Let’s meet the speakers from EXPATLEGAL – Eliška Flídrová and Barbora Karetová, they told us more about their project and the last workshop.
JobSpin.cz: How did you and your partners come up with the idea of organizing seminars for expats?
Eliška: When we founded website for foreigners living in the Czech Republic and seeking for legal help we were thinking about how to provide expats with some simple legal background. Expats face a language barrier and sometimes come from completely different legal environments so they can easily get lost in the legal system of the Czech Republic. We also wanted to provide information in more interactive and entertaining way, not to make people get bored with legal terms and regulations. We also like the idea of group discussions, where expats can share their experience and get immediate advice from us regarding different issues.
JobSpin.cz: Was it hard for you, personally, to start your own business? What was the biggest challenge?
Barbora: Being an owner of your business gives you the advantage to be the only one who makes decisions, on the other hand “self-employed” is the worst employer ever, there are no extra payments for overtime and night hours and even your holiday day usually starts with answering e-mails. What is still the biggest challenge for us is the work-life balance. But we are working on it.
JobSpin.cz: Could you describe the atmosphere of workshops in three words?
Eliška: Friendly, informal, and helpful.
JobSpin.cz: What are the most common questions at the workshops?
Barbora: They are usually connected with the theme of the workshop, residency, visas etc . Sometimes people just want to socialize and chat about Czech Republic as such. Last time, we were surprised how many questions people asked about the average salaries in different fields of practice in the Czech Republic and about the misclassification of employees as independent contractors.
JobSpin.cz: What services do you [EXPATLEGAL] provide and what are the most popular issues that people need help with?
Eliška: Since we are attorneys, we provide legal advisory in all areas of civil and business law and of course, in the area of immigration law. People usually come to us with some kind of immigration issue and stay as clients with their other matters such as starting a new business, buying a flat, or getting a divorce…
JobSpin.cz: Could you tell us about your future plans?
Barbora: We will continue with the workshop series and articles on our website . We have also started to negotiate with some partners from abroad, so we can build a network of legal help for expats within Europe. And we intend to keep up the good work.
JobSpin.cz: Thank you for your time.
Upcoming Workshops:
Vol. 3 Renting a place in Prague
December 3, 2016
Workshop “Rent a place in Prague – legally, safely, and well” (Everything you need to know about rental agreement and accommodation proof for your visa procedure ).
Register here.
Vol. 4 All about Taxes in the Czech Republic
January 21, 2017
Workshop “All you needed to know about taxes but were afraid to ask”.
Register here.
Vol. 5 Health Care in the Czech Republic
February 18, 2017
Workshop “Health care – staying safe & health in the Czech Republic and what it costs”.
Register here.
Place & time 10 AM – 12 PM: “The Spot”, Chodská 22, 12000 Prague; entry free .
Like Workshop Series: Working and Living in the Czech Republic on Facebook and stay tuned for upcoming events!
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