CONVINUS Global Mobility
CONVINUS Global Mobility Insights - Frühling / Spring 2025For example, the so-called Lugano Convention, to which all EU states andSwitzerland belong, coordinates international jurisdiction between the contractingstates.In addition, depending on the country, various other mandatory legal provisionsmust be observed, which are motivated by police, religious or moralconsiderations. In Saudi Arabia, for example, it is forbidden to drink alcohol, wearreligious insignia or go out in public as a woman without a headscarf. Failure tocomply with such regulations usually results in draconian penalties, ranging fromexpulsion from the country to imprisonment and corporal punishment. Thiscomplex initial situation can make international employee deployment seem like anightmare and a closed book.Solution approachesHowever, if you are aware of these dangers, the spectre becomes less and lessfrightening and with structured planning, even the seven seals can be opened.As a first step, it is important that the international employee assignment is not anend in itself , but rather that the purpose of the assignment is placed in theforeground and the international employee assignment is organised accordingly.In order for this to be implemented, it is first necessary to familiarise oneself withthe possible constellations of international employee deployment.Constellations of international employee deploymentA fundamental distinction must be made here between temporary assignmentsabroad, permanent assignments abroad and, finally, the recruitment of local staffabroad.Recruitment of local staffThe last mentioned constellation, the recruitment of local staff, is usuallyforgotten, although it is basically the cheapest and the easiest to implement. Incontrast to the first two constellations mentioned, in this constellation theemployee is not transferred from one country to another, but the employee isalready working locally in the foreign company and is now entrusted with a new oradditional task (the purpose of the international employee assignment), or the48
CONVINUS Global Mobility Insights - Frühling / Spring 2025employee is recruited locally abroad as a new employee for this purpose. Thisemployee is employed locally under foreign law with an employment contract andremains subject to the local social security system. There will also be no specialproblems in terms of residence and tax law, as this is not an international situationwith points of contact to other legal systems. This means that only one legalsystem, namely that of the foreign place of employment, must be observed.Nevertheless, the domestic company will be able to issue instructions to thisforeign employee and thus realise the intended purpose. The basis for this right toissue instructions may be a corresponding additional provision in the localemployment contract or, for example, a group-wide authorisation regulation.Differentiation between fixed-term and indefinite assignments abroadIf the purpose of the international employee assignment requires a domesticemployee to work abroad for a domestic company, a distinction must be madebetween a temporary and an indefinite foreign assignment depending on theexpected duration of the foreign assignment. For legal reasons, the time limitbetween the temporary and permanent assignment abroad should be set at 5years. Most social security agreements, including the Agreement on the FreeMovement of Persons, provide for the possibility of making posted employeessubject to the social security system of the country from which they were postedfor a maximum of five years and exempting them from compulsory social securityin the country of posting during this period.In international private law too, temporary assignments abroad, where theemployee works for a domestic employer abroad for a limited period, generallyenjoy special treatment. It means, during this time the courts at theregistered. The last mentioned constellation, the recruitment of local staff, isusually forgotten, although it is basically the cheapest and the easiest to implement.In contrast to the first two constellations mentioned, in this constellation theemployee is not transferred from one country to another, but the employee isalready working locally in the foreign company and is now entrusted with a new oradditional task (the purpose of the international employee assignment), or theemployee is recruited locally abroad as a new employee for this purpose.49
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