Everybody wants a better life for themselves and to achieve this, many have moved from their home countries to look for greener pastures elsewhere. If you are looking for an ideal expat destination where you can find new opportunities for development or just start a new life, then Belarus might be the place for you. One of the most important things to consider when moving to another country is how and where to find and a job, as well as the salaries, offered. Understanding salaries is also important for those who want to do business in Belarus in order to hire and retain the best talent.
So, how much can one expect to get paid to work in Belarus? Well, the average gross salary is 2,930 BYN ($1,236) monthly or 35,200 BYN ($14,850) per year for salaried jobs and 17 BYN ($7.17) per hour for those working hourly jobs. In individual’s pay will, however, vary depending on a number of factors that I will discuss later.
Read Also: Average Salary in Ecuador
This landlocked country in Eastern Europe is the ideal place for a quiet life without all the noises and traffic jams of megacities. You will fall in love with its picturesque nature and appreciate the comfortable prices for everything. The economy in Belarus is improving, which is evidenced by the growing number of industries and businesses. There are many economic opportunities for expats so long as you have the required paperwork, qualifications, and skills. This article presents all the necessary information to help those who have chosen Belarus as their home and place of work. Without further ado, let’s get started:
Average Salary in Belarus
We’ve already seen what a person working in Belarus will typically earn per year/month/hour. Those figures are, however, just guidelines as they don’t reflect the true amount you will earn as an individual. Salaries in Belarus range from a minimum average of $3,763.03 to a maximum average of $66,381. The actual minimum salary is lower while the actual maximum is higher. The median salary, which groups the working population in two, is about $13,995 a year. Closely related to the median value are the percentiles. Only 25% of the top earners make more than $37,800 a year while 25% of the bottom earners make less than $7,991 a year.
Read Also: Average Salary in California?
Factors affecting salaries in Belarus
People working in Belarus will get different salaries depending on a number of things, including:
Occupation
This is the biggest salary determinant as there are countless types of jobs that one can do in this country. Here’s a look at some of the jobs offered in Belarus, along with their average annual gross salaries:
- Accountant – 25,100 BYN ($10,588)
- Internal auditor – 33,000 BYN ($13,922)
- Financial manager – 70,600 BYN ($29,784)
- Receptionist – 13,600 BYN ($5,737)
- Office manager – 30,400 BYN ($12,825)
- Graphic designer – 23,400 BYN ($9,872)
- Aerospace Engineer – 45,400 BYN ($19,153)
- Pilot – 59,000 BYN ($24,890)
- Teacher – 27,700 BYN ($11,685)
- Nanny – 14,400 BYN ($6,075)
- Customer service representative – 13,400 BYN ($5,653)
- Project manager – 39,300 BYN ($16,580)
- Architect – 41,900 BYN ($17,676)
- Engineer – 32,700 BYN ($13,795)
- CEO – 83,400 BYN ($35,184)
- General Manager – 61,100 BYN ($25,776)
- Waitstaff – 11,200 BYN ($4,725)
- Travel agent – 22,000 BYN ($9,281)
- Hotel manager – 61,600 BYN ($25,987)
- Lab technician – 26,200 BYN ($11,053)
- Dentist – 88,100 BYN ($37,166)
- Police officer – 22,200 BYN ($9,365)
- Legal assistant – 19,500 BYN ($8,226)
- Attorney – 70,900 BYN ($29,910)
Location
Different regions experience different levels of economic growth and have varying living costs. It only makes sense that the salaries being offered correspond with the cost of living, which is why the cities of Minsk, Mogilev, and Vitebsk offer some of the highest salaries in the country at an average gross of $16,912, $16,490, and $16,025 a year, respectively. Salaries in large urban areas are generally higher than for similar positions in rural locations.
Read Also: Average Salary in Australia
Level of education
Higher education naturally equals bigger pay with Bachelor’s degree holders earning about 24% more than those with a certificate or diploma. PhD holders earn the highest at 23% more than Master’s degree holders doing the same job.
Working experience
More years typically result in higher pay. For instance, those with 2-5 years of working experience will earn about 32% more than freshers across all disciplines and industries. Once you hit the 10-years experience mark, your salary is likely to be double your starting salary.
Gender
Though this should not affect pay, the truth is it does. Male employees in Belarus make 9% more than their female counterparts.
Read Also: Average Salary in Bangladesh
Taxes
Since all of the above figures are gross salaries, your take-home pay will obviously be lower after deductions have been made. One of the most compulsory deductions is tax. Unlike other countries whose tax rates depend on the amount of income (progressive or flat income tax scale), the income tax rates used in Belarus depend on the source of income and other circumstances: Some of the income tax rates currently being used are:
- 16% on income from activities of entrepreneurs, lawyers, and notaries
- 6% is charged on income received as dividends
- 9% on income from workers and business owners in the High-Tech Park
- 4% on winnings received from legally operating casinos, lotteries, and bookmakers.
- 13% -the basic rate for individuals on all other incomes
Ukraine Average Salary
Ukraine is another great expat destination in Eastern Europe. It is experiencing a growth in many of its sectors, including mining, generation of power, gas and chemical industry, manufacturing, construction, as well as IT. This guarantees great job prospects to locals and expats alike. But before booking a one-way ticket to Ukraine, it’s important to know if you can afford to live in it. This means understanding the salaries offered against the cost of living.
Read Also: Average Salary in Edmonton, Alberta
A person working in Ukraine typically earns from $2,630 (average minimum gross salary/year) to $46,418 (average maximum gross salary/year). This means that the actual minimum and maximum is lower and higher than these amounts, respectively. The average gross salary is $868/month, 10,415/year, or $4.91 an hour. The median salary, which determines what half of the population earns, is $9,585/year.
While looking at the average figures is usually a good way to judge a country’s salaries, it does not reflect what every single individual earns. Like everywhere else, salaries in Ukraine differ drastically between jobs. Highly skilled jobs naturally pay way more than unskilled jobs. For instance, the average annual gross salary of an engineer is $10,265 while that of the waitstaff is $3,302. There’s also an enormous regional difference in income. The cities of Kyiv and Lviv offer the highest salaries in the country.
Looking at these figures, it may come as surprise to many of how low the salaries in Ukraine are. But this country is much cheaper than any Western country. If you earn above the average and median salaries, you can be assured of a pretty good lifestyle.
Common Jobs in Belarus
Belarus is recovering well from the financial crisis. The economy is growing and the labour market is once again becoming attractive for foreigners.
This has resulted in a shortage of workers across the country. The demand for blue-collar jobs is the highest at about 65% of the total vacancies in Belarus. The most in-demand occupations in this sector are drivers, sellers, cooks, cleaners, movers, road workers, builders, carpenters, painters, and plasterers.
Read Also: What Is The Average Salary in Atlanta?
Belarus also lacks people in the medical field, including doctors and nurses, with over 3,000 available vacancies to fill.
The demand for English teachers is also on the rise as locals aspire to learn the language that is widely spoken across the globe. These positions are mostly open to native English speakers with a TEFL certification. There are a number of agencies that provide English teachers to Belarusian schools; they are worth considering if you are a teacher by profession.
Cost Of Living in Belarus
The cost of living in this country is relatively low than in most European countries. You’ll find housing, transport, health care, and all the main expenses much cheaper here.
Belarusians and Russians are the only ones allowed to own property in this country so foreigners are usually left with the option of renting. Rental costs vary depending on the city and how far from the city centre you live in. Generally, a one-bedroom apartment averages at $330/month in the city centres and $225/month in the suburbs. A three-bedroom apartment averages at $565 and $377/month, respectively. With housing come utility bills. The average cost for basic utilities for an 85m2 apartment is $53/month.
The next logical expense to think about is food. Here’s a list of common food items, along with their prices in Belarus:
- A litre of regular milk – $0.71
- 1kg of rice – $1.06
- A loaf of bread – $0.57
- 1kg of chicken fillets – $3.58
- A dozen eggs – $1.21
- 1kg of local cheese – $5.99
- Tomatoes (1kg) – $1.89
- Onions (1kg) – $0.58
- Apples (1kg) – $1.10
- A meal in a cheap restaurant – $8.46
- A combo meal at a fast-food joint – $4.61
Transportation
The transport system here is good, modern, cheap, and there’s not much traffic. Gasoline will cost you about $0.75/litre. A one-way ticket on local transport averages at $0.29 while a monthly travel pass is about $15.
