Due to the unstable situation in their lives, expats tend to take their salary for granted. However, if you have enough skills and courage, you can ask for salary negotiation at jobs for expats in Europe and become a successful migrant. In this article, we’ll guide you through some salary negotiation tips for expats.
Does expat salary differ?
Before asking for a salary increase, we should first understand how the expat’s salary is calculated. Depending on the country and your situation, you may expect to receive expat packages, expatriate compensation, and some other expat benefits.
Expat packages
Expat benefits are offered if you’re relocating for work to Europe. Again, it’ll vary depending on the country, company and your position but usually such packages include:
- Cost of living allowance (COLA). Additional payments are aimed to cover the difference in the prices of everyday goods. However, if your home country is more expensive, you’ll not be paid anything.
- Hardship allowance. Once you sign an expat contract, the company should provide some financial or other support to minimise the risks of moving abroad. It includes health, language and culture adaptation. For example, your employer may pay some cash or provide language courses.
- Housing. A company may suggest housing places or monthly payments to support their expat employees.
- Relocation expenses. Visa, flights, deliveries, and buying essential goods after arriving, we can continue, but every expat employee knows how expensive it is to move abroad. Your company should financially help with that.
- Education support. If you relocate with children, employers should provide financial support for their school education. For parents, after signing an expat contract, the company may pay for language courses.
How to negotiate an expat package?
Explore expat benefits that are obligatory in your country and stated in your company’s policy, then ask them to be provided based on the official documents.
Expatriate compensation
Suppose you have never been a national of the EU and didn’t reside here for at least five and a half years before your employment. In that case, you can expect to receive 16% of the total sum of your basic salary, household allowance, and dependent child allowance.
The percentage will be reduced each year as you’re expected to blend into the culture quickly. To do so, read about local communities. For example, about the Indians in the Netherlands, if you are one of them.
Thus, expat salaries may differ from local salaries because of the additional payments. Know your benefits and ask an employer to provide them.
You’ll get some support from the local companies, but remember about people back home, too. Send them love and care with beneficial Profee transfers.
How to negotiate salary when moving abroad?
Asking for salary negotiation is already stressful enough; now imagine doing it abroad—it’s terrifying. However, with some salary negotiation tips, you can level up in the European corporate world.
Salary negotiation tip #1: Choose the right timing
The best opportunity to ask for a salary increase is when you seek other jobs for expats in Europe and receive an offer. If you’re a valuable worker, your current company will probably be ready to pay you more to make you stay.
If you’re happy with your current place of work and don’t want to quit, wait for several months and try to show excellent results. After a significant achievement, when you’re on the wave of success, talk to your manager or boss.
Another option is to wait until the company’s promotional period. Maybe people in your company are usually promoted in certain months, use this as your chance, too.
Salary negotiation tip #2: Prepare in advance
Coming prepared will increase your chances of succeeding in salary negotiation. Here’s what you can do before talking about promotion:
- Know your value
You’re asking for a salary increase because you think you deserve it. Show why. Recall moments when your actions have led to an improvement in the company’s performance. It may be something huge, like introducing a new service that made working processes faster, or a small comment about the look of the advertisement that your boss really liked.
Additionally, formulate your goals and how you plan to help the company in the future. If you want to take on additional tasks and be more helpful, a salary increase is a logical reward.
Don’t be too shy, especially if you tend to underestimate yourself. If you’re struggling, ask your corporate friends to list your achievements and share their experience in salary negotiation, too!
- Research the market
If you show actual statistics to your boss, they’re more likely to be convinced. Look up the current salary trends in your industry. If you see that you’re clearly underpaid, talk to your company or look for other jobs for expats in Europe.
However, consider improving your skills first if you receive the average or above average.
You may also go beyond the industry reviews and talk about the increase in living prices. For example, check the cost of living in Germany or another country you live in and use it as an argument.
- Rehearse
Don’t rush to start the salary negotiation process. As an expat employee, you may start panicking, and the language knowledge will play a bad joke on you. Prepare your speech, learn it by heart (but always be ready to improvise), and consider the questions you may be asked.
Consider your company’s situation. If it’s near crisis, your arguments should be even stronger, as a business probably doesn’t have spare funds.
After practising alone, ask your friends, family, or colleagues for help. Present them with your speech and ask them to be strict. They’ll definitely ask questions that you’d never thought of—because we’re all different. This approach will make you more prepared.
Salary negotiation tip #3: Be respectful
Don’t start an argument. Show some respect for the company and local working culture. If you think the HR/boss/manager is rude, try to behave peacefully and convey your ideas and thoughts clearly.
Stay in a strong position, but don’t cross the line. Always remember that they are also people with emotions, stories, and backgrounds. Maybe it was just a bad day.
Salary negotiation is a dialogue, so listen to another person and don’t stress too much. You can always try again.
Salary negotiation tip #4: Don’t give up
If your request was declined, it’s not a final verdict. Many factors could affect this decision, from your performance to a company’s financial challenge.
When you started discussing the salary increase, you brought attention to it. Now, people at your company are thinking about it and evaluating your performance. Wait for several months, try to be proactive, and prove your expertise and value.
Use your time wisely: participate in meetings, enrol in professional courses, and attend industry events. A higher salary is a good motivation for becoming a more skilled professional, so your efforts will pay off sooner or later.
Also, review your negotiation speech. Maybe the numbers were not impressive or outdated, or you could have highlighted your strong sides better.
Once you feel ready, try discussing a salary increase again and see how it goes. Don’t be too pushy, though. Reminding your boss about this conversation every day or week is a bad strategy, believe us. Imagine your family member asking you to screw the shelves every time you’re trying to relax. Annoying, right? This is exactly what your employer will feel, and we don’t want that.
Salary negotiation tip #5: Future steps
If you got a “Yes”
First of all, congratulations! Before signing a new contract, check important details: whether the salary is gross or net, the expat package included, and in which currency you will be paid. If something is wrong, approach your HR and discuss the details.
With the rise in salary, you may treat yourself and your loved ones—throw a party, go fishing in Ireland to prepare the tastiest meals, or visit the best Indian restaurant in Warsaw!
If it was a “No”
It’s okay; your time will come. As a middle-ground solution, you may ask for other benefits like paid courses, hybrid work, or more flexible working hours.
If you need more money now and quickly, search for other jobs for expats in Europe, take on part-time projects, or freelance.
Conclusion
In this article, we shared some salary negotiation tips. Now, you know how to negotiate an expat package and how to negotiate a salary when moving abroad. Prepare in advance, show your value, be respectful and don’t give up—you’ll achieve your goal. While earning in Europe, support your family back home with fast and secure Profee transfers.
