- Overview: Bermuda
- Global PEO and payroll
- Global HR Compliance
- Work permit for hiring expats via PEO
- Expand without a company set up
- Contractor vs. employee: which is better?
Global PEO and Payroll in Bermuda
As you expand your business operations into new countries, it is essential to understand that each expansion is its unique challenge. Various factors, such as local and home country laws, the type of activities undertaken, and your company’s goals and risk tolerance will dictate your compliance obligations and budget. By carefully considering all of these elements, you can ensure a successful expansion into any new market.
Acumen’s Global PEO and Payroll solution was designed especially for companies like yours to smooth the way for quick, easy, and risk-free business operations in Bermuda without establishing a legal business entity.
Global Employment Challenges and Pitfalls to Avoid
When you’re hiring a staff to work overseas, some challenges come with that far beyond the nuts and bolts of finding and vetting candidates. These challenges are often overlooked by companies when they think only of locally-hired employees, but can have extreme consequences for businesses who employ people internationally.
Why is this? Because if you’re not careful, you might find yourself unwittingly breaking one employment law regulation or another in your new country. This could lead to fines, other legal issues, and negative public exposure for your brand. It’s not just about being bad for your business, though; it’s also about being bad for the people who work in your company.
Employment Taxes
There are many different types of taxes that businesses have to pay, but employment taxes are one of the most important. These taxes can vary significantly from country to country and can be a large portion of a monthly salary.
In-country Employee Registration
It is essential to ensure that employees are properly registered with the local authorities before they start work. Failing to do so can result in penalties for both the employee and the employer.
Payroll Calculations: Country-specific Requirements
In many countries, payroll calculations vary significantly. For example, employees in some countries may receive a 13th and 14th-month salary halfway through the year or at Christmas as standard. Thus, it’s important to be aware of the payroll practices in your country of employment.
Some countries have different rules when it comes to employment contracts. To avoid any surprises, it is crucial to understand how payroll calculations work in your new country. In some cases, you may be responsible for paying your employees for the entire duration of their contract even if they are not performing as expected or you want to end their employment early. This can be a financial shock to foreign employers who are not used to this practice.
For this reason, it is essential to ensure that you review and understand the terms of the employee’s contract before hiring them, so you know what to expect.
End of Financial Year Reporting
The financial year for many countries ends in March and companies that have a presence in more than one country need to produce financial reports for each country and send them to the relevant government bodies. With the end of the financial year approaching, accountants are busy at work preparing reports, some of which can be complex and difficult to navigate through as they may be on foreign websites with little or no English language support. It is important that you get these reports lodged on time as it could result in late payment penalties.
A lot of these reports need to be completed in the local language, so it is recommended that you use an accountant specializing in the country you are based in to ensure compliance before lodgement deadlines.
This is the reason why many companies outsource payroll management to a global Professional Employer Organization (PEO) as they have experts with deep knowledge of local labor laws and tax regulations in each jurisdiction. In such cases, a Global PEO and Payroll solution will ensure compliance with local employment and tax requirements.
Local Employment Contracts Compliance
As an employer, it is crucial to have local employment contracts that are compliant with the law of the jurisdiction in which your employees work. These contracts should be provided in both English and the local language. Do not simply copy and paste your existing contract template from your home country – this could result in non-compliance and serious legal consequences.
When recruiting employees for your business, it is critical to ensure that their employment contract is appropriate for the country where they will be working. A Spanish employment contract may not be valid in Latin America, simply because they are both Spanish-speaking countries.
The language of the employment contract is a crucial detail to keep in mind during the recruitment process, as non-compliance to target country employment laws or any mistakes with the paperwork could cost you money, time, and potentially your business’s reputation.
Employment Contract Termination
The employment termination process can be just as important as the hiring process. This part of employment should not be taken lightly as it can have many implications and consequences, both for the employer and the employee. Therefore, it is important to carefully consider all aspects of the situation before making a decision.
The start of the termination process begins when the employee signs the employment contract. If the termination guidelines are clear and precise from the terminating an employee will be much smoother.
When setting out the terms of employment, it is important to be clear about the notice period (making sure it’s aligned with the country-specific regulations), and what is expected in terms of returning company equipment and a credit card or cash float balance. Non-compete clauses protecting your intellectual property are also important considerations. Doing so will help avoid misunderstandings and potential legal problems down the road.
If an employer does not have clear procedures for the termination in their employment contract, they may face litigation. If an employee feels they have been mistreated, they may become disgruntled and contest the termination legally. This can be costly and difficult, especially if the dispute is in another country with a different time zone and language.
What is a Global PEO?
PEOs are professional employer organizations. That means they offer comprehensive HR solutions for small businesses across the country. By paying a single fee per employee, employers can outsource all their HR needs to an expert who specializes in managing this aspect of their business. Some services provided by PEOs include
- Payroll processing
- Benefits administration
- Tax reporting
- Workers’ compensation insurance
- Labor and tax compliance
Outsourcing some global employment and HR functions to a PEO means that the business owner is not bogged down with processing payroll, benefits, or securing visas and work permits. Instead, they have more time to concentrate on other company matters, including big-picture issues.
Why Use a Global PEO?
- Expanding your business globally can be risky, but by partnering with a global PEO, you can stay flexible and mitigate major global expansion risks. This allows your business to enter new markets securely and efficiently while knowing there is always an exit strategy available if needed.
- With a global PEO partner, you can test the waters before making a permanent commitment. Before you decide to invest in offices, equipment, and employee training at an overseas location, you’ll get valuable information about whether the location will be successful by seeing how well operations are received via a third party before committing to managing them yourself.
- In addition to helping with taxes and payroll, Global PEO and Payroll solution can also help handle things like relocation, providing temporary housing and support while you find a permanent location for your employees to live.
- A global PEO can provide advice on international and local employment laws, tax, and compliance regulations. Suppose you hire people abroad and they start working for you without guidance. In that case, there is a risk that their expectations might not match up with reality—setting yourself up for an unpleasant surprise down the line when they realize their salary or work conditions aren’t what they had been promised.
- Many businesses use PEOs (Professional Employment Organizations) to take care of their HR needs abroad. A global PEO is an organization that provides services such as payroll and benefits without actually employing workers itself—instead, they simply manage employee records so that you don’t have to worry about it yourself. When using a PEO, you’ll need to set up an account with them to file payroll reports online.
How Does a Global PEO Work? What Is the “Co-employment” Model?
Organizations that partner with a Global Professional Employer Organization (PEO) enjoy many benefits. By working with a PEO, businesses can take advantage of a co-employment relationship which can free up time and resources that can be better spent on strategic decision-making and business growth. Global PEOs are responsible for payroll, withholding and paying payroll taxes, managing compensation and benefits coverage, and providing HR compliance guidance.
The global PEO becomes a co-employer of the organization’s employees, and PEO shares the employment responsibilities of the client organization. PEOs assume many administrative and HR compliance tasks that businesses would otherwise have to handle, giving business owners and management teams more time to focus on running their companies.
In addition, Professional Employment Organizations can provide valuable services and expertise that businesses might not be able to access on their own. Using a Global PEO and Payroll solution can be a great way for businesses to improve efficiency, save time and money, and gain access to valuable resources and expertise.
What Services Does a Global PEO (Professional Employment Organization) Provide?
- Global Payroll management;
- Compliance with local tax rules (file & deposit) of the country where the EOR company is located;
- Handling compliant employment contracts:
- Background, education, and other checks;
- Onboarding and termination processes, as well as employee’s compensation;
- Arranging visas and work permits for employees;
- Ensuring the working process is organized under local labor laws;
- Processing workers’ medical insurance and other benefits (day-offs, bonuses, and more);
- Global employment process maps, matter maps, employment guides, and other documentation.
Acumen International – Your Single Point of Truth and Global Employment PEO Solutions Provider in Bermuda
- 100 % compliant, quick, easy market entry. Acumen Global PEO is your local legal entity, helping you reduce the cost and time associated with incorporating
- Immediate global employment service coverage in 190 countries
- Both a single point of contact and a dedicated account manager for your project for all target countries
- Compliant and secure global employment operations. We help you adhere to all local laws and regulations in 190 countries
- A single contract for all in-country services (employment, immigration, legal, etc.)
- A single PEO provider assumes full responsibility for your international employees in multiple countries
- Payments are made within the UK or to the UK bank company account
- Fully compliant with standardized procedures and reporting systems
- You can delegate to Acumen Global PEO all HR responsibilities Payroll & benefits administration, background checks, and HR helpdesk
- Standard payroll breakdowns for all target countries
- As soon as we receive your request for a project in any country, we will send you a payroll breakdown and offer within 2 working hours
- Full 100% fee money-back guarantee for the employee or contractor payment delays.
- Tailored and 100% compliant employment contract drafts
- With Acumen in your corner, you can quickly and easily onboard and compensate your employees without risk of legal repercussions
- Acumen Global PEO protects your company’s Intellectual Property rights
Acumen International is here to help, from payroll and tax management to social security disbursements and immigration services. We’ll give you the peace of mind you need and reduce your company’s legal costs by 50% or more.
Our Global PEO&Payroll | Client | |
---|---|---|
Employment risks mitigation | ||
Tax compliance & payroll processing | ||
Incorporation costs | no need for own entities |
|
Effort | 90% | 10% |
Coverage | 190 countries | 190 countries |
Global Employment Risks, Tax Considerations, and Liabilities
Global employment compliance is a complex and ever-changing field. The risks and liabilities associated with your employees include:
- tax considerations
- Intellectual Property rights
- employee privacy and data protection
- liability for employee misconduct
- compliance with local employment labor laws and regulations
- employee training and development
- employee compensation and benefits
- hiring and termination practices and procedures
- compliance with labor laws and regulations in the host country and abroad
- securing and extending business visas, work permits, etc.
When setting up an international operation, it is important to consult legal counsel or a Global Professional Employment Organization with experience dealing with these issues so that you do not run afoul of the law by inadvertently violating any employment regulation.
Compliance with the labor laws and tax regulations can be complex because they are often inconsistent from country to country, state to state, or even city requirements. As a result of these inconsistencies, employers must ensure that their global human resource and payroll policies are consistent with local laws wherever their employees or independent contractors work.
Global PEO — One-Stop Destination for Global Businesses
Managing the employment side of your business can be a full-time job in and of itself. There are many options to consider when it comes to finding help, from payroll companies, tax and immigration advisors, to employee benefit brokers to human resource consultants.
One alternative to working with numerous vendors is partnering with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO). International PEOs can manage all aspects of your business’ human resources, from benefits and payroll to unemployment management and safety training. This can free up your time so that you can focus on running your business.
10 Benefits Of Working With a Global PEO (Professional Employer Organization)
- Working with a global PEO (Professional Employment Organization) can be a great way to set up your business without worrying about the hassle of local labor laws or establishing a foreign legal entity.
- Working with a global PEO (Professional Employment Organization) can save you time and money when entering new markets .A global PEO is an organization that helps businesses manage the administrative tasks related to local employment, such as payroll, benefits, and compliance.
- A global PEO understands the complexities of international employment laws and can help take the guesswork out of legal compliance. They can also reduce your time on administrative tasks and help you stay compliant with industry standards.
- PEOs can provide a broad range of employee benefits that companies that don’t use them may not be able to offer. With the help of a global PEO, you can prevent employee turnover and ensure that your employees are well taken care of while employed with you. Stable employees will be less likely to change companies or leave their jobs altogether.
- PEO clients can often offer their employees a more comprehensive benefits package than those who don’t. Such benefits may include healthcare, dental, and vision coverage, or retirement plans PEOs also offer retirement plans and other financial benefits.
- PEOs can provide their clients with competitive advantages in the marketplace by pooling resources and sharing global employment risks.
- In addition to managing legal requirements, a PEO can help you minimize your tax liability and simplify payroll administration processes. Using a PEO as your single contact for managing payroll and benefits coverage makes things easier because it reduces internal costs—you can focus on doing what you do best. At the same time, the global PEO gets every employee’s need taken care of.
- Simplify the process of entering countries by assisting with the compliant employment of your foreign and local workforce. Partnering with a global PEO can be especially helpful when working in countries with complex labor laws and regulations, like Brazil or France. Instead of directly dealing with foreign employment laws, you simply work with a single entity that knows best practices for local labor rules.
- A Global PEO and Payroll solution is a great way to skip the hassle of setting up a foreign legal entity or figuring out local labor laws and can significantly save you time and money.
- When you first move your business overseas, you might be struck with the realization that you’re about to get a lot more responsibility than you bargained for. Setting up a foreign legal entity is a costly and time-consuming process, not to mention it’s something that requires legal expertise and knowledge of local labor laws. With the help of an international PEO (Professional Employment Organization), you can skip the hassle of setting up a foreign legal entity or figuring out local labor laws.
What Services Can a Global PEO Provide in Bermuda?
The expert team at a global PEO partner usually provides strategic guidance and a wide array of high-quality, cost-effective services tailored to your specific requirements that can help your company grow and scale up safely. Here are some of them:
- Human resources administration, including payroll, taxes, and benefits administration; employee training and development; recruitment; employee relations; compliance training; background or education checks; timekeeping services;
- Regulatory compliance assistance, including payroll tax law and reporting requirements;
- IP protection and offboarding;
- Hiring and HR compliance services, helping you navigate local regulations and avoid prohibited HR practices, including discriminatory job listings, Illegal criminal background checks, misclassified workforce, inaccurate payroll, and tax payments;
- Human resource support;
- End-to-end talent management, including recruiting, onboarding, engagement, performance management, and termination (upon employer approval);
- Liaison with legal counsel on employment issues such as discrimination, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, whistleblower protection, non-compete agreements, severance agreements, and other employment law matters.
Global Payroll Calculator: Accurate Global Employment Cost Estimation
When hiring employees and contractors across the globe, you may not be choosing the most cost-effective and business-friendly country.
- Do you know which country is the most cost-effective place to hire employees?
- What are the costs of entity establishment and legal representation?
- What are the payroll costs and management fees?
- What are your ongoing annual tax compliance costs?
- Are you fully aware of banking implications?
- Did you know that labour laws and hidden costs could make your company less efficient when choosing a country to run your business?
- Did you know that there could be a more cost-effective country to hire employees in and save up to 50%?
- How to hire international teams without setting up a local entity?
This is because countries have different labor laws, compliance, and tax regulations. What if, instead of limiting your company’s international expansion by cutting through the jungle of local regulatory compliance, tax, labor, and immigration requirements, you could have all the information of 190 countries at your fingertips?
The Global Payroll Calculator is built by Acumen International to help businesses understand the compliance requirements for conducting business in a new country. Acumen’s research team tracks developments in 190 countries around the globe. It provides up-to-date data on local regulations related to tax, payroll regulations, benefits, hiring practices, compliance requirements, and other labor-related factors that impact an employer’s bottom line. This valuable information makes the Global Payroll Calculator an invaluable tool for businesses looking to expand internationally.
Global Payroll Calculator helps companies reduce labor costs by providing up-to-date information on hiring, compensation, and tax requirements. It is also an ideal tool for quickly locating employees in any country.
Global Employment Solutions: How to Put Together a Hard Puzzle
There are many things that can go wrong when you try to find employment overseas. Acumen International can help you navigate these challenges, but it is important to be aware of the potential obstacles you may face.
As a Global PEO, our role is to enable organizations to quickly and easily hire employees in any country. We take care of all the employment-related details so that our clients can focus on their business goals. However, if candidates are unhappy at any stage, the whole arrangement can fail.
When making the decision to move abroad for work, your selected candidates consider a number of factors. The visa and work permit process complexities, currency fluctuations, lifestyle choices and family considerations can all impact their final decision.
As a PEO, we understand that when expanding your business globally, it’s vital to put your employees’ needs first. Considering the impact that this move will have on their lives, it’s important to think outside the box and make sure they are comfortable and supported every step of the way.
“It has become critical for organizations to have an understanding of applicable laws and regulations concerning issues such as minimum wages and benefits, employment standards, immigration and labor relations in each location. A Global PEO can play an important role in helping organizations navigate this complex global employment landscape through offering reliable and country-specific solutions and expert advice on matters related to compliance,” says Nick Ganzha, CEO and founder at Acumen International.
Acumen Global PEO and Payroll solution can help you solve the hard puzzle of global employment. As a Global PEO partner, we help businesses meet all of their HR needs while also handling compliance issues that are specific to the international arena. By offering comprehensive global employment solutions and reality checks about the compliance aspects of employing staff across the globe, we can be an important resource for your in-house HR and Management teams.
NOTE: Acumen is not an International Payroll provider, and we do not provide International Global Payroll services as a standalone solution in Bermuda and other countries we cover.