GTN Mobility Tax Blog

In recent years, there has been a growing trend of self-initiated global mobility moves, where employees relocate internationally with little or no company assistance. These types of moves, often referred to as "off program" or "self-requested," present unique tax challenges for both the employees and employers involved—especially when HR managers and companies are trying to balance cost considerations with their duty of care to employees.

This article was originally published in Corporate Compliance Insights.

Business travel is once again raging and is mobilizing the already travel-happy workforce even more. The Global Business Travel Association expects global business travel spending to overtake pre-pandemic levels, reaching $1.4 trillion this year. It also predicts it will accelerate to $1.8 trillion in the next three years.

This resurgence in business travel adds to a remote workforce that’s more active than ever, with 58% of employees now saying they have access to some type of remote work option.

However, international and remote work often creates complicated tax situations, inviting a long list of new compliance risks. All the while, members of the mobile workforce are largely unaware of the tax and compliance risks they’re putting on themselves and their companies by participating in remote or international work.

As businesses expand their reach across state and international borders, the tax implications of having employees travel for work becomes increasingly complex. Companies often require employees to travel for work assignments, projects, or meetings, which can inadvertently create tax reporting, withholding, and filing obligations that many organizations overlook. Surprisingly, even a short business trip lasting just a single day can potentially trigger tax compliance requirements in the visited jurisdiction.

This article was originally published in HR Daily Advisor.

Taxes can be intimidating, time-consuming, and confusing for any employee. But tax complexities shoot through the roof for international employees, business travelers, and remote workers.

Here are the reasons taxes are so tricky for mobile and remote employees, along with the secrets to communicating tax matters effectively.

In the face of revenue shortfalls, the Israeli tax authority has recently focused its efforts to crack down on tax evasion by going after Israelis who have left the country without properly breaking tax residency. Although these rules and collection efforts are not new, this new compliance initiative highlights the critical importance for Israeli residents and their employers to understand the tax implications of relocating outside of Israel. Through education and proactive tax planning, unexpected scrutiny and surprise tax bills can be avoided.

In the ever-evolving landscape of global mobility, the traditional landscape of long-term assignments has given way to a rising prevalence of permanent transferees. However, many companies have not established a formal mobility tax program for permanent transferees. Instead, a typical approach is to simply provide a cash stipend to the permanent transferee with the suggestion to use the funds to find a local tax provider to help them with their tax matters in their new country.