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15 October 2020 / Juliet Carp
Issue: 7906 / Categories: Features , Covid-19 , Employment , Profession
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Home (working) & Away

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Working at home from abroad—what should employers, employees & their lawyers know? Juliet Carp identifies some of the legal pitfalls & offers some practical suggestions

In brief

  • Challenges of homeworking abroad: first stop immigration.
  • What should a diligent employer do? Global mobility compliance.
  • Where do lawyers come in? Recognising limits.

A lot has been written about homeworking and most of it applies equally to people working ‘virtually’ from abroad. After all, if you are working from home via the internet does it really make a difference if your home happens to be somewhere sunnier or closer to family overseas? The short answer is ‘Yes, it does!’. Extra compliance challenges and costs can be very substantial indeed. While it may make sense to address these when making a strategic decision to move into new markets, it rarely makes commercial sense for one individual who would simply prefer to be somewhere different.

Challenges

So, what are these challenges? First stop immigration, because without immigration compliance, both employee and employer (and sometimes family too) may face a host of sanctions ranging from

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Gateley Legal—Jack Kelly

Gateley Legal—Jack Kelly

Gateley Legal expands Midlands residential development team

Gibson Dunn—Richard Surtees

Gibson Dunn—Richard Surtees

Gibson Dunn adds employee benefits and executive compensation practice in London with partner Richard Surtees

Laytons ETL—Alec Cameron

Laytons ETL—Alec Cameron

Laytons ETL appoints new partner and head of intellectual property disputes

NEWS
A series of recent decisions has clarified important principles across property law, from perpetuities to lease renewals and public rights over land
Employers cannot rely on wellbeing services alone to defend workplace stress claims after a High Court decision awarding almost £1m to an overworked employee
Andy Burnham's brand of 'Manchesterism' could offer fresh thinking on legal aid and access to justice if it reaches Westminster, according to Roger Smith, NLJ columnist and former director of JUSTICE
The constitutional fallout from a change of prime minister, rather than the politics, is under scrutiny as questions arise over the limits of executive authority in a leadership transition
The legal profession is undergoing a fundamental shift from selling services to creating technology-enabled products, according to Professor Luke Mason, Head of School of Law at Regent's University London
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