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Show HN: Relocate.me – get your next tech job abroad
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoHello, everyone! It’s Andrew, founder of Relocate.me. In a nutshell, Relocate.me is a one-stop platform for tech professionals who are willing to relocate for work. Since launching Relocate.me on Hacker News over 3 years ago (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15922401 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15922401), a lot has changed, and I’m excited to finally introduce Relocate.me 3.0 with a batch of new features and enhancements: 1) Learning center (https://relocate.me/learning-center https://relocate.me/learning-center): A treasure trove of useful information and practical advice on finding employment abroad. 2) Companies (https://relocate.me/companies https://relocate.me/companies): A handpicked list of tech companies hiring internationally; you can filter companies by country. 3) Improved search (https://relocate.me/search https://relocate.me/search) 4) Calculators (https://relocate.me/net-pay-calculators https://relocate.me/net-pay-calculators) to estimate your after-taxes paycheck in 20+ countries 5) “Who Wants to be Relocated?” initiative (https://relocate.me/wwbr https://relocate.me/wwbr): A public list of potential tech hires promoted among international recruiters. 6) Non-developer jobs with relocation assistance. Including (but not limited to) Product Manager, Design, and Marketing roles. 7) Telegram channel (https://t.me/relocateme https://t.me/relocateme): A quick way to keep up to date with new positions as they’re posted, relevant news, and more. Thank you so much for reading this far! Our team will be happy to hear your feedback.
- 908B64B197 6y agoI see a bunch of calculator but there's no level bands or numbers for compensation when browsing positions.
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoGood point. Actually we thought about adding this info to vacancy pages. However, as our experience shows, many companies are not ready to disclose salary info to the public.
- dmitrygr 6y agoThen how do they plan to hide anything above mediocre? Most good+ engineers I know will not waste time on an interview if they do not know upfront that the company pays a sane wage. Else it is a time waste.
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoI think that quick research about the company can give a rough idea about the salary they offer. In most cases, it's possible to find feedback from past employees on Glassdoor.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- DiggyJohnson 6y agoBecause this project might provide value in aggregating and filtering the data (i.e. remote job postings) in other ways that still add a lot of value to a certain kind of user.
- sokoloff 6y agoI won’t get to an interview without an idea that there’s a possible overlap in our picture of compensation, but I don’t mind taking the first 15 zoom call if the job otherwise seems interesting.
- 908B64B197 6y ago> However, as our experience shows, many companies are not ready to disclose salary info to the public. Depends on the demographic you are trying to attract on the platform. I've done a little bit of tech recruiting and I can tell you this: top engineers, no matter the level, get a lot of offer. And they won't hesitate to sort by compensation (unless of course it's SpaceX). Really, there are two kinds of businesses out there: those that try to make money playing games with compensation and CoL adjustments and those who make money building the best software out there and scaling. The later won't have any problem giving a number: they need the talent right now to scale.
- hunglee2 6y agolooks like a great resource for the developer community. Where do you expect the developers to move from, and move to?
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoThanks for the warm words. It’s funny, but we did a poll yesterday about the most desired work abroad destination among 589 developers (exclude my vote - it was Japan). You can find the results - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ga2y72eqwcd9bp6/Relocate.me%20March%2004%20poll.png?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/ga2y72eqwcd9bp6/Relocate.me%20Marc...
- spockz 6y agoI know that there are state level taxes as well in the US. Can this be included in the calculator? Also I wonder what the difference in disposable income would be given something like (typical) health insurance, food prices, and housing per state/area
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoThanks a lot for the feedback on the US salary calculator! Makes sense... Added this to the backlog
- rimutaka 6y agoAndrew, it would be interesting to hear a bit about the founding story. One question I'd like to ask is how did you acquire the customers in the early days? What was the plan for that and what actually worked?
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoI started a recruitment agency first... After a while, I realized that it was almost impossible to scale this business as well as to be somehow unique comparing to other recruiting firms. It took me around 3 years to negotiate buying the Relocate.me domain name and then the Relocate.me story started. It helped a lot that I was in this field for almost 5 years before launching Relocate.me. So the first users came through the word of mouth and a Product Hunt campaign. Moreover, we 'manually' invited software engineers to the platform, those who somehow expressed their interest in moving abroad (haha, this can help - https://relocateme.eu/blog/how-to-source-for-software-developer-who-are-eager-to-relocate/ https://relocateme.eu/blog/how-to-source-for-software-develo...)
- jwagenet 6y agoI’ve noticed that projects like this primarily focus on recruiting for software roles (which is understandable if they are shared here), but what are the roadblocks to listing traditional engineering roles (mechanical, electrical, etc). Lack of exposure to those industries (understandable)? Companies not offering relevant positions?
- jdxcode 6y agoI would assume the biggest roadblock is they actually build physical products
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoYou've already described the main roadblocks. I suppose that those industries have less in-demand vacancies comparing to software engineering, as well as companies are not offering so many positions with relocation support.
- nonameiguess 6y agoNon-software engineering disciplines tend to involve professional licensing that doesn't necessarily carry over automatically to other countries.
- 908B64B197 6y agoIn my experience, the good ones do.
- hanniabu 6y agoMedical typically does
- flimflamm 6y agoNot necessarily. You might need to get country specific additional training which can be either easy to get or .. well not.
- nonameiguess 6y ago
- that_guy_iain 6y agoLegit question, how many people are being relocated currently? I would have thought Corona would have really messed up your flow but I keep getting emails from you guys with jobs so I assume it's still happening.
- brailsafe 6y agoI'd be curious as well, though I've met people in the last year who have made moves with the correct visas. Not on this platform though. It seems like the flights were the hardest part.
- fakename9876543 6y agoDon't forget us network engineers who want to move abroad :) Would love to see a category for that
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoWe won't. Handpicking jobs with relocation assistance takes quite a lot of time, but will do our best to expand the list of available job offering as much and fast as possible
- dvirsky 6y agoThe annual salary in the calculator goes up to $140,000 for the US. This needs to be way higher if we're talking Bay Area.
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoThanks for the feedback! In your opinion, what would be a realistic figure for the Bay Area?
- dvirsky 6y agoI found this survey: https://www.builtinsf.com/salaries/dev-engineer/senior-software-engineer/san-francisco https://www.builtinsf.com/salaries/dev-engineer/senior-softw... Average for senior engineers is around $200K, upper limit towards $300K. Why not just make it open to typing in the sum, at least optionally?
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoWe'll think about it, many thanks!
- hanniabu 6y agoCould also go up just a bit more, say 180k of a little more range and add a + to take care of anything over that. So the end of the range would be $180k+.
- julienb_sea 6y agohttps://h1bdata.info/index.php?em=google&year=2020 https://h1bdata.info/index.php?em=google&year=2020 Median base salary at google is 149, and there are plenty of offers in the 200-400 range with outliers well above that. From personal experience 140 is on the low range for 3 years experience in the major US tech markets (Seattle, Bay, Austin)
- mc10 6y agoTake a look at https://www.levels.fyi/ https://www.levels.fyi/, which has pretty accurate salaries for Bay Area companies.
- awaythro15234 6y agoI've been thinking of relocating for a while, but also feel a sort of guilt about it. I must admit that the main reason for my doing it is that I feel increasingly disillusioned with the United States, where the paths of both the "left" and the "right" seem equally disappointing. There is a deep sense of social malaise that I feel, while here, and I cannot help but attribute it to that form of neoliberalism that is spreading across the world. And so I feel that my migration would be not so different than the spread of a pestilence of sorts, infecting what I hope will save me. I am reminded of Society of the Spectacle, specifically thesis 165. 165 Capitalist production has unified space, breaking down the boundaries between one society and the next. This unification is at the same time an extensive and intensive process of banalization. Just as the accumulation of commodities mass-produced for the abstract space of the market shattered all regional and legal barriers and all the Medieval corporative restrictions that maintained the quality of craft production, it also undermined the autonomy and quality of places. This homogenizing power is the heavy artillery that has battered down all the walls of China.
- ramraj07 6y agoThe fact of the matter is there’s no running away from what happens in the US. Many people leave really good socialists countries because they are basically bored or not challenged enough; so if you want exciting career US is still the best bet. Also whatever happens in the US bleeds slowly everywhere, it’s the vanguard. Don’t forget the grass is always greener on the other side: you’re either looking at a third world country or a place that’s paradoxicall Even worse housing wise than the US.
- poochinienini 6y agoIt's the lack of culture, homogeneization. Living in Seattle I'm constantly reminded of the lackluster quality of food.
- ecnerwala 6y agoIf those are your reasons then realistically I don't think you'll be happy with relocation to anywhere on Earth. The best you could do is to get a short term visa to a country with a different culture - enjoy the first few months, and get back before you discover the same (or a different type of) social malaise :)
- beeforpork 6y agoIs there also 'dontrelocate.me' for my next remote tech job abroad?
- humbleMouse 6y agoYes, I too am looking for this site.
- ngai_aku 6y agoCool project! I'd be interested in relocating to Singapore, but there's only one position listed (and that position provides no relocation package info). I'm sure the slim pickings can be explained by covid, but what did offerings look like before the health crisis? Do you have snapshots or stats on how many you've assisted in relocation?
- kyllo 6y agoCool idea, I hope it grows. Would like to see more positions in Asian countries, they currently appear very limited.
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoWe’ll definitely add more jobs in Asia. Thanks
- wingerlang 6y agoAgoda is one of the biggest tech companies in Thailand, they hire internationally.
- hc-taway 6y agoBeen looking for a country where I can seek permanent residence status (and maybe, later, citizenship) with my family without having to give up my 1099 (contractor) US remote job and find something local (no, I'm not trying to dodge taxes, and I'd fully expect to pay normal taxes on that income for wherever I ended up). Coming from the US (all of us are native-born citizens). It's been tricky. I get why there's not some kind of policy or program in place, since that's a pretty niche circumstance, but I don't see how it wouldn't be a good thing for whichever country I'd end up in. I don't make SV-bucks but I make more than I'd easily be able to in, say, Canada, and I'd be spending that money and paying taxes in the new country (I'm not at a level of income where I'd get double-taxed by the US, though I'd have to file there). At the same time, having to job-hunt and probably take a pay cut to find a job before we even move would suck, since I already have a job I like, that's fully remote. Anyone got any helpful info on that situation, that I may not have come across elsewhere?
- notsureaboutpg 6y agoI have exactly the same solution. Job I like, fully remote, place I want to move to (with family) and seek permanent residence status outside the US, don't want to cheat taxes. I'd love some info on how to make this happen.
- hc-taway 6y agoI only mentioned the tax thing because for some reason when I've brought this up other places people thought I was trying to avoid paying taxes. So I figured I'd head that off at the beginning. I just want to move somewhere with a decent social system (esp. healthcare, though none of us are or expect to be sick in the near future—I'm also not trying to cheat a healthcare system in some fashion) and good schools, and use my certainly-except-in-a-handful-of-expensive-cities above-median income to pay taxes and support the local economy like anyone else. 95% of why I want to do this is so my kids can grow up somewhere with saner government and a generally saner society. None of why I want to do it is to cheat anyone. I'd just rather not also have to change jobs (and probably take a pay cut, and likely end up back in an office, too) to do it. :-/
- 6y ago
- bogomipz 6y agoI would curious if anyone has heard of any relocation activity to the EU happening during the last year given the Covid situation and restrictions. It looks like there's a fair amount of posts for Germany and the Netherland for instance.
- herbst 6y agoYes. The main difference, other than the worse job market, are a few days quarantene in some countries. Plenty of people are relocating to switzerland right now
- u678u 6y agoIt would be nice to see more details about salaries. Its hard enough to know pay rates in your own city. I have no idea if Finland pays enough to make it worth it. Language is a big issue too, are they all English speaking offices?
- bflies 6y agoNo offense but why are there still platforms where devs apply to companies? How can this work when you have significant more demand than supply? Bonus question: Why relocate in times where even FAANG heavily hires remote people to the same conditions as their local staff?
- diehunde 6y ago> Bonus question: Why relocate in times where even FAANG heavily hires remote people to the same conditions as their local staff? They are still not "heavily" hiring remote. Many are just hiring remote while COVID is still around. They ask people to relocate to one of their offices after.
- ecnerwala 6y agoAre you saying that the demand for developers is greater than the supply ? Where exactly? Bonus Answer: Some of us live in countries we want to get the fuck out of :( I am actively trying to relocate, and found this site useful. Existing sites (say LinkedIn) don't have a way to filter for "open for visa sponsorship" jobs. (Stack Overflow job listing is the only other site I found which allows you to look for only visa sponsorship jobs.)
- elliottinvent 6y agoAs a UK user on mobile over 30% of the viewable area is a cookie alert. There’s no need for tracking cookies on the home page as shown by Github’s recent blog post [0] 0. https://github.blog/2020-12-17-no-cookie-for-you/ https://github.blog/2020-12-17-no-cookie-for-you/
- andrewstetsenko 6y agoGood point! Thanks for sharing
- nicbou 6y agoThere's seemingly no way to refuse those cookies, and no way to get any relocation tips without signing up.
- jasonkester 6y agoIf you’re an American developer looking to move abroad, a much better plan would be to first pick up a remote gig with an American company, and then move overseas. Your take home pay will be easily triple what you can negotiate from a European company. This site takes the opposite approach of finding positions at EU shops that will handle relocation and visas. That certainly helps get you situated, but they’ll likely expect a long term commitment. And long term, you’ll leave a ton of money on the table. I expect that’s why the jobs listed on this site don’t reveal salaries. It would kinda take the wind out of the idea if they had to tell you that none of these jobs pay more than $50k. Ps. Still go through! It’s really nice over here. Just make sure you get the best deal for yourself.
- woutr_be 6y agoI don't know all the visa rules, of course. But if you're looking to relocate, you usually needs a visa, or some sort of citizenship. Sponsoring yourself isn't always an option, or might be fairly expensive. The easiest way to relocate is usually to find a company that can sponsor your visa application, so that you're legally staying in the country, and can enjoy all the public services.
- jasonkester 6y agoYeah, the visa thing is the real crux. Fortunately with a US bill rate, you’ll have an extra $150k/yr to figure out a way around it. Health insurance a lees of a concern, in practice. Catastrophic coverage is pretty cheap from places like IMG Global, and doctors here are happy to take payment directly for more routine things if you’re not on the national plan. And that payment is forty dollars because there’s are no insurance companies to gouge, so gouging isn’t something doctors do. Personally, I got around the “permission to live” thing by mildly abusing schengen tourist visas for a while, then marrying an English girl. If I had to do it again, I’d go for one of the “show us you have a ton of money in the bank” visa routes. Again, that US bill rate comes in handy...
- taurath 6y agoAnd of course, for the rich there are “investment” visas for real estate purchase.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- nicbou 6y agoIt's a job board. Am I missing anything? It gives you tips but not without taking your name and email. It also has a cookie notice that doesn't let you decline.
- shingil 6y agoIts a good idea