Negotiate your expat salary

Expatriation, although a great professional opportunity, turns out to be a temporary upheaval in a person’s life.
Negotiating the conditions of your expatriation helps to limit the possible obstacles that may arise when you go to work abroad.

Negotiate your status during your stay abroad

Your status is to be determined according to the length of your stay abroad and the company for which you will work. In other words, if you are on secondment or if you are considered an expatriate.
Indeed, the status of expatriate must be distinguished from that of a posted worker. The posted worker retains his employment contract with his company of origin. With expatriation, the worker signs a local employment contract. He therefore contributes only to the local scheme.

Negotiating your salary and social protection

If expatriation rhymes with promotion, you can negotiate your salary in addition to the benefits of expatriation

• Take stock with your employer of your salary, corresponding to the amount you would have received if you had stayed in your home country. In other words, the gross salary you received before being sent abroad.
• Find out how much of your host country’s reference salary is (equivalent to that received by a local national for a similar position). You should also find out about reference salaries from third countries and internationally, after which you will be able to more easily assess the salary to which you can claim.
• Negotiate a salary net of local payroll taxes. Learn about the stability of your pay currency and consider introducing safeguards to limit changes in the exchange rate.

The expatriation bonus. There are premiums of different natures:

• The difficulty premium for difficult destinations due to their dangerousness or their unstable political situation. Also because of climatic conditions, a lack of satisfactory school or health infrastructure.
• The mobility bonus paid at the beginning and end of the mission.
• The cost-of-living premium for expensive destinations.
• The installation premium to finance the first expenses on site.

Social security coverage (health for the whole family, unemployment contributions and pensions) must also be addressed. The loss of social protection rights in the country of origin, if partially or not at all compensated by the host country’s scheme, results in a virtual loss of income for the employee. The latter will have to compensate himself with private insurance. As a result, the future expatriate can negotiate, for example, the support of his complementary health and that of his family on the spot.

Negotiate the benefits during your expatriation

Help with moving and settling abroad
– Housing assistance
– Moving assistance
– Transport assistance
Help for the family
– Support for children’s schooling
– For the employment of the spouse
– For the maintenance of personal links

Social protection during expatriation

The status of expatriate employee necessarily implies a change of social security coverage. This social protection abroad takes into account all the pension mechanisms that concern illness, disability, unemployment, retirement, etc.
As far as health insurance is concerned, health costs vary from one country to another and can be very expensive; taking out supplementary expatriate health insurance is strongly recommended. Mondassur, broker in international health insurance for 20 years, offers different insurance solutions including for expatriates: GoldExpat. By taking out GoldExpat insurance, expatriates are guaranteed to be very well covered worldwide during their trip.

Negotiate the conditions of return to the country of origin

Negotiating from the start the conditions of return allows you to leave serenely. Indeed, the best way to successfully reintegrate after an expatriate mission in the medium or long term is to settle the conditions before even leaving.
Once settled abroad, it is necessary to maintain a relationship with the company. Regular exchanges with his superiors and colleagues will facilitate a return on good terms.
In addition, make sure with your HR director that you will find a job within the company when you return. You can also negotiate training courses for you and assistance in your spouse’s return to work.

The employer’s obligations

The expatriation of employees presupposes several duties on the part of the employer. Duties such as the obligation to inform and the obligation to be secure.
The employer’s first obligation is to provide the employee with the appropriate employment contract. Depending on the duration and conditions of the mission. In addition, the obligation to provide information. The employer is obliged to inform the employee that he wishes to send him to work abroad before his departure. It is also responsible for communicating on the health and safety conditions of the host country.
Finally, the employer also has a safety obligation, which goes beyond the professional framework. The subscription of a specialized insurance therefore seems necessary. When the employee has been made available to a subsidiary based abroad, the employer also has a duty to repatriate and reinstate.