[vishnurp99]

Originally Posted by prasha7

I'm a software developer with six years of professional experience, with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs. Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD.

75 Lakhs in India is comparable to 300-500K USD in the US depending on which city that you are talking about. Unless you are working in a fully remote job for a direct US employer out of India where you have to work late evening/nights, i don't see a reason for you to take the job at 115K USD but that's just an opinion .

Best of luck on your decision.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by prasha7

I'm a software developer with six years of professional experience, with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs. Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD. While the precise location within the US is yet to be determined, indications point towards either California or Texas.

Short answer - no. That would have been a good salary back in 2016 - 17. Currently a friend is moving to NJ on a L1 visa (WITCH firm) with $180k+ salary. Also 75L INR in India is equivalent to $250k (at the minimum) in the US; in terms of spending power (ballpark figure).

Long answer - it depends on what you plan to do; and what an overseas stint can do good for your career growth. Also if you think it'll be easy to switch jobs with your skills, then yes; you could consider it. But remember, it's a tough market currently overseas with a lot of IT firms focusing on managing their headcounts. You should be able to find a better salary for sure but it might take time. As a bachelor, you can survive quite decently on a $120k; but nothing equivalent to what 75L would get you in India.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by prasha7

Greetings BHPians,

I'm a software developer with six years of professional experience, with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs. Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD. While the precise location within the US is yet to be determined, indications point towards either California or Texas.

I agree to what everyone else is saying, $115k is nowhere equal to 75L in India. In 2014 a friend was transferred from US to Bangalore at the same position in an IT company. In the US he made $125k in Ohio and in Bangalore he was paid somewhere around 15-16L.

Also there is a huge cost of living difference(and taxes) between Bay Area in California(and NYC) and in Texas. Some studies say earning $100k in high cost locations like NYC and Bay Are is like earning $36k in low cost areas:

https://www.businessinsider.com/maki...ike-36k-2023-3


But for more exposure in life, better career prospects and travel it might be worth it for a short term.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by prasha7

Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD.

Is this $115k on the job offer, or $115k offered to you? There is a difference, that may be in fineprint.

I will not sugarcoat this, jobs via consultancy firms are the worst. Ask anyone.

A few friends worked in the US through consultancy firms, and here are some pitfalls through their experiences:

1) You have to sign a multi-year bond, which to break, you have to pay a hefty penalty (often a six figure amount)

2) You will remain at their mercy for visa extension, or your US stay itself. When you are directly employed, companies will take hiring/firing decisions very carefully, considering the legal fallout. But consultancy firms have little to no regard

3) Multiple friends who were employed through consultancies at top-tier software firms in the Bay Area found out just how poorly they were paid, from their manager (company). Eg. the company might be paying the consultancy $120k-150k for a role, while the employee actually gets paid 60k-90k. No, I am not exaggerating

4) Restrictions on which companies you can get directly hired at, post completion of the bond

5) Legal point-of-view: technically, H1B visas have a set of criteria to be fulfilled for legal employment, and you will often find consultancy firms circumventing them, or downright disobeying them

6) You will always live under uncertainty: companies might cancel the contract with the consultancy, roles might get redundant, you might be asked to move locations, you might do shadow work (illegal).. the list is endless.

Wanted to get a view from everyone here that should I move to US, I can switch companies after few months and earnings would be increased

See point above. Forget switching, if you're taking this route.

While the precise location within the US is yet to be determined, indications point towards either California or Texas.

with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs.

If you're actually earning $115k, you might just have a decent life in Texas. But if it's in California, you'll have a very miserable life. (PS: I lived/worked in California at some point of time).

If you're earning 75 lakhs in India, and move to the US to earn $115k... an analogy could be: moving from an S-class to an SCross, an SPresso if California. No offence meant to anyone. I just want you to process the disparity in paycheck.

And I've not even begun talking about the non-financial aspect of this move. This thread has that covered multiple times.

--

I will, in good conscience, never recommend going to the US through this route. And in this uncertain socio-economic climate, it is absolutely not worth the risk.

[vishnurp99]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

A few friends worked in the US through consultancy firms, and here are some pitfalls through their experiences:

I just want to point out that these are probably not consultancy companies but really offshore contracting entities that nobody has heard off. They allow you to take an H1 in their name and you have to give 20% of the billing to them.

A reputed consultancy would be somebody like a Mckinsey or Bain & Co or even an Accenture, Deloitte or Infosys consulting. They will usually take the laws quite seriously and their employment would be reasonably stable. These consultancies will give you great exposure, teach you to live out of a briefcase and set you up for a leadership or early startup role later on if that's your cup of tea.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by vishnurp99

I just want to point out that these are probably not consultancy companies but really offshore contracting entities that nobody has heard off. They allow you to take an H1 in their name and you have to give 20% of the billing to them.

Nope, consultancy firms. You're probably mixing consultancy and consulting.

The examples I quoted are of consultancy firms. A lot of companies work with reputed/established offshore companies such as WITCH, as well as nondescript consultancy firms because they're cheaper, and have very flexible contracts.

But fair point. Let OP clarify what sort of company he's been hired by.

A reputed consultancy would be somebody like a Mckinsey or Bain & Co or even an Accenture, Deloitte or Infosys consulting.

These are consulting firms. If OP has been hired by a company amongst these, this would actually be a stellar opportunity. But the pay is still quite less, esp. for California.

Also, there's a lot of volatility in the US market at the moment. Moving there now would mean you brace for chaos.

[selva2306]

How would it be for moving to US with 2 kids (10y and 4y). With L1 and about 200k base + stocks, I guess it might be financial comfortable.

Wanted to get perspectives on change in lifestyle for kids. Thoughts please.

[dragonfire]

Originally Posted by selva2306

How would it be for moving to US with 2 kids (10y and 4y). With L1 and about 200k base + stocks, I guess it might be financial comfortable.

Wanted to get perspectives on change in lifestyle for kids. Thoughts please.

L1A = fast track to GC and citizenship. Your kids would have a better life ahead.

[charanreddy]

Echo what others are saying, 115K USD means you will get roughly 75K or so in hand, post expenses you are lucky to be left with 1 to 2 K USD, which is roughly 1 -2 lakh rupees at best. The living expenses in California are insane. You can get simulators comparing living expenses across cities.

With a 75 lakh salary in India , you are likely to get 50L in hand and despite spending 1 to 2 lakhs in expenses, you are saving much more than in the US.

I would be OK if you are going for career growth , the Bay Area can fast track career and growth but a consultancy job doesn’t seem like a good trade off.

[clementj]

Originally Posted by prasha7

I'm a software developer with six years of professional experience, with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs. Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD.

Thanks in advance for your help and advice.

At a current salary of 75 lakhs after 6 years in the industry as a software developer, you seem to be doing exceptionally well and in line with what someone near senior management would get in a typical MNC company. Your's must be a niche skill set and/or you must be employed in a top tier product company with a salary that puts you in the top 1% in India for someone with 6 years of experience.

A position that pays a salary of 115k usd is pretty much what an entry level software engineer would get in an average company in the US and I m surprised that such a low offer was made to someone in that category. It doesn't add up. If your current job is promising and stable, you should wait and try for a role close to what you are doing if you wish to relocate to the US or any other country.

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by dragonfire

Your kids would have a better life ahead.

Sorry to be a little off topic, but I don't get this "better life" outside India concept at all.

In India itself the education standards have skyrocketed in the past few decades.

Our quality of life has increased immensely compared to say 90's or early 2k's.

We are a digitized economy and some of our day to day conveniences are much ahead of even some first world countries (for example, UPI/ Digital payments, E-Commerce etc.)

Our healthcare system is the most affordable, yet most easily accessible in the world. We don't need to wait for 10 months just to get a MRI appointment, for example.

We don't have weekly gun shootings in our schools neither do we have periodic stabbings by unknown men at our shopping malls.

Our highways are developing at a rapid pace and becoming world class.

The economic and job opportunities, specially considering entrepreneurship and ease of startup is incomparable to any other country in the world.


Yet, we have this age old belief (going on since the British Raj days), that the west has greener pastures.

Sorry to say, I see too many stories of depressed families, loneliness, racism hit Indian origin folks outside India and too many sad stories to believe blindly in the phrase "better life outside India", specially in 2024.

[84.monsoon]

Originally Posted by prasha7

I'm a software developer with six years of professional experience, with an annual earnings of approximately 75 lakhs. Recently, I have been granted an H1B visa through a reputable US consultancy, offering around $115K USD. I'm also reaching 30s(currently 28 years) so need to settle on personal front(marriage stuff) due to family

.

I was faced with the same dilemma 25 years ago, had to decide if I wanted to continue in India or go to the US.

Things were very different back then. My Indian salary was 5 lakhs a year (considered princely then), and the US offer was 73 K USD per year - a multiple of 5.4.times considering the then prevailing exchange rate of 37 INR per USD. Though money was not the primary reason for me to go, this multiple was quite significant and helped make the decision.

In the situation here, you are being offered a multiple of 1.25 times your Indian Salary. I have to say that it is just not enough to warrant a move. You need 2.5-3 X to make it worth it and that would translate to 230K - 275K USD.

The quality of work experience you could gather in the Tech Industry in the US in those days was far superior to what you could gather in India. This is not the case anymore with the prevalence of the GCC's and software product companies in India. Today, you can get equally good experience as a tech professional in India as you can in the US. A US stint is not necessity going to help much to give a major career boost back in India. unless it is in customer facing, stakeholder facing roles where one could argue this is valuable.

[Asoon]

Originally Posted by prasha7

Should I go there and spend few years and come back from experience perspective or continue in India and focus on my career?

Definite no
115K for 6 years software experience in US is below average and 75L In India is in top 1%, there is no comparison. You will not be able to afford your Indian lifestyle / savings ratio with 115K USD.

This amount is such ridiculously low that it does not makes sense even if the work offered is amazing

[dragonfire]

Originally Posted by DCEite

Sorry to be a little off topic, but I don't get this "better life" outside India concept at all.

...

Sorry to say, I see too many stories of depressed families, loneliness, racism hit Indian origin folks outside India and too many sad stories to believe blindly in the phrase "better life outside India", specially in 2024.

Yet I see people queuing up at US embassies for a US visa and not the other way around. There are about 1.1 million GC applications from Indian nationals pending and the number is increasing every day.

You have a higher chance of dying in a road accident in India than dying in a school shooting in the US.

In the USA somebody being called the N word is racism, but in India even if an entire caste is not allowed to use a village well, it is a "norm".

In the USA a riot means a mob attacks a few shops and torches some vehicles. In India it means thousands dead and a million displaced.

In India most cities are polluted and here you breathe mostly fresh air even in big cities.

Being raised as an American chances are better that the kid will end up becoming a better human being than in India

[PZK]

I moved to USA about 2 years ago on L1A visa and can share my experience:

Pros:
1. School: Less stressful school for kids. "Pressure to succeed" is not omnipresent.
2. Great outdoors even in your neighbourhood. Clean air & water(not 100% sure here).
3. Cities are clean(mostly).
4. Great work life balance, practical expectations. Less competition in the jobs world from your kids perspective.
5. Can save faster and secure retirement early. If lucky, get social security after reaching 40 SSA points and move back to India for a more comfortable life in retirement.
6. Comparatively safe for a girl child. This is anecdotal(I don't have any data point to support this)

2, 5 and 6 are keeping us here.

Cons:
1. Social: I miss my family & friends, it's difficult to create close relationships at the age of 40.
2. Education: We miss DPS Gurgaon, the public school doesn't have even 10% of that rigor and academic focus and we stay in one of the best school districts.
3. Healthcare: Healthcare sucks, in both affordability and availability. India is at least 50 years ahead of the USA in providing better healthcare. Happy to share examples.
4. Very high usage of drugs, homelessness and crime in larger cities(Washington DC in our case).
5. Convenience: Miss the house-maid, cook, car cleaner, local kiranawala delivering stuff. You need to do everything on your own here.

1, 2, and 3 make us want to leave.

I will add more later in the conversation if I recall something important. All above comparisons are with India in mind, and our experience in AZ and DC.

On current topics: 115K offer for CA is peanuts and you will be amongst lowest paid techies if you accept. For TX, its also okay but on a lower side. At least ask for 250K for TX and 300K for CA if you are getting 75L in India.