork approved.

Best wishes.

Taylor

[TaoyuanSteve]

Johnslat, I believe Kirk's problem relates to Taiwan's tax laws not the USA's. In particular, a newly arrived foreigner pays 20% tax for the first 182 days of their stay. Provided they stay over that number of days in the tax year (without leaving), most of that amount is refunded (the usual tax rate for language school teachers is 6%). Because he will be arriving so late in the tax year, Kirk will likely have to write off the full 20%.

Time off will depend on your school's flexibility. If a language school has enough teachers in its system (ie. a good source of subs), taking leave may not be a problem. I'm payed by the hour (not salary). I have no provision for paid holiday (although my higher hourly pay compensates for that). Taking leaves of absence (even lengthy ones) is seldom a problem for me.

[James_T_Kirk]

Johnslat, Taylor, and Taoyuan Steve, thank you for your replies. As of right now, I am still trying to work out which destination will work out best for me. I will keep you posted. In the meantime, I appreciate your feedback...keep it coming!

Cheers,
Kirk

[Okami]

Dear Mr. Kirk,

I'll go over a few of your points and add a bit of commentary.