Cyprus-Forum.com

[dizzyblonde]

We have just started the thought process for moving to Cyprus to live the rest or our lives in a more peaceful warmer climate. However, as we are only 44 years old need to work. Looking back over the forum it seems that employment may be difficult to obtain. Could anyone please advise on their experiences. How difficult is it compared to the UK to obtain employment ????

Lynne

[unique_earthling]

You can always find work but its the type of work and the wages. What skills can you offer? and of course if you cant speak Greek then again its limiting. You cant work in the civil service sectors, and when it comes to chosing an employee then the Cypriots will come first. So basically your left with the jobs the Cypriots wont do, or if your lucky and you have a high degree of skill they need then you may be in with a chance. You must remember you are a foreigner in someone elses country, a good idea is how easy is it for a russian who cant speak English to get a job in England.. Reality check...

[RichardB]

All of what unique earthling says is pretty much true.
If you have a high degree of skills in certain fields then decent employment is possible I know for example that quality chefs can earn upwards of £1000 pm which may not sound that great but when you consider the tax threshold is so much higher here than the UK (I think its 12k pa but I may be corrected) then its not so bad.
If you are going to come and live and work in Cyprus then it would be worthwhile in investing in a 'Learn Greek' course.

Other factors to consider are if you are going to have to pay rent, or are you going to buy outright? Rental and the price of property has escalated in the last few years. And I would put the cost of living on par with that in the UK. So if a chunk of your wages is going on rent / mortgage then it makes it that much harder.

All that said Cyprus is a wonderful place to live and work . Just make sure you do your homework before committing.

Best of luck