Hire English Speaking Developers in South America

Latin America is a fantastic place to hire from. The only issue is that software developers sometimes lack the English proficiency required to work with US-based peers. In this blog, we’ll explain how our team carefully vets candidates to ensure they have the English skills required for any given role and to help you hire English-speaking developers in South America.

Don’t worry; lots of developers speak excellent English.

There are plenty of bilingual developers out there. You just need to know where to look. In major cities like Buenos Aires, São Paulo, and Bogotá, there tends to be a much higher level of English proficiency. For starters, these cities are international hubs with lots of tourism and global business, so there’s a stronger cultural push to learn English. It’s also easier to find qualified, native English-speaking teachers in urban areas than in smaller towns.

On top of that, many global companies like Amazon, IBM, Intel, and others have huge operations in those regions. They often provide English training for their teams, which helps raise the overall level of fluency across the local tech scene. And of course, developers who’ve already worked with US or European companies tend to be much more comfortable communicating in English, especially in technical and professional settings.

Most importantly, many devs want to work for US/EU companies. It pays better, looks better on the resume, and opens more doors. So there’s a strong personal incentive to become fluent — it’s often seen as a “must-have” rather than a “nice-to-have.” The question then becomes:

How do you assess English skills when hiring developers?

We use the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), which is a widely accepted standard that breaks down English proficiency into six levels, from beginner to near-native. It’s a straightforward way to get a sense of how well someone can communicate, especially in a professional, technical environment. Here’s more or less what each level represents:

A1 – Beginner

Think “hello,” “how are you,” and ordering a coffee level. It’s a starting point, but not enough for effective collaboration in a dev team.

A2 – Basic Proficiency

They can introduce themselves, follow basic instructions, maybe understand a few tech words. This basic proficiency level is useful for someone who just needs to answer a few emails and can use a translator to write back and forth. However, they would still not be suitable for day-to-day oral communication.

B1 – Intermediate Proficiency

Someone at this level can manage a few basic day-to-day interactions and understand the general idea in meetings or written communication. They can talk about their work and follow instructions, though they may struggle with more complex discussions. Many developers in Latin America fall into this category, and while it’s definitely a solid foundation, communication can sometimes be unclear, whether due to accent, limited vocabulary, or difficulty expressing technical concepts. That’s why our tech recruiters usually aim for candidates at B2 or higher, especially for roles that require frequent collaboration. So, let’s take a look at those below.

B2 – Professional Working Proficiency

Now we’re talking. Devs at this level can comfortably work in an English-speaking team, understand most technical conversations, and express themselves clearly. You might still hear the occasional grammar hiccup, but nothing that slows down the work.

C1 – Advanced

Fluent and confident. Developers at this level can express themselves clearly and naturally in nearly any situation — from writing documentation to discussing architecture with stakeholders. Ideal for client-facing roles or leadership positions.

C2 – Bilingual / Native-Level

This is the highest level — someone who communicates as fluently and precisely as a native speaker. They can lead meetings, handle nuanced discussions, and adapt their tone depending on the audience. It’s rare, but incredibly valuable when you find it.

Quick guide or table mapping English level to typical roles:

Role Type	Minimum Recommended English Level
Junior Dev (internal team only)	B1-B2
Mid-Level Dev	B2
Senior Dev	B2-C1
Client-facing / Lead / PM	C1-C2

The process of hiring English-speaking engineers in LATAM

In a previous blog, we walked through the recruiting process for hiring software developers in Latin America. To keep it brief here, our IT recruiters follow a structured approach that includes two key interviews: one focused on English communication skills, and the other on technical ability.

For the English portion, one of our fully bilingual team members conducts a short, 10-15 minute conversation with the candidate. It’s intentionally casual — think of it more like a chat than a formal interview. The goal is to see how naturally the candidate can communicate, not just whether they “pass a test.” During the interview, we’re just looking for red flags like:

Giving over-rehearsed answers or using scripts
Responding “yes” to questions without truly understanding
Struggling to explain things in their own words
Having very limited written communication (e.g. emails that are hard to read)

As part of that conversation, we’ll also ask them to explain a technical concept in English — something they’re familiar with, like a project they worked on, a coding challenge, or how they’d solve a specific problem. This gives us a better sense of how well they can articulate ideas in a work-related context, especially with international teams.

Building hybrid software development teams of English and non-English speakers

In many cases, a hybrid team can offer the best of both worlds: solid communication and lower hourly rates. Usually, this setup works best for clients who:

Have limited budgets
Don’t need to hire client-facing engineers
Are already working with other Spanish-speaking devs in Latin America

On average, a hybrid team can be 20-30% more affordable than a fully bilingual team, without sacrificing productivity or quality. For any of the cases above, mixing and matching English proficiency levels can be a great way to reduce costs and allow more junior and mid-level devs to improve their English skills. Here’s a standard team setup for a scrum software development team that we recommend:

Part-time IT Project Manager (Fully Bilingual):

This person acts as the main bridge between the client and the development team. They handle all external communication, manage timelines, coordinate deliverables, and ensure that everything stays on track. Their strong English skills are essential for translating client needs into clear action items for the team.
Full-time Tech Lead (Fully Bilingual):

The Tech Lead is responsible for guiding the technical direction of the project. They lead architecture decisions, oversee code quality, run technical discussions, and support the development team. Since they often collaborate with both clients and developers, fluency in English is key to keeping everyone aligned.
Two Full-time Mid or Senior Developers (Basic English):

These developers are highly skilled in coding and can work efficiently with well-documented tasks. While their spoken English might be limited, they can read technical specs, respond to emails, and communicate effectively using async tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams. They’re a great fit when guided by a strong lead and clear documentation.
Part-time QA Engineer (Intermediate English):

The QA engineer focuses on ensuring product quality by identifying bugs, writing test cases, and validating features. Their English is strong enough to document issues clearly and collaborate with both developers and the project manager.

Ewents provides remote English-speaking software developers

Don’t let English be a stopper; doing business with Latin America is a great idea. In fact, our team is headquartered in Argentina, which is a country ranked with a high proficiency by the English Proficiency Index. Our IT recruiters can find you pre-vetted, English-speaking software engineers who work remotely and integrate with your existing dev teams with no hassle:

✔️We pre-screen every candidate for English fluency

✔️All interviews are conducted by fully bilingual recruiters who know how to spot real-world fluency.

✔️We have tons of experience putting together teams that support U.S. clients across time zones without language barriers.

✔️Our engineers are used to working with tools like Slack, Jira, Notion, and Zoom — in English.

✔️You can mix and match English levels (when appropriate) to reduce costs without sacrificing clarity where it matters.

Interested in hiring bilingual devs, QAs, or Project Managers? Contact us now.