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  1. Overview: Singapore
  2. Global HR Compliance
  3. Global PEO and Payroll
  4. Work Permit and Visa for Hiring Expats via PEO
  5. Expand without a company set up
  6. Contractor vs. employee: which is better?
  7. Global Payroll Calculator
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Global Employer of Record (EOR) in Singapore

Global Expansion: Plan to Avoid the Pitfalls

Businesses are no longer confined to their home countries in a globalized economy. They can operate in multiple markets around the world, providing goods and services on a global scale. This worldwide trend is connecting economies and breaking down borders. This trend has profoundly impacted businesses and created new growth opportunities.

As globalization has become necessary for most companies, they are reconsidering how to utilize their talent base best. Rather than building large physical offices in every country they expand into, companies are looking to hire more foreign workers. Although globalization is often thought of as something that only affects businesses, it should be implemented in every company function to stay competitive. This includes human resources, information technology, finance, product or service delivery, legal, and compliance.

This shift provides a unique opportunity for businesses to increase their competitive edge and leverage innovative third-party talent deployment models such as global EOR (Employer of Record) and global PEO (Professional Employer Organization. 

10 Steps to Help You Navigate through Global Expansion Journey

  1. Determine Your Global Expansion Strategy
  2. Building a Global Expansion Team
  3. Choose the most business-friendly and cost-effective countries
  4. Determine the most effective mode of entry, keeping the ease of exit in mind.
  5. Determine the suitable talent engagement model (EOR, PEO)
  6. Develop a robust global talent acquisition strategy. Find an experienced and reliable partner.
  7. Compliantly hire local and foreign talent in multiple jurisdictions
  8. Create Global HR Compliance and Employment Risk Management Strategies
  9. Maintain reliable talent management systems. Adhere to local labor laws and HR compliance regulations.
  10. Global Talent Retention Programs.

Global Employment Services in Singapore

9 Global Employment Challenges to Consider

If you’re thinking about expanding your operations to a global level, you’ll want to consider all the details that go into that decision. That includes everything from choosing the most cost-effective country and the right entity type to preparing for the challenges of doing business across borders. Choosing a location that works with your overall strategy and offers lower taxes could be one way to help improve profitability.

As you prepare to expand internationally, it’s crucial to understand how each factor impacts the overall success of your business. Here are some global expansion challenges.:

  1. Every country in the world has its own set of unique laws for businesses.
  2. The legislative and regulatory landscape is ever-evolving. Keeping track of changes is cumbersome.
  3. Global HR Compliance challenges
  4. Need to understand and keep track of ever-evolving local labor laws and tax regulations across multiple jurisdictions
  5. Need to understand the local labor market
  6. Need to understand local business practices pertinent to employment
  7. Need to adhere to the company’s global employment policies
  8. Need to understand local competition and benchmark against common business practices
  9. Working with different languages, time zones, customs, and cultures

No matter which countries you expand to or what type of operation you open, there are some significant issues you will always have to deal with. 

Global expansion decisions come with a lot of moving parts. The decision to expand internationally can significantly impact your business, so it’s essential to make sure you handle it correctly.

Looking to expand your business to Singapore? Acumen International Employer of Record can help you navigate the complexities of onboarding and paying your employees in compliance with local laws. We can serve as your Employer of Record (EOR), enabling you to establish a presence in Singapore without setting up a local business entity.

Attempting to hire and payroll employees in Singapore can be challenging. You will have to familiarize yourself with the ever-evolving country’s HR regulations and navigate Singapore’s labor laws, costing you time, money, and resources. In the process, you will have to be careful to avoid risks related to noncompliance and unintentional legal violations.

With Acumen International as a global employment organization and your trusted partner, you can outsource the complicated task of hiring talent in Singapore to our team of global employment experts.

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What is a Global Employer of Record?

A Global Employer of Record is a third-party employment company that handles a comprehensive range of services, including financial, administrative, insurance, and legal matters. including payroll, tax reporting, timesheets, and benefits administration. By providing employment services, a Global Employer of Record enables its clients to grow and expand their reach beyond their local economies and compete in the global marketplace.

Why Use an Employer of Record

1. No Entity Required

Employer of Record allows companies to expand internationally without setting up a legal entity in their target market. This makes it easier and less expensive for companies to do business in multiple countries risk-free. There’s no need to spend months or tens of thousands of dollars setting up a local entity in each target country. Avoid the hassle and leverage a Global Employer of Record instead.

2. Access to Global Talent Pool

The world is your oyster when it comes to talent acquisition. There is no limit to where your talent can take you. With the help of Global Employer of Record services, you can easily hire the best person in the world for the job – regardless of their location. This way, you can create a global talent acquisition strategy to help your business thrive.

3. Rapid Remote Work Enablement

A Global Employer of Record helps to accommodate remote work by providing employees with competitive benefits and no changes to their day-to-day work life. A global EOR allows employees or contractors to move to a country of their choice, where they can legally work without worrying about losing their job or changing their current lifestyle. Acumen Global Employer of Record allows you to quickly enable your organization for remote work.

4. Independent Contractor Non-compliance and Tax Violation Risk Prevention 

Employee misclassification? A global Employer of Record can help you avoid expensive fines and lawsuits, so you can run ahead of changing regulations globally.

If you expand your business by hiring international independent contractors, be aware that their work might be too similar to what’s required of full-time employees according to local government regulations. This could put you at risk of violating employment and tax laws. To avoid penalties, consider hiring a global EOR (Employer of Record) company to manage your contractors in compliance with all applicable regulations.

Our team of HR professionals and legal experts will help you stay compliant, no matter where your employees or contractors are from.

5. Global EOR Can Help Test New Markets Without Risk and Unnecessary Cost

One of the most significant advantages for your clients is that with the Acumen International Employer of Record “Test before you invest” approach, you can have a light footprint before investing in them and not have to set up a permanent establishment in foreign countries. This is perfect for organizations that are launching or expanding globally and don’t want to spend a lot of time and money on setting up offices abroad. This allows you to see how well your products or services perform in these new markets before fully committing to them.

A Global Employer of Record can help test the new markets without risk and unnecessary cost. Leveraging a global EOR arrangement gives companies the confidence to pursue growth opportunities internationally, knowing they can quickly exit any market if needed.

Organizations hiring highly skilled staff members that are hard to find locally will also benefit from using Global Expats. Not only will they be able to find these employees quickly and easily, but they’ll also be able to save money on their payroll costs.

6. Global Hiring Continues Unimpeded by Regulatory Changes

If you use an Employer of Record, regulation changes will not necessarily affect your ability to hire talent globally. No matter what changes come about – such as Brexit, the U.S. H-1B visa program, or the UK’s IR-35 rules – you can protect your company by leveraging an Employer of Record service. This way, your employees can live where they are legally allowed to work and stay with your company.

7. Single End-to-end Global Employment Solution

Acumen International provides a convenient, all-in-one solution for expanding your business quickly and efficiently. With our solution, you can have your new employees up and running in 72 hours. And because our solution is tailored to businesses with small or no HR and legal departments, you don’t have to worry about the hassle of managing payroll and benefits yourself.

8. 100% Compliance Ensured by EOR

A Global Employer of Record solution can help make the HR processes more straightforward and less risky. An EOR can take on the responsibility of ensuring that new hires comply with local laws and regulations and handle all contracting issues.  With a global  Employer of Record, you can hire employees with locally compliant contracts and know that your intellectual property will be protected.

9. 365/24/7 In-Country Support

The Employer of Record handles the HR and payroll for the in-country employees across all time zones in the languages of the countries you operate in.

10. Facilitated Business Transition

If you’re planning to merge with or acquire another company, you may wonder about the legalities of transferring your employees from one company to another. This is referred to as an “employee transfer,” It involves many risks, paperwork can be complicated and costly, and is often rife with errors. Think of an Employer of Record as the bridge between your companies during the transition period; it’s the legal entity that will manage all employee-related information transfers and communication before and after the merger, acquisitions, or a close-down.

17 Burdens a Global Employer of Record Can Relieve for Your In-House HR Department

  1. Global expansion complexity 
  2. Global payroll administration
  3. Employee benefits administration
  4. Drafting compliant employment contracts to adhere to local labor and tax regulations in 190 countries
  5. Lengthy onboarding 
  6. Complex and risky offboarding
  7. Background checks
  8. Workforce compensation administration
  9. Compliance assistance
  10. Guidance on best practices of voluntary benefits provisioning
  11. Immigration and relocation support for your ex-pat workforce, such as visa sponsorship and securing work permits
  12. Lack of institutional knowledge.
  13. IP right protection
  14. Lack of local and international legal support
  15. Convert local contractors into full-time employees
  16. Business Transitions: acquisitions, mergers, close-downs
  17. Need to deal with multiple global employment service providers.

Global EOR (Employer of Record) Services: Save Up to 75% of Employee Management Cost

Average Cost & Time Our Solution *
Time to Market 10+ weeks 72 hours
Legal Advisors Fees $ 10 000 + ………….
Official Employment & Benefits $ 20 000 + ………….
Incorporation & Liquidation Costs $ 11 000 + ………….
Bank Account Setup $ 2 000 + ………….
Maintenance costs and in-house staff to manage the foreign entity, payroll set up, and administration. $ 25 000+ ………….
The approximate total cost of new market entry** $ 74 000 + $ 15 000

* Per one Employee
** Costs vary from country to country

Employ to Expand Confidently with Acumen International Employer of Record? 

Acumen International Employer of Record is a Swiss Army Knife for your global employment plans. As your company seeks to expand its global footprint, managing a hybrid workforce can be challenging. Acumen International understands this challenge and offers an Employ to Expand Solution, which comprises Global Employer of Record service, making it easy to employ, onboard, pay, and retain talent from 190 countries. Our Tiered Pricing Model is designed to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. In addition, our Global Payroll Calculator automates tax calculations in 190 countries and is a powerful tool that simplifies payroll management.

Global Payroll Calculator supports multinational employers and HR professionals in forecasting global payroll costs and liabilities. It provides accurate data for global compensation, tax, and total rewards benchmarking. Global Payroll Calculator empowers you to make informed decisions about the cost of hiring, supports tax and non-compliance risk management, and streamlines talent acquisition processes.

So whether you’re just starting out or have an established business, we have a perfect package!

  • Global HR compliance and local expertise 
  • Your trusted Employer of Record partner in 190+ countries. 
  • One point of contact for all countries
  • One global service agreement for current and future countries  
  • One invoice  
  • Accurate and timely payroll  
  • Immigration and work permit sponsorship 
  • Employment contracts drafting, 100% in-country compliance
  • The English-speaking global service team and local languages speaking support 
  • 24/7 client service is available in all time zones.

Spotlight on Singapore

Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. Singapore has a highly developed and prosperous free-market economy. Singapore is one of the world’s most prosperous countries with strong international trading links, its port is one of the world’s busiest in terms of tonnage handled, and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe.

  • Location: Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia.
  • Capital: Singapore.
  • Population: 5,921,231.
  • Labor force: 3.778 million.
  • Official languages: Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin,Tamil. English is the lingua franca and numerous public services are available only in English.
  • Currency: Singapore dollar (SGD).
  • Key industries: Electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, biomedical products, scientific instruments, telecommunication equipment, processed food and beverages, ship repair, offshore platform construction, and entrepot trade. Singapore has advanced manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and medical technology production and continues efforts to strengthen its position as Southeast Asia’s leading financial and technology hub.
  • Main Trading partners: China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, United States, Indonesia, India, Taiwan, Japan, and Indonesia.
  • Minimum statutory wage: Singapore does not have a minimum wage.
  • 13th salary: Some employers in Singapore offer a 13th-month payment called Annual Wage Supplement (AWS), a single annual payment on top of an employee’s total annual wage. It is customary to pay a thirteen salary at the end of the year in Singapore.

Employ Pre-selected Workforce via Employer of Record (EOR) in Singapore

As an Employer of Record services provider, Acumen International cultivates the most advantageous conditions to help your business break into the Singapore market. Our global employment services include legal engagement of top local talent on your behalf, compensation of your workforce with competitive wages, and provision of perks and benefits that retain them as loyal employees.

Acumen International’s EOR in Singapore helps employers and service companies who represent international clients hire and compensate local employees in Singapore. We offer professional assistance to meet our client’s global employment needs, such as:

  • Global talent acquisition and retention
  • Help with global expansion, so you can quickly enter new global markets without legal and HR compliance risks.
  • Provision of local support for our international clients and their ex-pat employees

Let us handle your employment needs for hiring, onboarding, compensating, and terminating your global workforce in full compliance with related tax and legal requirements.

Legally Onboard and Payroll Employees in Singapore with Acumen’s Global Employment Solution

Acumen’s Global Employment Solution for engaging and payrolling your remote workforce in Singapore is designed to help international companies like yours hire and compensate your local and ex-pat workforce.

In addition to legally onboarding local citizens, we help organize work permits, sponsor business visas for your expatriate team via our Employer of Record solution, and employ them on your behalf once legal permissions have been attained.

With Acumen, you can rest assured that all legal requirements are met for compliant hiring and compensating your local and expatriate employees in Singapore and 190 countries worldwide where we serve our international clients.

Acumen International strives to build relationships with our clients based on trust, professionalism, and long-term collaboration. We aim to help your company operate effectively and efficiently in global markets so that you can grow your business with minimal risks and obstacles.

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