Life Matters

Brain dump. For me, mostly.

* The whole tax business in El Salvador is pretty funny to me. To start, we have a sidewalk tax. It's about $3.95 a year, and (I think) it means that you are allowed to use the sidewalk for the next 12 months. Then, when April comes around, you have to go in person to turn in your income tax forms. They don't accept it by mail or by internet. (But they do accept other people turning it in on your behalf. Strange.) And then, about 6 months later, you go pick up your refund -- in cash!! -- at any branch of Banco Agricola. At that point, the bank teller will tell you that they cannot issue you a check. So, if you're like me, you lug hundreds of dollars in cash while walking back from the bank -- an extra exciting experience in this country. It's strangeness all around.

* New York State Department of Ed is also pretty funny. A while ago, I was trying to get a duplicate copy of my teaching certificate, for job-searching purposes and also in case my current school gets audited. I went online, logged into the TEACH system, paid my $25 dollars, and then only afterwards saw a fine print somewhere on a totally separate FAQ page that they have, in fact, stopped the service of printing paper certificates for "time-limited teaching certificates!" In fact, they have completely eliminated the job of the person who used to print the paper certificates! Well, at this point, my options were to A.) pay another 50 bucks to upgrade my certification, still 3 years before the current one is going to expire, or B.) forget the paper copy. My potential employers and the Salvadorean Ministry of Education are going to just have to make do with my print-screen version of the "teaching certificate."

I was pretty mad (and almost equally amused). But, I am pretty stingy as well, so I decided to wait it out. --What do you know? Two or three weeks later, I get my duplicate certificate in the mail. :)

* I am about 85% sure I will be going to London in January for a job fair. I was waiting for days on a confirmation from my recruiters that my application and recommendations and payment all checked out, before I made travel arrangements. I had to follow up with them, because I noticed that the airfare had dropped $140 over the weekend (from $1100 to about $950). So, finally, I heard back from them this morning, and I rushed to log in to Kayak to buy the tickets. --Guess what? They're back up to $1100. And that's not including paying the recruiters, or hotel or food. So, that's all very expensive, and I'm back to being in a limbo about whether this is the right move. There is a good chance I won't get a job at this fair (for various reasons, timing and my lack of IB experience being the key ones), but if I don't go, I know I will regret it when I am stuck still looking for a job in April........

* Incredibly (as though I don't already have enough to do in the middle of job-searching and preparing kids for midterms), I am also working on applying to a summer program. I've already written my personal statement, put in orders for my transcripts (both undergrad and grad), and given the recommendation forms to my supervisors. I am feeling like this is not going to all pan out, but I feel OK about it. In case you can't tell, I am practicing being more of a go-getter, and my backup plan for the summer is to go to Herrang (in Sweden) during their month-long swing dance camp, and to dance until my legs break into pieces.

So, that's it. All of the things floating around in my head!

Erratum on Taxing and Social Security

The school gave us new international hires a talk on money today, amongst other things. Some of the info I had previously gathered about the social security system wasn't entirely correct, so here is the updated version (Sorry!):

In El Salvador, there is really a three-tiered health care system. The top tier is private healthcare, which only the wealthy locals and the international residents can afford. The middle tier is what is called the Social Security, in which all workers who pay taxes take part. The bottom tier of health care applies to those who make little to no money, ie. the kids who come around to sell you necklaces at the beach. Those "workers" are not covered by the Social Security, because they do not report taxes on their cash income. Maids, who make anywhere between $8 and $12 a day, also fall into this third category, since they typically do not report their earnings.

Deducted from our monthly salary are three things: Salvadorean income tax, Salvadorean Social Security tax, and the Salvadorean pension. The only part that you get back at the end of your service is the pension -- and there is no guarantee on that money, since the newly elected government could opt to pass laws to forbid foreigners from taking that money back. The rest goes to the communal fund, whether for healthcare or otherwise.

Just thought I'd clear that up, in case anyone was curious. I am sure I will continue to learn many things about the tax process as we move along... :)

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Also good information to know, speaking of money: Even though El Salvador has a dollarized currency...

1. Regular checks written from local banks are not redeemable in the States.
2. You have to purchase a "draft" check in order to redeem it in the States.
3. Checks written from U.S. banks are redeemable here, but they do take about a month to clear.

Just the way it is. Doing everything takes some time down here, even though most things can be done...