Networking for jobs

Kiwi13

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 3:35 am

We’re only a few weeks away from Aliyah. What’s the best way to network for jobs? We’ll be in Kochav Yaakov, willing to commute reasonable distances for the right jobs (prefer hybrid schedule if it’s a very long commute), limited Hebrew (for now).

My husband is a certified paralegal. He also has a general bachelors degree (no major). He has 10+ years of experience, primarily in the real estate/foreclosure field. He has in-depth knowledge of tax lien, mortgage, and estates foreclosures. He currently works in the research department for a company that services escrow accounts on behalf of lenders. He has title experience and is fast and accurate in preparing legal documents (a judge once commented to his employer that when he receives a document from them and my husband’s name is on it, he knows it’ll be perfect.) (In his line of work, ANY mistakes mean the document is sent back for revision). His previous and current jobs involved a lot of office management type work - making and keeping law firms and business departments running at max efficiency (think six sigma type of strategies). Highly dependable, gets work done quickly and accurately. Manages multiple high-priority deadlines with ease and grace. Team player who has often been known to carry his team and share the success (I can provide examples of this, but it’ll make this post too long lol!) Legit, any company who is fortunate enough to hire him will be grateful they did. He’s an employer’s dream, and he’s willing to switch fields/industries (plenty of skills overlap settings). Available to start end of July/early August. Willing to work US and/or Israel hours.

I work in writing/editing. My primary income until recently (I put everything on hold after my seizure in February) is freelancing. I found great success on Fiverr.com, BH, but for multiple reasons it’s not financially feasible to continue after Aliyah (taxes, location searches, etc.). I took an online class in API documentation and would love to branch into technical writing. I probably won’t start working right away when we first get to Israel, but I want to start the networking process. I’m not great at putting myself out there and “selling myself.” I can say with full integrity that I’m a very good writer and I produce top quality work with fast turnaround times. Previous clients (individuals, businesses, publishers) have been pleased with my work, and I’ve had the honor of publishers actually approaching ME with book and other project requests. I’m open to new ideas, so if you have ideas even kinda-sorta related to any of this, let me know! I’ll probably be looking for part time or per diem work. The lighter the schedule, the sooner I’ll be ready to start. ;-)

Oh, I also have a masters’ degree in mental health counseling, with a whole bunch of additional training modules under my belt. I never got my license (yet), and right now I don’t have plans to, but I love the field and would be very happy in a job that combines counseling and writing. For example, developing treatment programs and writing handbooks, or doing paperwork (in English) for counseling centers (I actually used to love the paperwork part of the job when I was an intern!). I don’t know… anything, really. I’m flexible. I want to work with good people in a good environment. The rest could be anything (therapy center, bank, school, publishing house…)

I know about LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and Facebook groups, but if there are specific groups you know about, please share? Any and all jobs leads welcome. You can PM me if that’s better for you.

Thanks!

Kiwi13

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 11:36 am

amother [ Yolk ] wrote:

I wouldn't give up on the freelancing so quickly
There is a way to have income in $ legally.
You open an independent contractor account with an accountant and up 100,000 nis a year you don't need to pay any tax.

If you want a "real job" in editing I know someone who worked for mishpacha for a bit in order to make the connections that allow her to freelance edit. I think I saw an ad recently and they where looking for editor's....

Thanks for this. Can I do that even while working through Fiverr? If so, that’s the obvious choice, assuming I can overcome location bias. If I have to list my location as Israel, it gets tricky. Most clients wanting (and willing to pay for) high quality English writing/editing search for sellers in the US/UK/other English speaking country. If I can leave everything as-is, then there’s no need to look elsewhere for work. BH there’s been no shortage of demand when my account is fully active, and it’s much higher paying than any publisher/magazine work I’ve ever heard of. My account has been passive for a very long time though. It might take a bunch of time to reclaim my spot in Fiverr’s analytics. :-/

amother

Yolk

Tue, Jun 28 2022, 1:09 pm

Kiwi13 wrote:

I don't know enough about Fiverr but I wonder if you can keep the address as it currently (USA) so you show up when people search for editors but have your description state that you where born, bred and educated in the United States and are currently residing in Israel for transparency's sake and to explain time zones....

amother

Vermilion

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 12:45 pm

amother [ Yolk ] wrote:

Yes but you need to file US taxes and pay social security, and even though you don't pay ma'am (VAT) up to 100,000 a year, you still may have to pay income tax and you will almost certainly need to pay Bituach Leumi. And if you add Bituach Leumi to social security, it adds up to a very nice percentage of your salary.

amother

Yolk

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 1:10 pm

amother [ Vermilion ] wrote:

Up to 100,000 nis a year you don't need to pay mas hachnasa.
Bituach Leumi you need to pay regardless, even if you don't work at all - if you are a sachir they take a percentage of your salary and put it into bituach leumi - although I think Olim get certain benefits with this.
You need to file US taxes and socail security on all Israeli income (thanks Obama) regardless. I know people who have been giving up US citizenship for this reason
I don't think that if you already have built yourself up you should abandon it so quickly, if its something you enjoy and you already have experience finding work it can be worthwhile.
Here is a site in hebrew that explains lots of the rights of freelancers, I will search for English
https://www.kolzchut.org.il/he.....D7%A8

amother

Vermilion

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 3:52 pm

amother [ Yolk ] wrote:

100,000 a year is the line between osek patur and osek murshe and certain fields aren't allowed to be patur anyways, and have to be murshe from the first shekel.
BTL you pay 150 NIS a month if you are unemployed but if you are self-employed you pay the employer's share AND the employee's share (you have no one to split it with) and it adds up much faster. Look at these percentages - if you have to add social security (not Obama's fault btw, this was there long before his time) then it adds up quite quickly. BTW if you are an employee of an Israeli company you don't need to pay social security on that income. You do need to file though.
https://www.btl.gov.il/Insuran......aspx

You are mixing mas hachnasa (regular income tax) and ma'am (VAT). Mas hachnasa applies to any income (passive, self-employed, salaried, whatever) and whether / how much you pay depends on how many points you have and how much income you earn. Ma'am you only pay (and charge) if you are an osek murshe, earning over 100k a year.

If Kiwi's husband has built himself up and can continue his work from abroad then for sure he should keep his clients. But from her post it doesn't seem like this would necessarily be possible, it seems that he would be looking to get relicensed/ recognized and finding a new client base. And in that case all the hassle may not be worth it.

Who cannot be an osek patur and must be murshe from the first shekel? A whole list of professionals:
א. בעל מקצוע חופשי שהוא :
אגרונום, אדריכל, הנדסאי, חוקר פרטי, טוען רבני, טכנאי, טכנאי-שיניים, יועץ לארגון, יועץ לניהול, יועץ מדעי, יועץ מס, כלכלן, מהנדס, מודד, מנהל חשבונות, מתורגמן, סוכן ביטוח, עורך-דין, רואה חשבון או שמאי, בעל מעבדה כימית או רפואית, וכן עוסקים שעיסוקם מתן שירותים מהסוגים המפורטים בתקנה 6א לתקנות מס ערך מוסף ולגבי אותם שירותים בלבד.
ב. רופא, לרבות פסיכולוג, פיזיותרפיסט, רופא וטרינר, רופא שיניים או מרפא שיניים
ג. בעל בית ספר לנהיגה,
ד. בעל בית ספר לרבות גן ילדים, שבו לומדים או מתחנכים תלמידים באופן שיטתי ושאיננו מלכ"ר וכן בית ספר שבו ניתנת
הדרכה מקצועית, עיונית או מעשית, לרבות הדרכה לאמנויות ולספורט, לקבוצות שבכל אחת מהן לא פחות מחמישה תלמידים, להוציא הדרכה מקרית של לא יותר משלושים ימי הדרכה בכל קבוצות התלמידים אשר הופעלו באותה שנת מס
ה. סוחר מקרקעין או מתווך מקרקעין.
ו. סוחר רכב מתווך רכב, מסחר ברכב
ז. חברה הרשומה כדין לפי פקודת החברות.
ח.אגודה שיתופית הרשומה כדין לפי פקודת האגודות השיתופיות.
https://www.xn--7dbdbjvz.co.il.....D7%9D

Kiwi13

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 9:32 pm

Yikes this got complicated. The only tax complications I even knew to anticipate were income taxes!

Under a certain amount per year, most people are eligible to waive US income taxes on work in Israel post-Aliyah for the first 10 years. But that doesn’t apply to self-employment. Some people are able to set up a payroll for their business and make themselves an employee, and officially not be self-employed for tax purposes. But in my case, since I run the majority of my business through Fiverr, it’s more complicated, if not impossible. Right now I’m not in a position to rework the Fiverr aspect, at least not with what I know now. (If you have info that could help, please do share!)

* Fiverr takes 20% of my earnings as commission

* US taxes self-employment starting at 27.3%

* Israel, I believe, taxes 15.3%, which I would need to pay on top of the US tax.

Then there are bank transfer fees and other issues involved in needing to keep my business running as a US-based business. I’ve crunched variations of this scenario a gazillion times and can’t find a way that it makes sense to continue.

Banana123, thanks for your message. I haven’t had time to think today, let alone read anything carefully enough to reply. Bli neder tomorrow!

amother

Buttercup

Wed, Jun 29 2022, 11:32 pm

Kiwi13 wrote:

This is mostly correct! Working for Fiverr won’t be enough to live here.

Make sure you come with savings and breath a lot. The beginning is very, very hard. We’re coming to the end of our first year b”h and we’re so happy that we have this unique opportunity. Remember that you’re the fulfillment of nevuah with your move!

Tell everyone you meet that your job searching and ask if they know anyone. Contact everyone and ask for more contacts. It feels weird but keep going. Use LinkedIn and learn Hebrew ASAP. I’m very thankful that my unique job niche made me valuable even without Hebrew. The job finding part and lower salaries sends many olim back. If either of you can leverage your skills in hi-tech, that’s where you’ll be paid the most. And don’t hesitate to ask those of us here anything!