The hidden opportunities in global social security tax policies

There’s more to social security tax

Social security tax should be top of mind when moving workers globally. That’s because social security rates are increasing worldwide. There are complex registration requirements. Pressure from authorities on recovering additional contributions. All these risks key into the prioritization of social security tax in businesses today.

Global mobility programs should deliver social security payments at the right time, the right location and for the right compensation. With the added emphasis on getting social security payments right, the need for new, innovative and technology enabled mobility services has never been greater. Part of optimizing your mobility movement is to ensure complex social security taxes are taken care of. In a world with numerous options to handle all facets of social security tax, the best solution partnering with a global mobility organization that presents integrated solutions for your needs along the offering.

In this piece, we’ll talk about the hidden opportunities when it comes to social security tax compliance, impact on your employee’s benefits and international mobility.

Compliance

One of the major pieces of global social security taxation is solidifying the compliance strategy. The main goal of the strategy is to ensure employer compliance and protect the rights of international employees and their families. While managing the risks of non-compliance, there are areas of opportunity to significantly reduce costs of your mobility program by mitigating said risks.

An example of one of those risks could be failing to handle compliance correctly. That could result in a reversal of social security contribution payments in one country and subsequent payment of contributions in another. Evaluating the potential risks, a company has can provide a basis for establishing clear policies and governance processes to manage social security issues for employees working internationally.

Social security compliance is more than a Certificate of Coverage (CoC) or A1 certificate—it’s an opportunity to lower costs and increase the bottom line.

Impact on your employee’s benefits

We hold to the strong belief that our assignees should be cared for in every way possible—including their company benefits. When moving between their home country and their assignment, assignees may experience loss or additional acquisition of entitlements to state benefits such as healthcare, family allowances, unemployment and old-age pensions.

This fluctuation could have negative impacts for the employee and their family members in the long run as they return to their home country. However, with the right approach and proactive planning, the impact on government benefits can be mitigated or eliminated altogether.

Adopting a fit-for-purpose social security policy can set employee expectations from the beginning of a new assignment, bring forth timely action and minimize potential loss. With this policy, consideration for voluntary or private alternatives can be made to compensate for gaps in an employee’s insurance history.

The policy acts for two interests—put people first and protect the bottom line. Enacting the policy will also provide more room for international or flexible working employees to have more autonomy in picking their locations. As this is becoming the new normal, we can ensure employees are paying to the right social security system at the right location.

International mobility

Our world is increasingly global. Companies need a workforce that’s agile, responds to crisis and is available in every part of the world. Moving quickly becomes extremely difficult when your mobility provider doesn’t have the built-in capabilities to handle strict compliance requirements and heavy administrative tasks. To achieve high volume success, your mobility provider should be getting employees where they’re needed when they’re needed.

An effective global mobility partner has the capabilities to process thousands of applications for the continuation of the home country legislation, like A1, to competent authorities. In addition, they must have a technology enabled system that automatically allows processing of large application volumes with fast turnarounds. While building these capabilities out, social security taxes should be a naturally automated process. When handling social security taxes internationally, your global mobility team should make things easier for your team.

Social security tax services reimagined

Vialto Partners offers a range of services in the social security tax field. We have seasoned experts and the best emerging talent working on our teams to partner with you. Through our service offerings, we co-create digitally enhanced solutions for our clients to meet them exactly where they need us.