Salary question Cali

Really depends on the hours you're working/the size/the kind of institution you're working in. The minimum for an English teacher(native with basic Spanish) expect 600,000 COP per month but that's still quite low. 7million a year is kinda low, I'd check the specs again. It's very easy to get a teaching job in Cali and almost always better to work casually on a month to month salary rather than yearly.

70 million, not 7 million. 5 million/month; 14 salaries per year. Plus one monthly salary as bonus upon completion of the contract.

Wow! Sounds good. I am a filipina, I can speak english fluently, is it possible to get that job? What are the requirements?

I stand corrected, lock that down immediately. That kind of salary is unheard of here, I don't think even doctors make that kind of money.

Thanks for the heads up! I thought it sounded quite good but wanted to make sure it really is. Cheers.

Just a follow up question to my initial salary question. I have now received my contract, which stipulates a monthly salary of COP 5,800,000.00. Unfortunately I have not been able to find any reliable information on income tax and other deductions that I'll have to pay. Does COP 5,000,000.00 sound reasonable?

Hi, congrats on the job offer - almost sounds too good to be true! (although I do have a friend who's earning about 5.5 million a month working at a private school in Bogota).

You should probably check if that salary is what they pay you after contributions to your health and pension plans, and please bear in mind that income tax is 33% until you have been living in Colombia for 6 months, after which you are a resident and tax drops to virtually nothing. I work hourly/freelance and occasionally I earn more than $5 million, and on these occasions only 75,000 was deducted in tax. But it can be a nasty shock that first month if you're not expecting it (as was the case for me and many other expats I know!)

Thanks for your reply! Yes, the salary has been confirmed and is COP 5,000,000 per month after ALL deductions, 14 times per year. I was just a bit confused that on the employment contracted they stipulated a salary of 5,800,000 since I expected the gross salary to be much higher than that.

However, what you said about 33% income tax for the first six months does worry me a bit as they haven't said anything about that. Does that apply to anyone new to Colombia or are there excpetions?

Hi, that's a great salary package then! I'm not sure what type of contract they are offering you, but what I understand is that non-residents must pay 33% tax until they become residents (after 6 months); that's how it works where I work at the British Council. I would check directly with your school about this to make sure!

(Also bear in mind that most teachers are paid pretty mediocre salaries for the job they do.. maybe 1.2 - 1.5 million in a public school and 2-3 million in private schools, often without benefits. So even with a 33% deduction you'd still have a pretty good deal for the first 6 months!)

I asked them about the 33% tax, so I'll just wait and see what they say. Thanks for your help. If I happen to be in Bogota I'll drop you a line and maybe we can catch up for a chat. I almost applied for a job at the British Council (they had one going in Bogota recently) but when I was ready to put in my application, it had already disappeared from the website. Oh well, maybe some other time.

Hi, if you are CELTA qualified, the British Council is accepting applications for hourly-paid teaching positions on an ongoing basis at the moment, so do keep it in mind after you finish your Cali contract, if you plan to stay in Colombia!

I've got the DELTA. Do you think I could get some evening teaching on the side? I might want to go back to the UK after two years but not sure yet.

With a DELTA, definitely apply - you can specify your preference for hourly-paid or full-time work and I'm quite sure you'll be contacted. The recruitment process can take quite a bit of time (maybe up to a month) - the interview, demo lessons, paper-work, visas... but it is worth it once you're in
Yes, there are evening classes so you could express a preference for those!