Last Updated on December 10, 2024
Short-term business travel and understanding which work permits to obtain can be a gray area for global companies. Unsurprisingly, 33 percent of businesses find understanding the difference between simple business travel and work permit-required travel their most significant compliance challenge. When we asked 442 HR professionals and hiring managers across various industries for our Global Workforce Mobility Survey 2017, we discovered that.
Business travel is a general term that applies to employees who travel outside their base locations for business and who are not on a formal assignment or transfer. The nature of the assignment and its location determine whether work permits are required for this type of travel. Duration can sometimes play a role, but that’s not always true.
Hence the gray area.
Our experience shows that employers sometimes assume short-term travel does not require work permits, which can lead to trouble and accidental noncompliance if a different visa is required. Here are a few brief examples, each with different requirements, to show just how complicated it can be:
- India’s immigration policies require a senior manager to engage with the company’s newest office in India and apply for an employment visa, regardless of duration.
- Employees attending a week-long marketing conference in London must obtain a business visitor visa to comply with UK immigration laws.
- A financial auditor traveling to Brazil to gather information for an assignment must apply for a work visa first.
Considering that there are 196 countries, each with its own distinct set of immigration laws, staying compliant with every international assignment seems daunting but is necessary. Consulting a legal partner familiar with international immigration laws is one of the best ways to stay in compliance.
For more information on how to stay compliant, watch our webinar, On the Record: Maintaining Immigration Compliance for Your Organization.
Content in this publication is for informational purposes only and not intended as legal advice, nor should it be relied on as such. For additional information on the issues discussed, consult an attorney at Corporate Immigration Partners, P.C., or another qualified professional of your choosing. On non-U.S. immigration issues, consult your Envoy representative, or another qualified representative of your choosing.
