Advantages of taking a non-TESA contractor job

I am currently in civil service in Germany and I've been offered a contractor position in Garmisch. This is a very tough decision to make because I am doing well in my current position but I absolutely love Bavaria and had always wanted to return there again if given the opportunity. Other than the 42% taxes I can expect to pay, are there any other issues that would make it unwise to take such a position? I read somewhere in this forum where if I accept a non-TESA position, I cannot later on apply for a TESA position. Would this also apply in seeking out a civil service position later on? I don't want to limit my employment opportunities in the future so I'm concerned about burning my bridges.

As far as taxes go, does anyone see any kind of refunds at the end of the year or do you usually end up paying more?

Thanks!

Accepting a non TESA position will not prevent you from applying for civil service positions in the future. It will affect any future TESA applications. Usually you get around this by returning to the US for 1-2 years, after which time you can apply and should have no trouble getting through.

Non TESA contractors that I know also have to pay a higher tax rate on their overtime pay and are still subject to US state taxes and federal income taxes although a large portion can be written off , you may want to take advice on that and your tax liabilities before you accept any position.

Thanks for your reply, Nicole. As much as I would LOVE to live in Garmisch, I think it would not be a good move for me to give up my civil service position & take the non-TESA position. Oh, well - maybe I'll get lucky and a civil service job will open up down there since they do have civil services positions there, too, in the same department as the contracting positions. I guess I'll just continue to dream (& visit when given the opportunity!).

Add to that the loss of the ID card, Loss of Commissary and BX access, Loss ofGovt. health care (If your current job includes it).
And you will see that once you go TESA you don't want to get off of it..

I'll still be sponsored by my husband so I will retain all base priviledges while working down there. I also believe that because of my SOFA agreement, I will be excluded from paying the medical tax. If they take around 40% of my pay, I would receive appox go down to 2200 Euro/month. All I need is small flat and I'll good. I would take the train to visiti with my husband probably every other weekend or so.

What I really to hear from others about is who has been in a similar situation and found they truly regretted it or with those who are truly are happy with the situation. I just want to live in an nice area and be able to feed/care for myself without constantly needed to dip in my savings. I truly feel at peace in Garmisch and think it would do my soul good even if it means giving up a few things here and there.

Is there anyone around who can give me a serious discussion of your experiences. I really need to come up with an educated decision here in the next 2 weeks. I've never had this kinf of situation happen before which is why this is such an extremely difficult one for me.

I believe that would be a bonus Trust me on this.

I'm dealing with the same thing luv2dive. It does get tough to weigh the pros and cons of such a move and I'm still not sure what I'm going to do. The loss of PX privileges is no biggy as I try not to buy crap from there anyway. Gas would be the biggest hit that I can think of. But, you have that covered.

Garmisch would be a great place to live, but don't go making it some Shargri La. In my opinion, it's too American and too damn busy. Yes, it's beautiful, but many, many, many, many others think the same thing and clog that place up.

I would personally like to live there for the proximity to Austria and it's skiing and biking. Garmisch, in both regards, kind of sucks due to the damn crowds.

If you have a sponser (husband), I don't see the big problem. Is he still active? What would he do? If you do forgo your TESA, you can get it back after living in the states for a year. That shouldn't be a consideration.

Heck, it boils down to - do you like the place? Would you like the job?

PS - the US should go to war with Switzerland so we can have more bases there The skiing is so much better than Germany!

I was in a similar situation minus the spouse. Basically working for the military but my job was due to be terminated in a year. I decided to jump over to the economy. My big deciding factors were that I wanted to stay in Germany and I wanted to integrate so I wasn't too worried about burning any bridges.
It has been a bit of a give and take thing but no regrets so far.
(having said that I probably didn't have a much to lose as you and probably more to gain)