Seven talent mobility dilemmas in 2025 and beyond: working from anywhere

By Olivier Meier, Mercer

Working from anywhere: flexibility versus feasibility

Observations

The rise of international remote working has transformed the traditional workplace, offering employees unprecedented flexibility regarding where and how they perform their jobs. The move to a “working from anywhere” model has rapidly transformed this previously uncommon benefit into a must-have perk for employees. Two-thirds of companies now allow temporary international remote working through established policies or on an ad-hoc basis. According to Mercer’s 2025 Talent Mobility Outlook survey, 43% of organizations feel this topic will continue to grow in importance, while a further 23% consider it stable.

Although the feedback on international remote working policies tends to be encouraging, companies face the tricky task of balancing flexibility with accountability and limited HR resources. Despite the potential advantages of international remote working, concerns persist. HR teams often report inconsistent policy application, inadequate communication and issues related to resource allocation.

Solutions such as employer of record (EOR) services have emerged, providing potential assistance in certain situations. However, these solutions aren’t one-size-fits-all. Variations in local laws mean such solutions may not work equally well in every country. A lack of a coherent strategy can lead to grudging acceptance of international remote work requests, driven more by the fear of losing key talent than by any clear strategy. More critically, ambiguous communication increases the risk of misalignment between employee expectations and organizational policies.

The absence of a universally accepted definition of “working from anywhere” further complicates matters, as organizations must navigate diverse cross-border scenarios and employee needs.

The dilemma

At the core of this issue lies a tricky question: How can organizations offer employees flexibility without risking compliance or overwhelming HR teams?

This challenge encompasses three critical dimensions:

Compliance

Working from diverse jurisdictions introduces intricate challenges, as labor laws, tax regulations and immigration policies vary significantly by location. Noncompliance can lead to severe repercussions, including legal disputes and financial penalties. Companies must also navigate data protection and privacy regulations to safeguard sensitive information accessed from multiple locations.

Resource allocation

Granting flexibility requires reevaluating resource distribution. Organizations may find that supporting a dispersed workforce requires investment in various resources, including technological infrastructure, compliance guidance and communication tools. It places an additional burden on HR teams with already-limited resources.

Strategic direction

Beyond compliance and resources, organizations must clarify the purpose behind their remote work policies. Organizations need to assess how these policies influence talent attraction and retention, ensuring that all stakeholders are aligned with their broader goals.

Resolving the dilemma

Post-COVID, most organizations have simply reacted to employee requests without establishing consistent strategies. HR teams must now establish transparent and comprehensive remote work policies that clearly outline the parameters of the “working from anywhere” model. These policies should encompass several key factors:

Establishing a clear remote working typology

The remote working debate influences company culture and management’s willingness to allow flexible work. However, international remote working comes with different and more complex cross-border compliance issues. There is also a difference between short “workations” requested by employees and extended periods of international remote working initiated by the company for talent-sourcing purposes.

Organizations need to establish a definitive perspective on these different types of remote work. Cut through the noise with clear communication to all stakeholders. Robust definitions and objectives should clarify whether remote work is an additional benefit, a talent sourcing strategy, or a provision for special cases and emergencies.

Setting clear criteria for filtering requests is essential to ensure the work-from-anywhere model remains viable

Exclude requests that would trigger excessive compliance and liability issues for the company and employees. Clearly defined eligibility criteria, communication expectations, performance metrics, and compliance requirements will help manage both employer and employee expectations, providing a structured foundation for remote work.

Smart organizations will steer clear of locations that could create serious compliance issues. These include countries with strict tax liabilities and those in which the company does not have a legal entity and faces a “permanent establishment” ruling risk (that is, the remote worker triggers a new tax liability for the entire company). Countries can be categorized as low risk, medium risk (subject to additional review by a tax advisor) or high risk (likely to create significant challenges and unsuitable for remote working arrangements).

Exclusions can include specific jobs for practical or data-safety reasons as well as tax liabilities; for example, a head of business signing contracts is more likely to trigger a permanent establishment ruling than a more junior back-office employee.

Finding the most effective approval process

Finding an effective approval process requires striking a balance between compliance rigor and simplicity to minimize administrative burdens. A completely laissez-faire approach poses compliance risks for both the company and its employees. A streamlined approach could rely on formal approval or declaration for preapproved destinations.

Approval processes

Type of approval	Process
Laissez-faire	No approval or declaration is needed.
Simple declaration	For tracking purposes, the employee must submit a declaration with details of remote working, but formal approval isn’t required. Remote working may be limited to preapproved locations (low-compliance-risk countries).
Approval	The employee must obtain formal approval from line management or HR before starting remote work. This requirement applies either to all remote working requests or medium-risk countries only (requiring further compliance checks).
Exception only	The employee must obtain formal approval, granted only in limited cases and/or subject to review by top management. This may include the option to limit remote working in general or only to selected high-compliance-risk countries.

Ignoring popular remote work trends can be risky, but allowing work from every location is simply unrealistic. Establish clear processes and leverage technology to find the right balance between offering employees the options they want and ensuring compliance.

Find out more about managing risks related to working from anywhere.

Learn how to get started with international remote working.