I was proposed a remote job in the US. How to calculate the equivalent EU salary

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32885673

by n0n0n4t0r • 4 years ago

34 41 4 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Hello,

I was proposed a remote job in the US. So it mean working for a US company while still living in my country (France) which as a LOT of benefits for the workers. I can't figure out how much more I should ask for the additional risks. I would think between 50% and 100% more than I ask locally.

Hum... Another way to calculate, is my position with the market: locally, I ask 70k€ (more or less 70k$) Wich is 20k€/30k€ above the market.

I don't know how much it represents on the US market.

I think maybe 100k€ ?

Thanks !

mytailorisrich• 4 years ago

I would start by finding the market rate for that position within the US.

You should also research how much you would need to pay yourself in France towards retirement, health insurance, etc.

Considering the difference in salary levels between Framce and the US, the difference in health insurance costs, and how strong is the dollar at the moment, I am sure that the market compensation in the US would be a very good deal for you (€100k is only $100k at the moment and they'll pay you in USD)

n0n0n4t0r4• 4 years ago

It's a very simple position of senior PHP developer with also a strong experience as a DevOps. I can tell that I'm lucky to love both my job and helping my team grow, so I'm entitled to a little extra ?

How would you find the market rate in the US (sorry it's maybe a dull question, but, even for my own country, I find it difficult to find reliable resources, especially since my salary is totally out the reports I read, but there is still a strong, hidden market.

mensetmanusman2• 4 years ago

levels.fyi

djmp2• 4 years ago

As a point of reference I recently moved back to France from the US where my base salary was ~$190k in California and I now have a base salary of ~100k€ (that's excluding stock and bonus). I find that my standards of living have not changed much.

There are a few differences (a bit less cash on hand for instance), but all in all it has worked well.

In particular, the protection offered by the French CDI is very valuable in the economy we are in.

Keep in mind that work contracts in the US as generally "at-will" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-will_employment), which means that your contract can be terminated at any moment for any reason.

If I were you I would go for 2x in USD and then negociate from there. One thing to consider though is the legality of it, as well as tax implications: will you have a US contract? Are you legally allowed to work in the US? Regarding taxes you will probably have to declare your income and pay income taxes in both countries, but then receive a "credit d'impôt" for one of the two countries, make sure you get in touch with a tax attorney or a tax expert.

ThePowerOfFuet5• 4 years ago

Are you in 75?

djmp2• 4 years ago

No in the south now, how come?

stop50• 4 years ago

Generally i would this: salary- taxes and insurance - average rent - transportation(fix costs+variable costs*1.3) Remt and taxes with imsurance are the biggest parts after that transportation will be a big part, because you have to plan to be onsite and for buying groceries. The rest you can spent how you want.

pfortuny• 4 years ago

Just revise your tax payments and social security.

In Spain: 33% goes (more or less) to SS and then 25% to income tax. I’d say at least ask for 1.5 times what you get minthly in the bank.

jstx1• 4 years ago

Ideally, they have a range for the position, you know the range before you even start the application and you're okay with it, and once you've done the interviews and you have a soft 'yes', you can discuss salaries and ask for a specific amount. Asking for an amount without knowing their range is a bad idea.

Kkoala• 4 years ago

It depends a lot on the company. Some might offer you U.S. salary, and some might lowball you "because salaries are lower in Europe". If they offer U.S. salary 100k/year sounds low, but of course it depends on your experience, the company, any other benefits/equity.

Also depends on what your own negotiation position is? Is this a job you absolutely need or want for some reason, or is it something you pass on?

For example you could try to check online if you can find any U.S. salary info for the company, and then add for example 20% to that and ask for that

pipiscrew2• 4 years ago

check

https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/

https://neilkakkar.com/salary-calculator-by-city.html

https://entryadvice.com/countries/

https://symbolhunt.com/

but for me don't go US.

n0n0n4t0r4• 4 years ago

Thank you for all this material. Could you please elaborate on why I shouldn't go US?

(I'm very suspicious and cautious, so I'm more or less on the verge to decline, but I'd like to have you opinion)

mensetmanusman2• 4 years ago

‘Don’t go US’ is as vague as ‘Don’t go EU’.

Both entities are broad and diverse with a huge range of life experience.

pipiscrew2• 4 years ago

hi, sorry for late reply, was busy. So, been on a place that requires VISA, makes you slave (vs country locals). Specially in US, the companies using their 'staff' 100%. You have 44 countries to choose in EU.

tluyben2• 4 years ago

You would be working as a freelancer right? Or will they use some agency to hire you? Freelance senior PHP dev would be 90-100/hr in the EU so 180k-200k. If it’s via an agency, you will need to do more calculations with social security and mandatory taxes in France.

n0n0n4t0r4• 4 years ago

They let me choose between freelancer and employee.

badpun3• 4 years ago

If you're above market in France it implies your skills are in demand. I'd say that makes the $100k ask on a low side. I've worked a bunch of US remote jobs from Poland and the lowest I got was $115k (and that was years ago, pre-inflation).

throwmenow_01402• 4 years ago

Can you explain how you got these well-paid remote jobs in the US for EU/German people and the process for the applications? I got 7 years of experience in developing with Python/Django, JavaScript/Vue/React (B2B platforms), I'm looking for $160-250k jobs in the US which seem to be on par with my current skillset (I led teams of 10-15 employees, built a B2B platform with hundreds of customers and running the infra on AWS).

badpun3• 4 years ago

Three of them were through HackerNews's "Who's hiring" thread actually and a fourth one was company's recruiter reaching out to me via LinkedIn.

dopidopHN2• 4 years ago

As a French dev, I divise US salary by two to get a a French equivalent.

If you are making 70k in France, absolutely don’t go under 6 figures in the US.

I would target 140 and asks for 150k.

My rationale is that when your French boss give you a sweat euro. He give 1 euro to the French gov as well for your unemployment / medical / retirement fund.

Also… empirically: it works.

rat9988• 4 years ago

Are you talking about 1 gross euro in france ?

credit_guy• 4 years ago

My rationale is that when your French boss give you a sweat euro. He give 1 euro to the French gov as well for your unemployment / medical / retirement fund.

And if you are a foreign company, you are exempt from this law? I find that hard to believe.

fy20• 4 years ago

In this case most likely OP will not be 'employed', they will be self employed and working through a business to business relationship with the US company. In that case they will need to pay their own social security contributions in France, where as if you are employed it is paid by the employer/comes out of your gross salary.

To be 'employed' the US company would need to setup a legal entity in France, and ensure they are compliant with all French labour laws, which doesn't really make sense for them to do for a single person.

dopidopHN2• 4 years ago

If a company do business legally in France and hire worker there, they will pay taxes in regards to labors laws

Those represent roughly the amount the employee gets ( net )

b200002• 4 years ago

x2 won’t be enough as you might be temporarily unemployed and that needs to be paid for as well

2rsf• 4 years ago

Something else to think about, from experience of a friend- if you are employed then the French vacation days, sick leave, notice period and other benefits will seem weird to problematic. If you are a contractor then you will "only" need to explain your vacation days.

b200002• 4 years ago

if you still live in france they will probably need to pay for french benefits and you have no “risks” since you are not moving

if you become self employed and work for them this way, you need to multiply your net salary in france by 3x so you can pay all taxes and build a safety cushion

I was proposed a remote job in the US. How to calculate the equivalent EU salary

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