Working Abroad with Remazing

To ensure a smooth and compliant process, we have established a comprehensive “Working Abroad Policy” that outlines the rules, legal requirements, and approval process for working outside the standard work location.

Defining “Working Abroad”

Working abroad, as per our policy, involves conducting regular job duties from a location outside the usual workplace of residence. This can include short-term stays for a few days and longer-term arrangements, like an extended “workation” from another place within either your own or a foreign country.

Rules for Duration

The duration of working abroad varies based on the individual employment setup. Full-time employees are, for example, permitted to work abroad for up to 60 working days per calendar year, excluding weekends. Vacation days that might be included in the abroad period are, of course, not countable. Only the time spent actively working while abroad counts toward the limit. 

We have a separate working-abroad absence in our HR software to track and keep an overview of each team member’s allowances.

Process

Working abroad requires prior approval from the direct manager of the employees. Moreover, our People & Culture team also needs to be involved to make sure legal requirements are met. Depending on the country of origin, destination, and duration, specific certificates may be required for social security purposes.

Other conditions

When working abroad, certain general conditions must be considered as well:

• A stable Wi-Fi connection to ensure seamless communication and productivity. This needs to be ensured before booking accommodation. Ideally, there should be an alternative plan in the event of not having stable Wi-Fi.
• The general work environment must enable productive and undisturbed work.
• Most Remazians work in Central European Time (CET). Working Abroad in a significantly different time zone can, therefore, affect cooperation with team members or external partners and should be well considered.

All the above information is part of our Working Abroad Policy and must be taken into account when planning. If this is done, there is nothing standing in the way of a successful workation.

Insights & Impressions

In 2022 our working-abroad absence was triggered 195 times by roughly 50% of our team members, with the final result of 600 days spent abroad. Looking at the first half of 2023, we are already ahead of half-year 2022. 

Thus far, Remazians have been working abroad in many countries, including Austria, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, the UK, Ireland, and even Canada or the States. And while many team members are unsurprisingly using the policy to visit their hometowns and families, we are super excited to observe another trend: An increasing number of people are working abroad with other team members, either with their own teams, cross-team or to visit our different company hubs in Hamburg, Turin, London, Barcelona, and Paris.

Relevancy and Benefits

While remote work is becoming more prevalent and, as an employer, we want to position our company as adaptable to emerging trends in the job market, we see other, even more relevant and beneficial aspects, including:

Giving the flexibility to work from abroad increases job satisfaction and adds to a better work-life balance, higher productivity, and engagement levels. People can be exposed to different cultures, ways of thinking, and approaches to problem-solving. This can lead to fresh perspectives and innovative ideas.

Additionally, especially with regard to meeting other team members when working abroad, cross-border collaboration and networking are promoted. Team members from different locations can share their knowledge, expertise, and best practices, resulting in a more interconnected organization.

And last but not least, it is simply an enjoyable experience to be integrated into our standard work lives.

Conclusion

Once a practicable process and policy are created, a “Working Abroad Policy” has proven to be a valuable asset in fostering a flexible and forward-thinking company culture. We are excited to see where Remazians are heading to next and what benefits we can all take from it.