| What You
Need To Know About Living In El Salvador |
| A Forgotten
Beauty |
| By Phil Davies |
| My name is
Phil Davies, and I have lived in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador,
Central America, since April 1999. El Salvador is the smallest country
in Central America, and has the highest density of population in the region.
There are 3
major cities, San Salvador, San Miguel, and Santa Ana, but I will mostly
tell you about life in San Salvador. Tourism is just beginning to pick
up, so investment here could be good.
Right off,
I should warn you that you will have to speak at least basic Spanish. English
here is not used a lot, but some lawyers, doctors, and engineers do speak
English very well. |
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| Also,
don’t believe the rubbish spouted on some government web pages, El Salvador
is a beautiful country, it has its problems, but nothing close to what
some of these sites report. I am British by birth, but with the very high
rate of tax in the UK, and the lousy weather that was starting to play
havoc with my joints. I decided to look for a warmer and less tax invasive
country where I could live, in the mid nineties.
My job as
a telecoms engineer has taken me to just about every country and capital
city in the world, but of all of the Latin American countries (and
I have worked in 90% of them), El Salvador was the one I felt most
at home in. In 1998, when I first arrived, El Salvador was already one
of the safest countries in Central America. That trend has continued to
the present day.
El Salvador,
unfortunately, has a very bad international reputation, mainly due
to the war and the human rights atrocities that took place during that
war, but you have to look at the country as a criminal that has served
his or her time, and has no intention of regressing. The people are very
friendly, and helpful, and they remember what the war years were like,
and do not want to ever go back to that time. |
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| El Salvador
has a very stable currency, the US Dollar. It also has the second largest
American Embassy in the world, which indicates the country’s importance
in the region. The embassy takes up a whole city block, but please don’t
let that put you off if you are American.
There are very
high concentrations of French, Chinese, German, and English speaking peoples.
The tax
situation is very good, with earnings outside of the country not being
taxable. This is very common in the whole of Central America. I only paid
taxes here when I was working locally some years ago. When I work away,
I transfer the money to my local bank account, and no questions are asked
as to where it came from, if the transfer is less than USD 5000. You can
do this every day if you wish. |
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Offshore
Resources Gallery
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| Initially,
as a visitor with a 90 day visa, or a card granting temporary citizenship,
you will only be able to open a Bank Savings Account, but most banks issue
a Visa debit card against this type of account, and they are usable internationally.
I would recommend Banco Agricola, or Banco Cuscatlan. The requirements
for a savings account are a passport, a NIT, and an address. No other information
is normally required. The NIT is the local version of a tax registration
number, and it can be obtained from the appropriate government office with
a passport, even if you only have a 90 day visa. Permanent citizenship
is normally granted after 5 years of legal temporary citizenship, and will
allow you to apply for mortgages, etc.
At the airport
or any border crossing, a 90 day visa is normally issued for Europeans
and Americans / Canadians. This can be renewed simply by leaving the
country, and then coming back in, 1 hour later if you wish. In El Salvador,
a foreigner can legally own any land, property or vehicle. None of the
messing about with having to use friends or a local business is unnecessary.
Buying land
or property here is a simple process. |
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land and property is registered with a government office, making the verification
of the owner very easy. Use a good lawyer though to make sure. Vehicle
owners are also registered, but if you buy a vehicle, make sure that you
check at the government offices for outstanding fines. If not, you, as
the new owner will be liable to pay. Again, use a good lawyer. It does
not cost a lot.
If you want
to bring a vehicle with you, pickups carry an import tax of only 5%,
so are a good vehicle to bring. Ordinary cars carry about30%. Major car
dealers have a monopoly and are a huge rip off. There is not more than
1 dealer per make of vehicle, and prices can be very high. For example,
a new BMW 4x4 can cost USD 8000 more than what you would pay if you brought
the vehicle yourself, and paid all taxes and registration.
Land prices
vary, but in a very good area inside the city, you can expect to pay around
USD 100 per square metre. |
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Offshore
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| Prices
for land in the countryside vary enormously, but are very much cheaper
than the city; you will have to do your research. Salvadoreans have
a habit of inflating their prices when they see a white face, so initial
negotiations should be done using a local face if possible. Remember one
fact though, every price is negotiable, and you are expected to try to
lower the price of any Land, Property or Vehicle that you wish to purchase.
Prices are occasionally given in the old, non-existent, currency of the
El Salvador Colone, but there is a government mandated fixed rate of 8.75
Colones to the dollar, so the cost is easily translated. Colones don’t
officially exist anymore, but many locals still find it easier to think
in Colones.
For those
of you that want to shop, no problems, San Salvador has 4 big (by
Central American standards) shopping malls. They range from exclusive
and expensive, to accessible and cheap. There are also ironmongers, building
accessories, computer shops, anything you want. Prices are 10% to 30% higher
than the US, as import taxes are applied. Local government taxes are 13%.
Fuel is about
USD 1.90 per US gallon for Super.
There are many
excellent restaurants, with just about any type of food you could wish
for, and there are also the normal fast food restaurants like Pizza Hut,
Kentucky, Burger King, Wendys, plus all of the local versions of them also.
Prices are, on average, 30% lower than the USA.
Public transport
here is limited to buses, but they are frequent and cheap. They can
be a little bit risky. Robbery is not as common as it used to be, as the
police ride some buses openly or covertly, but they still happen. Incidentally
DO NOT attempt to bribe the police. I have heard that Salvadorenean jails
are not quite up to international standards, and that is where you will
end up.
Taxis are
plentiful and can be found in varying states of repair. Costs vary
from USD 3.00 to USD 5.00 to travel anywhere in or around the city. They
can also be hired by the hour for USD 6.00 to USD 9.00. You could drive
to the Guatemala border for about USD 45 for a round trip, to renew a visa,
for example.
Most of
the roads in the city, and the major artery roads are either in the
process of being resurfaced, or already have been, with widening of the
major roads taking place. There are some bad roads, but NOTHING like I
have seen in Costa Rica for example.
El Salvador
has many excellent beaches, and the sand varies in color from Black
to White and all in between. This is because of the volcanic activity in
the past. The beaches are all on the Pacific. There is a lot of property
and land for sale on some of these beaches, at good prices.
There are many
lakes, with crystal clear water, good for fishing and swimming, and houses
regularly come up for sale in these areas also.
If you want
mountain scenery, El Salvador has it. The active volcanoes, well worth
the visit. Honestly, you can find anything you want, and if not, you can
buy the land and build it, cheaply.
There are at
least 3 major Mayan ruins sites that I know of, all worth the visit, and
1 is only 30 mins outside the city.
El Salvador
has a major earthquake around every 20 years, and there are frequent
minor ‘quakes and tremors. Don’t let this put you off the country though.
Housing standards are high, and every house is built to withstand the biggies.
There are
only really 2 seasons here, Rainy and Dry, and they are both very welcome.
The rainy season lasts from around May to November, and during this time,
it rains at least once per day, heavily, but for only a few hours, and
normally in the evening.
So,
visits would be better in the dry months, but try to avoid the Christmas
week, and the week of Easter (Semana Santa). In these periods, prices
rocket for hotels and flights, and the beaches are crowded. There are also
more road accidents, due to more cars on the road, and occasionally, drunkenness.
I hope this
short narrative has given you a good overview of El Salvador, but if you
have more answers email me at: rfplanner@yahoo.com |
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