There’s lots to consider before making aliyah – where to live, schools for your children, learning Hebrew, and, of course, employment. Although many people quit their job and look for work or open a business once they get to Israel, an increasing number of olim are continuing to work remotely for the company they are already employed by.
Advantages of keeping your US job after aliyah
The main advantage of keeping your US job after aliyah is that you don’t have to look for a new one while you’re making many other adjustments in your life. With all the changes you have to look forward to (both the awesome and the challenging), knowing you have an income right off the bat at a job you know and like can really make a difference. You don’t have to look for and maintain a job in a different language and in a different culture, making for a smoother transition to life in Israel.
If you’ve always wanted to work from home but never had the opportunity, you are likely to love the flexibility of working from home. And if you were already working remotely, the transition to working from another country will not be such a big leap.
In case your Hebrew isn’t fluent, remote work for a US company has the advantage of not requiring you to learn Hebrew quickly. Although there are many jobs in Israel which are mostly in English, it’s hard to find one where no Hebrew is required at all. Even if correspondence and meetings are in English, lunch break and water cooler conversations are probably going to be in Hebrew. Staying in your English-speaking work environment is just easier, especially at the beginning.
Depending on your current salary, continuing at your job may be a big advantage. Check average salaries in your industry in Israel and compare with what you are making now. You may find that it is an economically sound decision to keep your US job.
Disadvantages of keeping your US job after aliyah
Working remotely for a US company isn’t for everyone. If your job requires you to work American hours, this may impede your family and social life, since you’ll be unavailable in the evenings. It will also be harder to integrate into Israeli society if you are working when other people are getting together. (Bear in mind that some Israeli jobs for English speakers will also require American hours, so this issue isn’t exclusive to remote work.) Plus, you won’t make friends with Israelis at work or improve your Hebrew naturally just by being surrounded by Hebrew-speakers all day.
You may also not be the type of person who works well from a home office. If you thrive in a busy office environment and need structure to keep you on top of tasks, you may find you are lonely and less productive working remotely.
Once you begin working remotely, there might be changes in your relationship with co-workers. When you were in the office regularly, you had a rapport with them and picked up information naturally, but now people need to remember to cc you on important emails, include you virtually in meetings (or update you afterwards) and trust that you are completing your tasks and working the required hours.
Convincing your company to keep you on
If you’ve decided that you would like to work remotely for your current employer, the next step is to convince them that this is a good idea. Here are some arguments you can make for keeping you on:
- Demonstrate your value to the company. If they don’t want to lose you, they will be much more willing to consider remote work.
- Are there other employees in the company working remotely? Use them as an example of how this arrangement can be successful. If there are some aspects that could use improvement, be prepared with answers on how you will avoid those pitfalls.
- If you previously worked remotely (say, during Covid) or occasionally work from home, show how this has not negatively affected your productivity.
- Demonstrate how the company can benefit from having someone working when others are asleep. Maybe you can take over customer support during the daytime in Israel or be on call for emergencies at times when others would rather not have to be.
How it works
When you work in Israel, you are liable for Israeli income tax, but unless your company has an office in Israel, they do not have a tax file and can’t issue you an Israeli pay stub or withhold taxes and other required payments.
You can solve this in one of two ways.
The first option is to become a freelancer (1099 worker) for the company which previously employed you. Then you register as a freelancer in Israel, send an invoice every month to the US company and report income to the Israeli government as a self-employed person. Most people do this by hiring an accountant for bi-monthly and annual reporting, an expense you need to consider when calculating your take-home pay.
As a registered freelancer and a US citizen, you will also have to pay 15% into US Social Security, so take that into account as well.
The other option is to become an employee of an Employer of Record service like Route 38. In this scenario, the EOR service invoices the company you work for. The company pays the EOR and then you are paid by the EOR with an Israeli pay stub and all deductions withheld. You don’t need to hire an accountant and you are not required to pay US Social Security. There is a registration and termination fee as well as a monthly fee, which can be paid directly by the company.
Signing up with an EOR is a process that can be started before aliyah, so that you can begin working as soon as you are settled in Israel and ready to get back to regular employment.