This is always one of my popular and searched for items … Jobs for Americans in the Philippines. Personally, if I had to have a J*O*B I’d rather have one in the US, but who am I to tell others what to do.
Jobs for foreigners in the Philippines have traditionally been hard to come by … at least decent ones that pay anything like US-style wages. There are some number of Western corporations with operations here and living allowances with those sorts of jobs tend to be very good … but it’s very difficult to get into something like that from the outside .. typically folks in those positions are workers who have been with the company for years and were selected internally for what is usually regarded as a “plum” position.
An example as to how good working here can be with the right pay and benefits package would be the US State Department folks at the US Embassy. Some reliable info I had last year indicates Foreign Service jobs in Manila are traditionally the most sought after of all the State department positions, and more than 85% of the folks selected to work here ask to extend their tours … but I doubt I have many Sate department prospects among my readers. Also, this information was gathered before the US dollar started down the tubes. devaluation of the US dollar is a real consideration for any prospective overseas worker who is going to be paid in dollars … the ‘greenback’ isn’t what it used to be.
You must have permission to work in the Philippines .. either a specific ‘work visa’ which must be applied for by the company who wants to hire you, or be a legal permanent resident, such as a 13(a), 13(g) or SRRV (Special resident Retirement Visa) holder.
(Important Note: Although the permanent visas I mentioned sometimes do convey the privilege to work here, it is never automatic. ALL aliens must get a working permit from the DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment) … a lot of foreigners seem to get this part wrong … it’s a common reason for people being deported or sitting in Immigration Jail)
Many jobs are available in the ‘Teaching English as a Second Language” field. In general these tend to be relatively low pay and long hours, as the schools involved cater mainly to students from Korea who are looking for bargain education in the Philippines. 600 to 1,000 Philippine Pesos per day is a common wage and you can plan on 6 days of work per week.
The current ‘boom industry in the Philippines is what’s loosely called “call centers”, which typically come in two flavors, inbound and outbound. Inbound call centers take calls for customer service, online sales, requests for catalogs and information, etc. Outbound centers are mostly in the telemarketing sales area, calling businesses to solicit space in directories, setting appointments for sales calls and making add-on sales to customers who have already bought something from a company.
But the biggest growth area is in BPO … Business Process Outsourcing which covers areas such as data entry, transcription of doctors and lawyer’s case notes, entering sales into accounting ledgers and numerous other ‘back room’ chores that big businesses need warm bodies for.
Foreigners are typically sought as language coaches and trainers and may advance to team leaders and other second-level supervisory positions. 18,000 to 30,000 PhP per month is a ballpark pay figure, normally for 5 day work weeks, but remember that night-time here in the Philippines is when the work needs to be done and customer service style positions are going to require 24x7x365 coverage, so new people are looking at a lot of weekend and midnight shift work.
I recently came across a pretty comprehensive listing of jobs in the Philippines, centered on Cebu, which i am happy to pass on … http://www.cebu-philippines.net/philippines-jobs.html
If working is your think, hopefully this can help …if you are interested in earning money without a job at all, you might like to visit my other blog, www.retiredpay.com or my friend Bob’s on-line Virtual Earner blog.
For more information on jobs for foreigners in the Philippines or jobs for Americans in the Philippines, try the “Search” box on the upper right sidebar.
Popularity: 60% [?]
I’m married to a Filipina (only about 3 weeks) and am very interested in finding employment. The wages don’t bother me as they are proportionate to the cost of living, for the most part. Do I need a work permit even though I am married to a native? How does that work?
Hi Andy, thanks for reading and for commenting. Apparently you are not Filipino,you phrased your question. Yes, you do need permission to work. If you get a permanent visa (normally a 13(a) ) thorough the sponsorship of your Filipino spuse then you have the right to also apply for a work permit.
Not having any idea what kind of enployment you are looking for or what your skills and experience are, I have no way of guessing what your chances are.
You may think the wages are in line with the cost of livig but most foreigners will never be comfortable with them, but if your wife is agood manager and you refain from typicl Western excesses you might be able to do it.
I suggest you read up a little more on the requirements in this article you just commented on and other related ones … what skills do you offer that can’t be filled by a Filipino … that’s one of the first things your propextive employer has to prove to the DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment). Godspeed.
Thanks Philly, I appreciate the input. No, I’m not Filipino!! haha. I’m an American married to a Filipina. Retired AF with management experience (command post supervisor). Trying to find a niche here. Now I know about the residency and permit requirements. I appreciate your assistance.
You’re welcome, Andy. I don’t always mean to sound so negative with my thoughts on this subject, but I sometimes feel someone has to provide a counter-balance to the wild optimism so many display.
Another thought to chew on in this whole process … with your background you should find it relatively easy to get a job the ‘fits’ your skills pretty well in the US (or, dare we say at some overseas locations from some defense contractor based in the USA).
In the long view, have you given much consideration to your new wife to the USA? I know there are waiting times, forms to fill up and so on, but you should consider that if you make the move to limit your life together only to the Philippines there are a lot of benefits … money that you have paid for years and years, like your Social Security … that she will be denied for life.
10 years ago when my wife and I got married, she was already working here in the Philippines with a responsible job with a large corporations … and with my pensions, I certainly didn’t need a job to hold up my side of the marriage. We very nearly married and set up residence in Quezon City near her work … and who is to say that in some ways that wouldn’t have been the right thing to do.
Instead, we “bit the bullet” and waited out a Fiancee visa for her, and spent nearly six years in the USA while she attained her US citizenship. It sounds like along time but believe me, we both know today that we made the right decision. Having both her US and Filipino passports opens many doors for my wife, and if 9as is actuarially likely) I predecease her, she’ll get what is coming to her from the Social Security I paid into all those years.
Anyway … Godspeed.
Is Dave finished???? very few blogs/ comments these days. Just taking a break??? have noticed since your big trip to Florida……. Hope all is well.
Hi Bruce. No, I’m not finished, but I’m dancing as fast as I can. This blog is only a sideline to my other online ventures, and I get reminded from time to time that I am supposed to have a life off line as well
im in construction is there much work in that as supervisor or traning people any imformation would be good
In construction where, may I ask? What is your experience with building here in the Philippines?
Have you read any of my articles on finding a job here in the Philippines.
Day wages for say a welder or mason here in metro Manila are about $12 a day, for 10 hour days, 6 days a week … does that fit into your budget?
Hello Adnan,
Thanks for dropping by and for your comments. I agree, aside from certain acll center jobs and a few other less thna challenging positions here in the Philippines, jobs are hard to find indeed.
My solution, if you read some of my many articles on the subject, is to tell those who hold onto the precious few jobs, “Thanks, but no thanks.”
Why not “make” your own job?
I’m a foreigner living and working in the Philippines. In many ways your post is dead on accurate. It’s often who you know, not necessarily what you know, though this is the way of the world and definitely not unique to this locale.
Finding well paid work here is something I’ve never personally found difficult, plenty of jobs around even in these troubled financial times. Getting the right permits to work though! Herein lays the challenge. If you haven’t purchased or married yourself in to a section 13(a/g) or S series visa, then you are in for an interesting time. Don’t get me wrong, I would do this in a heartbeat if my circumstances were ever so slightly different, so I look upon all you lucky people with a dejected and heavy heart – wishing I was one of you. (Maybe soon!)
Getting yourself a section 9(g) visa is challenging the first time round. All subsequent hits thereafter are a little easier to manage. If only because you’ve had all the steps and failures indelibly burned in to your brain from the days you’ve spent waiting in each queue, only to find there is no queue, and that you could have actually had your stuff processed in 3 minutes if only you were telepathic and new exactly which order you were meant to visit labyrinth of counters at each of the 10 government complexes you had to travel to at opposite sides of the city.
After the second time I hired an immigration attorney to do it for me. The price went up from about 16k (Php) to around 50, but for the sweat free lack of any need to actually care, at all, and because, you know, you actually have a job you need to be at rather than lose a week of your life, it’s worth the fee. I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve also had the corporations actually pay this for me.
One thing I have noticed, unfortunately the hard way like so many others, is that being a foreigner here also means that people will comb through your details to make sure every single i is dotted and t is crossed. Keep your lawyers close by, always.
One thing that has always amused me is my DOLE card. “Alien Employment Permit” – on the back it says in nice big black text “This is neither a permit nor a license for the practice of profession” – but you still have to pay for it.
Thanks so much for reading and leaving such a very useful comment. Since I am not looking for a job and not qualified for many, anyway, I may be too negative and untutorted in this area. It is certainly great to hear of your expereinces, I’m sure it will help some people out.
One thing work-related that I am completely at sea about is consulting type work. Even without looking for work I have had hints from more than one Philippine company that they would be interested in throwing some work my way. How this would ‘play’ with the DOLE and other agencies here I do not know. I do know there is a non-tivial number of foreigners who are getting paid as independent contractor consultants here in the Philippines. How they do this (or if they do this) legally I have no idea.
I met with a Philippine citizen once who was setting up her own consultancy style business. In the meeting were two top quality lawyers, both freinds of hers from a previous job. They couldn’t even get together on the very simple decison of did she have to form and register a corporation before she could even look for work, or could she just go out an solicit work and formalize things after she got a source of income. Very complex issues, and remember this was strictly on the Philippines side of the house, although I was at the meeting I wasn’t being considered for a role in her proposed company … it was to be a 100% Philippine citizen ‘show’.
How much more complicated it would be for a foreigner to legally ‘hang out a shingle’ as an independent consultant I can only guess.
gentelmen;
Everyone have there own way of explaning and saying things.for me getting job in philippines its difficult.i have been here for more then 2 years already.i got only 1 job for 6months only.Since i like philippines i dont want to leave.But i will never give up.It is easy to find a job in call center,s or in sales.But that is not enough like 12k 25k? We came here to live , enjoy and work.but how can we live and enjoy without good job.So i am still looking for possiblity to work as nice job.atleast i can enjoy here and handle my expenses.
But i belive on God and i have faith that one day there will be something for me.something might be wating for me.But maybe on the right time and its not right time yet.But i learn onething and that is Never give up.
regards.
I think let foreigners have the chance to work here.Give them a chance as Filipinos Overseas where given a chance to work in other countries. Just to make it fair.Imagine these foreigner coming from rich countries having a living here, if they get short, their families would be remitting money (dollar,pounds,..etc) for them. Their families would be visiting them also and that would promote tourism.Let them have chance to work here and share their culture and ideas.Maybe ourselves as Filipinos is not enough to make our country prosper.We need to be open to outsourcing.Look at Singapore..different nationalities work there and there trading is great.We need more of them here for them to invest here call it their home.
Hi Cliff, thanks for reading and for your comment. Foreigners certainaly _can_ work here in the Philippines already, I wish those who wish to well.
You make your living off ripping people off with your crappy ebooks? And then charge people to hear the story?
LOL@U
Hi John,
Thanks for visiting and for expressing your opinion. Likely I am just writing back into thin air, becuase people who leave comments like yours seldom really want to engae in civilized conversation … but I give everyone the benefit of the doubt, so let’s give it a try:
Point One: I don’t produce any eBooks
Point Two: I do sell and recommend different eBooks from time to time. The ones I do recommend I do not consider as “crappy”, but of course you are entitled to your opinion, that’s why I never advertise _anything_ that does not offer a full, no nonsense money back satisfaction guarantee. So are you speaking from authority about any eBooks you bought on my recommendation? If they are “crappy” have you requested a refund? Or are you just in a snarly mood today and jealous of others success?
Point Three: If you bother to read my articles regarding earning a living here in the Philippines you’ll find that I write about dozens of subjects that have nothing to do with eBooks or any other self-produced materials … so what is your real issue? It’s a bit obvious that you have bone to pick with me, can you find the words to express it civily, or are you just mad at the world?
opint Four: Do you have nay expereince living in the Philippines, or are you just expressing the point of view that anyone who makes a living online is somehow scamming people?
Over to you, sir, the floor is yours … and no I won’t laugh at you, you may have a point in there somewhare and just have trouble expressing yourself. I try to accommodate all people’s disabilities.
Hi John,
Thanks for visiting and for expressing your opinion. Likely I am just writing back into thin air, becuase people who leave comments like yours seldom really want to engae in civilized conversation … but I give everyone the benefit of the doubt, so let’s give it a try:
Point One: I don’t produce any eBooks
Point Two: I do sell and recommend different eBooks from time to time. The ones I do recommend I do not consider as “crappy”, but of course you are entitled to your opinion, that’s why I never advertise _anything_ that does not offer a full, no nonsense money back satisfaction guarantee. So are you speaking from authority about any eBooks you bought on my recommendation? If they are “crappy” have you requested a refund? Or are you just in a snarly mood today and jealous of others success?
Point Three: If you bother to read my articles regarding earning a living here in the Philippines you’ll find that I write about dozens of subjects that have nothing to do with eBooks or any other self-produced materials … so what is your real issue? It’s a bit obvious that you have bone to pick with me, can you find the words to express it civily, or are you just mad at the world?
opint Four: Do you have nay expereince living in the Philippines, or are you just expressing the point of view that anyone who makes a living online is somehow scamming people?
Over to you, sir, the floor is yours … and no I won’t laugh at you, you may have a point in there somewhere and just have trouble expressing yourself. I try to accommodate all people’s disabilities.