How to get a job as an expat in India
India boasts one of the biggest and fastest-growing economies on the planet, so it’s a prime destination for anyone who has a dream of living and working abroad as an expat.
What can you expect when preparing to move to India to work there? The short guide below will help you get started by covering:
Cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru may provide you with the opportunities that you seek if you’re hoping to experience all that this country has to offer while making a comfortable living.
What kinds of jobs are available in India?
A variety of opportunities await in India, as the demand for talented workers is high because of the economy’s growth. And the best part is that English is the main business language in the country.
Here are some of the industries that you can explore as an expat:
- IT
- Engineering
- Tourism
- Banking
- Manufacturing
- Sales
- Marketing
- Pharmaceuticals
- Financial services
- Automotive
How to find work as an expat in India
When you’re ready to start the job hunting process, there are a few paths that you can take to find the ideal work opportunity in India:
- Networking is a great strategy that you can implement if you’re hoping to get a job in India as an expat. Having the right connections might help you land a job more quickly and easily than you would on your own.
- If you’re currently employed, and your employer has offices in India, that might also be an easy way to make your way to India. Through a transfer within the company that you’re already working for, you might be able to make your dream of living in India a reality before you know it.
- Signing up with a well-known and established recruitment agency is another wise way to get valuable support during your international job hunt.
- Have some specific companies in mind that you’d love to work for? Are they located in India? Check their websites to keep track of job opportunities abroad.
- Job portals and other online resources can provide helpful access to job openings that you can apply to whenever you’re ready.
What are the requirements to work in India?
Anyone who is planning on working in India will need to apply for an employment visa, along with a work permit. If you have employment already lined up in India, your employer might be able to help you get the right paperwork filed on time.
To be eligible for an Indian employment visa, you might have to prove that you comply with at least one of the following:
- you’re a remunerated consultant
- you’ve been hired by a multinational company with a branch in India, or an Indian business
- you’re an artist who participates in events regularly
- you’re a foreign language teacher
- you’re an interpreter
- you’re involved in an NGO
- you’re in a senior management position within an international business
- you’ve been hired by a foreign company in India to work on a project
- you’re a coach, sportsman, or trainer
- you’re an air pilot
The application process
Filling out the application shouldn’t be complicated:
- You might be able to fill out the application for your visa online before printing it out and taking it to the Indian consulate or embassy in your area.
- Don’t forget to determine how long your visa will be valid for. That way, you’ll know when you’ll need to renew it if you’re planning on working in India longer.
- The fee for your employment visa will vary, depending on the country that you’re coming from. It might also depend on the length of the visa’s duration.
Additional documentation
Along with your visa application, you will need to provide other documentation that might be based on the type of work that you plan to do in India, as well as the country that you’re coming from.
Those documents might include:
- a valid passport
- photos of yourself
- a company letter
- your resume
- copies of diplomas and other documents that prove your skills
- a copy of your employment contract
- an information form
How to send earnings abroad when working in India
Once you’re living and working in India, taking in all of the rich culture and experiences that this unique country has to offer, you’ll quickly figure out how to budget each month to pay for your living expenses.
However, you might also decide that you wish to send some of your earnings back home, putting it into a bank account for future use or to earn interest, for example. Or, you might want to send money home to support family.
Regardless of your reasons for wanting to send money home while working in India, using an international money transfer service like OFX can help you save money that you’d otherwise spend on expensive bank fees and margins.
In addition to using OFX to make swift, secure, and affordable money transfers, you can also tap into its myriad resources. For example, you can receive market rate alerts via email, and you can review currency charts for the Indian rupee and your home currency.
India: a country filled with opportunities for expats!
Overall, India is a fabulous choice if you’re thinking about moving to a new country, starting a new life, and working in an environment that will allow you to advance your skills.
When you aren’t working, you can tour some of the most famous places in the world, eat authentic Indian cuisine, and dive into the traditions celebrated by the locals.
With so many ways to make memories, while enjoying what you do every day, it’s no wonder that India has become such a popular choice for expats.
Sending money from Australia to India?
Check out the Indian rupee (INR) exchange rates and see how much you could save when you use OFX.Learn More
IMPORTANT: The contents of this blog do not constitute financial advice and are provided for general information purposes only without taking into account the investment objectives, financial situation and particular needs of any particular person. UKForex Limited (trading as “OFX”) and its affiliates make no recommendation as to the merits of any financial strategy or product referred to in the blog. OFX makes no warranty, express or implied, concerning the suitability, completeness, quality or exactness of the information and models provided in this blog.
