CONVINUS Global Mobility
CONVINUS Global Mobility Insights - Frühling / Spring 2025Figure 2: Temporary assignment abroadAssignment with unchanged employer (with integration)Temporary assignment abroad with a changed employerA synchronisation between the applicable law and mandatory provisions at theforeign place of assignment can be achieved by the posted employee concludingan employment contract with the foreign company (e.g. group company) inaccordance with foreign law (see figure 3). This is done at the place of assignmentfor the duration of the posting and maintaining a loose contractual relationshipwith the posting domestic company in the form of a basic posting agreement.In principle, the same points are regulated in this basic secondment agreement asin a normal secondment agreement. In addition, however, the local employmentcontract and the basic secondment contract must contain a provision thatcoordinates these two contracts with each other. Specifically, this means that theexistence of the other contract must be mentioned in advance in both contracts.52
CONVINUS Global Mobility Insights - Frühling / Spring 2025It is then advisable to place the provisions of the basic secondment contracthierarchically above those of the local employment contract - insofar as this ispossible under local foreign law - and to allow the termination of one contract toautomatically lead to the termination of the other. As the basic secondmentagreement is not to be regarded as an employment contract due to the lack oforganisational integration of the seconded employee in the domestic company, itis subject to full contractual freedom, which of course also allows a free choice ofthe place of jurisdiction and the applicable legal system. This means that it can besubject to domestic jurisdiction without any problems.This constellation therefore guarantees maximum legal certainty: The localemployment relationship as a whole is subject to local foreign law and the basicsecondment contract with the domestic company can be subject to domesticjurisdiction and domestic law without restriction. In principle, this connectionwith the domestic company will also be sufficient to maintain the domestic socialinsurance for the posted employee during the foreign assignment.Figure 3: Temporary assignment abroadAssignment with local employment contract and basic secondment contract53
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