GTN Mobility Tax Blog

UPDATED: February 7, 2020 

On January 31, 2020 the UK left the EU and has entered into an 11-month transition period. Now that this departure has taken place, it is a good time to carefully review the impact this will undoubtedly have on employees assigned to the EU.

In this mobile age, your employees are just as likely to work with clients from a desk down the hall as they are to work from different facilities halfway around the world. This makes keeping track of your organization’s business travelers a challenge—one that could potentially add complexity, costs, and risks.

Whether employees travel across state lines or international borders, when your organization supports a business traveler program, the responsibility for risk management extends beyond the executive and financial suites. Human resources specialists also play crucial roles in helping recognize and reduce exposure to potential liabilities. After all, you’re in the best position to anticipate and react when employees encounter the unexpected while traveling.

Last week we shared information about withholding US social security tax from wages. This week, we want to talk about social security within the European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA), and Switzerland. Many of the conversations we have with companies sending business travelers intra-EU involve a deep sigh and a shake of the head. Getting the Posted Worker Directive (PWD) and social security withholding obligations correct when sending an employee from one EU-member state to another is a necessary statutory requirement; yet for most it is an administrative challenge.

If your company has a mobility program, then the Worldwide ERC^® Global Workforce Symposium is a must attend event.

Most companies recognize that sending an employee overseas for a long-term assignment or permanent relocation can create a broad range of issues for both the employee and employer. Those companies are aware that they will likely need to provide the mobile employee with assistance in addressing such issues as visas, work permits, and travel and relocation expenses. The fact that the employee and employer are likely facing a new tax environment following the move is sometimes unknown or may even be kicked down the road to be dealt with after the other issues have been resolved.