{"id":18589,"date":"2025-09-19T23:00:46","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T21:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/?p=18589"},"modified":"2025-09-22T17:17:31","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T15:17:31","slug":"remote-work-abroad-legal-grey-zones-leave-employers-and-workers-exposed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/18589\/remote-work-abroad-legal-grey-zones-leave-employers-and-workers-exposed\/","title":{"rendered":"Remote work abroad: legal grey zones leave employers and workers exposed\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home has become the norm across many sectors. But when \u201chome\u201d moves across borders, the rules quickly become murky. Few companies have clear policies on remote work from abroad, leaving employees and employers at risk.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Legal grey zones\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s important to distinguish between two situations: one where an employee lives in country A and works permanently for an employer in country B (also known as a frontier worker), and another where an employee asks to work temporarily from another country, often called a \u2018workation\u2019.<\/span> \u201cRemote work from abroad is becoming more common, also due to developments in the EU legal framework\u201d says Armand Lahaije, tax advisor at Dutch employers\u2019 association AWVN. \u201cIn practice, we don\u2019t actually see a major increase when it comes to workations. What we do see is that when it happens, even occasionally, it creates complex legal and fiscal questions.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Lahaije, most companies still lack a framework. \u201cManagers make decisions case by case, which leads to inconsistency and legal risk,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s not just about trust or flexibility. It\u2019s about compliance with tax law, social security and labor regulations.\u201d The employee is obliged to notify the employer when (temporary) working from abroad. The employer must investigate what foreign legal rules need to be complied with when working from abroad.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The EU framework\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Within the European Union, rules allow employees to remain insured in their home country if they spend at least 25% of their working time in the coming 12 months there. AWVN advises employers to limit so-called \u2018workations\u2019 to a maximum of two to three months, including an eventual period of leave. Beyond that, risks multiply. Also, when the employee requests for a workation in the (former) home country, special attention is needed.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Outside the EU, matters become even more complicated. Residency laws, visa requirements and labor protections vary widely. According to Kroes Advocaten, there is no EU-wide digital nomad visa. Instead, freelancers and employees must navigate a patchwork of national rules, often needing to prove financial independence and avoid local services.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWithout bilateral agreements, you may end up paying social premiums in two countries,\u201d warns Lahaije.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Workers want freedom\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0 For employees, the\u00a0appeal of location-independent work remains strong. Nino Davitouliani, an environmental consultant based in Tbilisi, Georgia, says the flexibility is worth it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n\n

\u201cI love the freedom, but it requires discipline,\u201d she explains. \u201cSometimes I miss the structure and social contact of an office.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her case is relatively simple; she works from her home country. But for Europeans working temporarily or long-term abroad, the rules are vague and rarely communicated clearly by employers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Real risks\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

That lack of clarity can have consequences. If an employee is injured while working remotely from abroad, liability and insurance coverage may be unclear. In some cases, local authorities may view the arrangement as undeclared labor, leading to fines or sanctions.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Employers urged to act\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

AWVN is calling on companies to take a more structured approach. That means setting boundaries on how long someone can work abroad, clarifying visa responsibilities and defining what happens in case of illness or injury and making clear who bears additional costs. In practice most employers take the approach that as the initiative lies with the employee and if there is no business need for the employee to be present in that country, the additional costs are for the account of the employee.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you go abroad on your own initiative, the responsibility is mostly yours,\u201d says Lahaije. \u201cBut employers must be transparent about what they allow and what they don\u2019t. Furthermore, foreign jurisdictions may involve the employer in the process of applying for the visa.\u201d<\/span> \"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

The road ahead\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The shift to hybrid work has reshaped expectations around location and productivity. But when national borders enter the equation, flexibility quickly collides with bureaucracy.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRemote work abroad won\u2019t disappear,\u201d Lahaije concludes. \u201cBut without clear agreements, it\u2019s not sustainable.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home has become the norm across many sectors. But when \u201chome\u201d moves across borders, the rules quickly become murky. Few companies have clear policies on remote work from abroad, leaving employees and employers at risk.\u00a0 Legal grey zones\u00a0 It’s important to distinguish between two situations: one where an employee […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2781,"featured_media":18592,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cbj","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nRemote work abroad: legal grey zones leave employers and workers exposed\u00a0 - International Journalism<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Remote work abroad: legal grey zones leave employers and workers exposed\u00a0 - International Journalism\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Since the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home has become the norm across many sectors. 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