As a 53 year old looking at school teacher job advertisements and then scrolling down to person criteria the same no older than 40 or 60 is listed.  Age limits teach abroad work & residency chart below I complied to help or prevent people from making a costly mistake.

When a young woman in her twenties called me dad on the bus, then maybe I am definitely ageing. Sure, the lines on my face are getting deeper, that does not mean I am any less capable than someone half my age.  Us older teachers and lecturers have built up considerable knowledge, skills, experience; know what works, and what does not.

Teaching abroad age limit

Have you seen on the internet references to age limits for school, language centre, universities and people talking about employer’s age preference?

Yes, it’s good you are offered a job and told to start the paperwork, medical, arrive by a certain date. Some things are out of a school and our control, namely obtaining a work & residency permit for the country you have been offered a job.

 

Work & residency permit age requirements

Forget countries Saudi Arabia, Brunei or teaching at a government school in South Korea after a successful education career in your home country.

You are already too old at 61 for these 3 countries to obtain a work permit or to reside legally for the duration of your contract.

Government departments decide and issue permits for a foreign teacher to work and teach at a school in the country.

Even if you are over the advertised age limit case by case school requests to the immigration department can happen in a number of countries.

Reported in a gulf regional newspaper The National, since January 2011 the Ministry of Labour in United Arab Emirates schools can request an over 60 year old teacher be given a work related residency. This makes the UAE age limit 65 effectively.

Normally, what would happen is that you would receive a 12 months visa, instead of a 2-3 year visa that younger teachers receive.   This would be for an international school teacher, management position or a university lecturer.

Looking at Kuwait where there is always international school jobs for kindergarten, primary and high school, you can be employed by a school up to 60 years.  Kuwait has no official working age limit, although they do have a hiring limit to age 60 for foreign educators. Reported in the Arabtimesonline working age limit can extend to 65+ as long as you work for the same employer.

I taught in Kuwait in 2006/7 and one teacher was hired at 67 from Canada.  The hire age limit was reduced to 60, and talk of it being lowered once again, as local workers take over the jobs of expatriates.

 

How to search for teacher jobs overseas

This guidance is from my personal experience teaching overseas:

• Conduct through research on the legal requirements to work and stay in the country you wish to teach.  You could contact the embassy, look/ask questions on forums

 

• Be realistic of what you can achieve. Some countries give older educators permission to teach case by case, for example you have specialist/shortage skills, no younger person applied to fill the post

 

• Make a list of countries to teach abroad where age is not an issue to work as an older teacher, see if one or more fits in with what you are looking for

 

• Do not be tempted to teach on a business visa I was offered.  You would not be legal, except possibly Cambodia

 

• Look at paying for your own medical insurance or top up.  Schools and universities in some countries can not get insurance to cover you for accident or other eventualities over a certain age

 

• Apply for jobs in countries and areas where there is a greater need for teachers. Maybe you wish to spend time working in China, but you are too old for Beijing, Shanghai or Chengdu.  Why not look to experience other provinces in China that older teachers are readily accepted by schools and issued legal Z visa’s by the immigration department. You can then visit the area during holidays or when you complete your contract

 

• Don’t apply, or at least expect to be offered a job during peak recruitment time of January to April.  Wait until May on wards or even until just before schools start. A school can ask immigration in certain countries, such as Oman for permission to sponsor a teacher above the standard age limit.  Oman is always looking for English teachers to work in government training colleges

 

• State your specialist knowledge, skills, experience, cultural awareness, up to date with curriculum & technology in the classroom

 

• Rumour and gossip does not count. Actual facts are what matters, such as government forms, websites and national press reporting government quotes or interviews. Thailand is widely quoted online as 50 age limit a working visa.  This is not true.    Yes, Thailand hires teachers and experience, qualifications, age and image are top of their list.  Schools seem to like hiring younger teachers under 50 years old

 

• Ask a school if they have obtained or been denied a working visa for teachers over the standard age limit requirement.  You could also enquire when speaking to recruitment agents

 

• Think very carefully before flying off to a country, starting or looking for a job, completing all paperwork and medical in that foreign country.  Recruiters and some schools are looking to fill a post and may not have your best interests to mind.  All about risk. Do you wish to fly out to Qatar or Taiwan on a tourist visa, as you can, arriving and finding out you can not obtain a work permit?     This happened to me for Qatar. I was informed a 12 week wait before the school can start the process for my paperwork.  The school had used up it’s allocation of British people for visas.  Was I happy after giving notice on my house rental and giving away most of my possessions to start a new chapter in my life?

 

You are an asset, a qualified teacher with successful classroom experience.  Around the world there is a shortage of teachers. Governments realise this and are slowly allowing older teachers work & residency visa’s where before they were denied because of age restrictions.

 

A country official retirement age is a good indicator of when the maximum age limit a person can obtain a legal residency & work permit. I will keep updating the requirements as they happen.

 

The following table is a guide only as laws are changing all the time September 2018

 

Country                           School/University               Age Limit                                Comments

Africa
Algeria			Any	You will require skills at any age. English or other
Benin			Any
Botswana			Any
Burundi			?
Cameron			?
Djibouti			Any
Egypt			70+	Possible issues with health insurance 65+
Kenya			55	Locals 55, difficult after this
Ethiopia			60-65	Not sure on definite cut off exact age
Gabon				Early 60s
Gambia			?
Ghana			60
Guinea			?
Madagascar			?
Malawi			Any	Case by case when 60+
Mauritania			?
Morocco			60
Mozambique			None
Namibia			None
Niger			?
Nigeria			60	Case by case after 60
Seychelles			?
South Africa			No limit	Should be 65+. Think about medical cover?
Swaziland			Any
Tanzania			55
Togo			None
Tunisia			?
Uganda			No limit
Zambia			Any	Although they look at shortage and what you offer
Saint Helena				At least early 60s possible
Asia
Armenia			??
Azerbaijan			None
Bangladesh			None
Bhutan			None
Brunei			54	Enter & start job before 55. Work until 60
Cambodia			65	Expect to get lower soon
China			60	With foreign expert certificate to late 60s. 1st August 2018 57 age limit? quoted on job ads
Cyprus			Any
Georgia			Any
India			Any	State retirement on or before 60
Indonesia	Minimum 27 years state school		60	None officially although not easy after 60, country retire age 58.
Israel				67 age of retirement in the country for men
Japan			65	Official 65 now
Kazakhstan			None	They look at what offer against requirements
Laos			?
Malaysia			60	Country information for Malaysia
Maldives			?
Mongolia			60	Visa & residency for a few older with right skills
Myanmar (Burma)			62	Depends on you, skills and shortage
Nepal			?
Pakistan			60
Philippines			60	Exceptional case to be given a visa any time teaching
Singapore			70	Maybe no official age limit now
South Korea			60	Private schools no limit, if you can get a job
Sri Lanka			60
Taiwan			65	Some basics for teachers in Taiwan
Thailand			None	Age 60 countries official retirement. More difficult after 60 to obtain a visa, although is possible.
Turkey			60	Younger teachers find it easier to get visa’s
Uzbekistan			None
Vietnam			60	Official retirement age. No visa issue when 60, as you are now seen as retired, hit state age to retire
Hong Kong			60	65 for private schools. Possible benefits loss
Europe
Albania			Not official	Early 60s,  not much after the countries people retire
Andorra				Not sure here?
Austria			None
Azerbaijan			None	Depends on skills and shortage
Belgium			None
Bulgaria				Men retire at 65, Difficult after this
Croatia			65	Not easy after retirement age
Cyprus			65
Czech Republic			None
Denmark			None	Although not easy after 65
Estonia			None	Possible up to 63
Finland			68	Maximum limit of 68, case by case
France			No limit
Georgia			None	Depends on need and you
Germany			Any
Greece			None
Hungary			Any
Iceland			Any
Ireland			Any
Italy			None
Kazakhstan			Late 60s	Cut off appears to by late 60s
Latvia			Any
Liechtenstein			None	Mid 60s, then little chance
Lithuania			Any
Luxembourg			None
Macedonia				Mid 60s, then little chance
Malta			65	Appears to be 65
Moldova			Any
Monaco			Any	Not easy to secure a visa here
Montenegro			None	Not official, although late 60s possible, depends
Netherlands			Mid 40’s	Loss of medical and work age benefits after
Norway			None
Poland				65 age of pension
Portugal				Country retirement age men 66
Romania				65 when locals retire, nothing official
Russia			None	Russia country page for teachers
Slovakia				State pension 62, work visa around age
Slovenia				Retire at 64 in country, no visa after late 60s
Spain			Any	60+ difficult.  See here for Spain
Sweden			None
Switzerland			None
Turkey				Difficult after 60 retirement age, 65 maybe
Ukraine				Possible to mid 60s with right skills
United Kingdom			None
Middle East
Bahrain			60
Jordan			None
Lebanon			None
Kuwait			None, but	60 new school hire. 65+ if working in country for the same employer
Oman			60	Officially 60, although shortage of teachers! Other country information for teachers
Palestine			?
Qatar			60	Difficult after 60 for expense/health insurance. Requirements for school Qatar teachers
Saudi Arabia			58 max	55 for some ESL jobs.  Looking to experience KSA teaching
United Arab Emirates			60	55 government jobs, 65 international schools, 60 standard limits. On schools request to the ministry of labour 65, one year contract each year.
Australasia
Australia			55
Fiji			None	Committee meets weekly case by case for any visa
New Caledonia				Difficult at any age
New Zealand			50	50 work visa, 55 for residency!!
Solomon Islands			None	Depends on skills and island requirements
Central America
Belize			No limit
Costa Rica			None
Honduras			None
Nicaragua			None
Panama			No limit
North America
Canada			None
Mexico			No limit
United States			None
South America
Argentina			None
Bolivia			None
Brazil			None
Chile			No limit
Colombia			62	Changed from 57 to 62 recently
Ecuador			No limit
Falkland Islands			None
Paraguay			None
Peru			65-70?
Uruguay			None