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I have an upcoming interview for a job that is very interesting to me. The job is in another country. The problem is that the last year I found another job in this country, accepted the offer, got a visa, set a date and in the last moment I didn't go, because I got some family health issues at home and it cought me completely off guard. So at the moment I decided not to go. I have regretted this decision ever since everything at home came back to normal, but what's done is done.

My question is: should I mention this fact during the interview? I guess that there is a posibility that this fact can come up during my next visa application process (if there will be one). Should I be honest or should I just not mention the fact and tell them another reason for leaving my job a year ago?

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The question you might want to ask yourself is why would you want to mention it ? Do you think it would benefit you in any way ? I don't really see why you would want to tell this during an interview.

Don't get me wrong, if they choose you and you start the whole visa application process, this would be the kind of technical information you would mention, as its bound to surface at some point in time.

However during the actual job interview why talk about something that is just going to raise questions from the employer and not help in any way? Mention it as late as possible.

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  • Wouldn't the fact that I left the job last year (after 9 years that I had worked there) raise a question? I am pretty sure that they will ask me why I left my job. I have to ways around it: to tell them the truth, which, as you said, won't, probably, do me any good, or I can tell them that I was offered a better salary or something like this.
    – stee1rat
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:24
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    The funny thing is that I have now 2 absolutely different opinions for this topic and both seem right. I wish I knew what type of a person my interviewer will be:)
    – stee1rat
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:28
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    Yes, it would raise a question, and thats why I would talk about it as late as possible. The idea being: if you are starting the visa procedure and talk to them about it then. You would already have had one or more interviews with them and it would be most likely that they already have a somewhat good opinion of you, so it would be easier to explain more in detail why it didn't work out. I just don't think its a good idea to mention it during the job interview, it shouldn't be a part of the first impression you give.
    – everyone
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:35
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    I'm guessing things would be too easy if there was simply one straight-forward and obvious answer, you wouldn't need to ask the question then.
    – everyone
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:36
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    Yes, I agree about the situation not being obvious. Thank your very much for your opinion!
    – stee1rat
    Aug 17, 2017 at 10:03
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If the job is in another country, the interviewer might ask you anyway, 'How prepared / willing are you to relocate to our country?' This is where you could mention that you had already committed to do this on a previous occasion, but a family emergency prevented you from following through. It would reinforce that the move is not an issue for you personally and put their mind at ease.

It may depend on the country, but it might be worthwhile mentioning anyway in case there are indeed complications in the visa application (or reapplication) process. The fact that you were able to secure a visa without issue before may put them at ease as well. Transparency on your part will go down well when the interviewer is considering you. I cannot think of a major reason why this information should be withheld.

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    What bothers me is the fact that I didn't actually start the job: I had a visa, I left my previous job, but I didn't start the work. I also should have probably asked them to wait for a week or two, but I didn't, which could make them think that I am not really a trustworhty person. So I have this dilemma now. Thank you very much for your thoughts!
    – stee1rat
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:19
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    @stee1rat Your reason for not starting the job was not your fault. You didn't know how long your family would need your help, so it would have been unfair to say to your new work 'can you wait two weeks... maybe longer? I'm not sure.' You demonstrated some integrity by being upfront with them and not leaving them waiting for a new start that may or may not arrive. The place you're looking at now may assume they were refusing to change the start date (even if they do ask 'could they have waited?', you could say this).
    – user34587
    Aug 17, 2017 at 8:35
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    Thanks again. I still have not decided what to do here, so I guess I will go with the flow and see how it goes. However, you set my mind at ease a little, and I thank you for that, kind sir.
    – stee1rat
    Aug 17, 2017 at 10:06
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I wouldn't answer that question unless it's asked directly by the interviewer.

Job competition nowadays is of course very competitive and as such interviewers will tend to put more emphasis on ironing out irregularities in your cv (No matter which country you are applying to work in).

Bottom Line

If it comes up in conversation by all means be prepared to back it up with a reasonable explanation (which you have already provided).

Good luck in your interview.

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