Short Term Business Visitors
The trend among international companies has been towards having fewer, usually shorter, formal assignments and increasing the numbers of Short Term Business Visitors.
STBVs are employees who are employed, pay-rolled or live in one location, but also work in another.
STBVs can include:
- directors and non-executive directors who live in another country
- anybody travelling between countries to work
- employees who are based in one location for payroll, but work regularly in other countries
- workers who live and work from home in a country different to their country of employment and/or payroll
- contractors, who can be regarded as employees in the UK, despite how they are categorised overseas
As well as immigration and employment law issues, STBVs can give rise to tax and social security complications in both the home and/or host location affecting payroll, income tax filing requirements for the employees and potentially create permanent establishments under corporate tax rules.
Fundamental to managing STBVs is for an employer to be able to track their mobile employees. Once you have information on who is traveling and why, you will be able to see if there is a need for compliance in immigration, income tax, social security or corporation tax.
If you have STBVs and want help understanding your compliance obligations and the management of costs and processes, please call or email Alison Asher.