Thoughts on a 10M salary in Semicon in Nagoya

[melsako]

@passiflora Both your local preschools and the international school will offer tours for prospective parents. You can always wait until you arrive and then visit to get a feel for each place before making a decision.

 

[alertandawake]

@passiflora I’ve lived in Japan for 9 years. 10m in Nagoya is really good. Probably in the top 5% of earners in the city there.

 

[passiflora]

@alertandawake Ok. Thanks for putting it into perspective. Salaries seem to be a bit on the low side in Japan.

 

[sea_echols]

@passiflora They are. I’m in finance so that’s what I know about, but someone working for a top firm here can be easily making less than someone working for a very average firm in Europe. Until you start getting into the 10s of millions range, you may have much lower tax rates though, which would balance off the discrepancy a little bit, but you’re not going to get costal United States income no matter how you spin it.

 

[kerrie147]

@passiflora Yeah, the average pay in Japan is quite low compared to other wealthy countries. The cost of living is also lower though.
It all depends on your life goals and interests but you should have enough money to live pretty comfortably.

 

[alertandawake]

@passiflora Yes comparatively to Europe and the US the salaries are much lower in Japan. But cost of living in Nagoya is low so it balances out

 

[passiflora]

@alertandawake Ok good to hear Nagoya is affordable.

 

[lifeabundant]

@passiflora What's the housing allowance like in year 3?
With that level of salary (not considering the international school) you should be conformable with any amount of housing allowance.

I reckon gaishi semicon would be a good company going forward especially with their countrymen/no Japanese skills/experienced.

 

[passiflora]

@lifeabundant Year 3 is 0 yen, unfortunately

 

[passiflora]

@lifeabundant Gaishi semicon, I googled it, but do they have a careers page?

 

[daddylopez1963]

@passiflora Gaishi means foreign non domestic company.

 

[passiflora]

@daddylopez1963 I see, usually the job postings are in Japanese, even with companies, such as Micron.

 

[toni123]

@passiflora Obviously I'm biased as I chose to be in Japan, and your calculus will need to be your own. That said, you're now at the top chip imaging company on Earth, and that's why you're getting a job in Japan despite not knowing Japanese. Depending on your skillset ( there's a lot of variance in your industry,) you may be able to negotiate better compensation. I expect that the low level layout, imaging, and lithography will be most valuable,but that also depends on the company hiring you.

Good Luck!

 

[passiflora]

@toni123 Sounds like you are also in semicon? The fun part is I’m not that familiar with the older systems, coming from ASML Veldhoven we usually deal with the newer upgraded versions. The systems in the customer fabs have been running for years and have a lot of older technology that I also have to familiarize myself with.

 

[toni123]

@passiflora I'm in tech but not in hardware side, but I have friends in that field. Dealing with older systems might drive you nuts, but I guarantee you'll get a life experience you won't find in the NL. You could always go back if you get sick of it.

There's a lot of investment in chip design and manufacturing in Japan right now. I expect you've got some room to negotiate salary if you can play up the advancements you can bring to the current processes in Japan.

 

[passiflora]

@toni123 Ok. Yeah it will be a steep learning curve with the old systems. Yes, I also see the benefits of this opportunity in the long term. I’m thinking of keeping my apartment in NL, just in case it doesn’t work out well.

 

[rocketsquirrell]

@passiflora One thing to consider in an expat package is moving fees and annual travel allocation to go back to your home country to see your family during the year. You could at least try to negotiate that if they're not willing to pay for international school.

 

[passiflora]

@rocketsquirrell There is home leave and moving fees in the relocation package. I’m only limited with around 20 paid holidays in the NL I have 40 days.

 

[oralia]

@passiflora Taking into account the fact that you're still quite young and your lack of Japanese, I'd say that it's a pretty decent salary.

If I was you I would take it without thinking much about it. That salary will allow you to live comfortably, and more importantly, learn Japanese during your time here. Once you're able to do business in Japanese you will be MUCH more valuable, and you will be able to either negotiate a higher pay, or move to another company that will give you better compensation.

 

[passiflora]

@oralia Ok. Learning the language will take a couple of years I’m afraid