So it looks as though I'm moving to Shanghai!

Got confirmation today that they'll be making me an offer which should take a couple of weeks to put together but I expect I won't be accepting the first offer so there will be some back and forth. I know at the moment that in terms of "extras" I get:

A cash lump sum before I move out, about £10k tax free, to help set me up and help settle any financial commitments I have here
Accommodation and bills fully paid for
Car & Driver
2 return flights a year for personal use
Full healthcare benefits

I'm expecting to negotiate on the salary piece so does anyone have experience of the expected "incentive" you should get in your salary for taking an expat assignment?

Anything else I should look out for?

car and driver…. really 😕 I didn't negotiate when i moved because they paid me far more than i earnt in the UK 🙂

The biannual flights home aren't economy are they?
It's too far when work are paying for that malarkey

Nah flights are 1st class.

Car and driver essential apparently!

• Will you still be paying tax in the UK (or some kind of hypothetical tax/ equalisation)? If so you want an uplift (40% ish?) that basically gets you’re your tax back.
• Some kind of pension incentive?
• For them to pay you national insurance contributions while you abroad. Means you won’t have any gaps.
• Relocation back to the UK even if you leave the company.
• Membership of a sports/gym club. They can be expensive
• Get you flight allowance in cash not as flights. You want the full unrestricted fare, these are generally about 1.5 times more expensive than the ones you can book through a travel agent.
• More holiday and some allowance for travelling days, say 2 days a year
• Mobile phone paid for

You might not get everything, but something to aim for

I've spent most of the past 6 years odd working abroad, and mrl is pretty close to the mark, and covering most of the bases.

Our company works on the basis of overseas allowance of about 10%, plus a location premium based on a number of factors (language, safety etc) Australia wasn't seen as a hardship, so just the base 10%. Serbia was 25%, Brazil was 30% IIRC, Dubai was 15%, currently in India it works out to be about 40% ish. 40% sounds about right for a civilised part of China.

You also want either the company to provide you with an accountant for preparing your tax return, or an allowance for you to get one, can get a bit messy with overseas tax and equalised tax agreements etc.

Mobile phone certainly a must, I was stung once through things being a little vague on this front.

My contracts have always had a guarantee of at least 3 months work back in the UK after the assignment.

Make the most of your time, should be a fantastic experience. While it's nice to have the familiarity of an ex-pat club, get involved in things with locals to get a better idea of local life. It certainly gives you a different perspective on things when you return home!

Feel free to email me if you want any further info.

Cheers, Rich

"One million dollars…."

I would add to this list access to an accountant to help sort out the paying of taxes. This can be a real headache. Most companies provide one. The HR department may not have the relevant expertise. Maybe your department does.

Personal phone calls home – these may need to be specified in the contract?

Oh, and I got work to buy me a hard case for my mountain bike. They also bought me an aluminium flight case for my synth.

Phonewise I have my company blackberry

I already enquired about tax and the reply was the aim is to keep it "tax neutral" for me i.e. I won't pay any more (or less) tax than I would here. Pension contributions are a concern if a chunk of my salary is paid in China. Same goes for NI so cheers for the heads up on that.

Post-assigment positions are a concern and I've already asked for clarification on that as it's only a two year position. Logical progression is the US after that but no guarantees at this stage but I need to know that I have security at the end.

Provisional under the radar (derisory) salary offer was leaked to me today. Certainly gave me a chuckle…

I forgot about the accountant, VERY important. Try and work it on split year treatment, assuming you are going out with the same company you are currently employed with. I am not sure how it works but I think it is the easiest way of doing it. If you are travel with family then you should get school fees etc. Also if you have partner will they help with them finding a job etc. If you are not then that might be a bargaining position…. They are not paying for 3 or 4 sets of return flights, no school fee etc.

I did not really push the negations on salary too much with my company. I probably should have done but I was a bit naive (26). I got a uplift though.

I found I had the option to take the car and drive allowance as cash. I would have had to go a long way in taxis (SE asia) to have spent it. Also helps you pick up the language.

i can help you keep your uk pension on track through our shanghai office – pus take care of currency exchange and anything offshore. email in profile

What sort of industry are you in BB? It sounds like you must be quite senior, but I'd be keen to know roughly what you do – I might be in a similar position myself soon.

Oh, and you need to tell the firm to tell the IT dept to hook you up with a proxy at home to get you round the Great Firewall of China – it's a right pain.

Personal phone calls home – these may need to be specified in the contract?

Skype.

As far as NI is concerned since they've reduced the number of years you need to qualify for a full pension (and you can buy years for not a lot), again I wouldn't worry about this.

One thing we did when I went to Germany was still continue to be paid into a UK bank account, but because I was abroad I had an NT (No Tax) tax code – not sure if these still exist. I then just transferred enough to a local account.

The other thing we did was ensure we had a good life style, so rather than save money by just renting a flat big enough, we rented a large house instead. Also made on currency, as the DM went from 2.7 to 3.3 to the pound 😆

Presumably they will pay your accommodation costs in China? When my sister was there for 4 years with an oil co in 1998-2002 expats could only live in certain places (typically ratgher naff gated estates with club and security etc) and they were shockingly expensive. I recall her rent was US$10,000 pcm. I get the impression their salary is pretty much doubled for going to semi uncomfortable places (China, Iran, Kazakhstan).

A mate went to Moscow in 2000 and had his UK salary doubled plus free flat (vast and very central), flights, private schools for his kids etc. Moscow was considered rough at the time.