How we can help employers

Employers who send staff on assignments to different countries often lack the in-house expertise to be able to give detailed advice to those employees on how their tax position will be affected. We believe that it helps to motivate these staff to know that their employer has taken care to ensure that the employee will pay no more tax than is necessary as a result of the assignment.

There are inevitably consequences for the employee in leaving one country and moving to another. They will need tax advice - the question for the employer is whether they should take a role in giving that advice. Some firms simply pay for an employee to take advice from an advisor of their choosing - others dictate that all employees use one advisor who prepares the tax returns for the year of transition in the two countries. We are happy to work at either extreme - although if an employee already has their own tax advisor we prefer a - compromise position where the existing agent is retained but they are constrained to work within parameters set by ourselves acting on behalf of the employer.

In our view it is more cost effective to have one firm look after all a business' employees for two reasons. Firstly, there is less learning time to be paid for at the start of a new assignment. We may not know the employee but we certainly know the employer's systems. Secondly, it allows us to give a more proactive service if this is required. The tax treatment for the employer can depend on how expenses are reimbursed - employers should review their approach from time to time to ensure that it is giving employees the best deal.