Identifying the needs for international transferees usually means addressing a long check list of legal, tax, visa and moving requirements. Importantly, managing these issues minimises risk for both the organisation and its employees.
But are there any matters that can be overlooked?
Home Contents Insurance
HR professionals can be responsible for a diverse range of nationalities, and with that comes a variety of personal experiences in the field of home and contents insurance.
It is important to note that when renting property in Australia, landlords are responsible for damage or loss to the building and its fittings only – not for the tenant’s personal possessions such as clothes, furniture, electrical goods, books and other valuable belongings.
While completely optional in Australia, home contents insurance is recommended for the transferee’s peace of mind when moving into a rental property.
Anthony Scott of independent broker, WatkinsTaylorStone knows only too well the benefits of contents insurance. “We had a client call me at 7pm one evening earlier this year. They were ankle deep in water, which was still gushing from the ceiling as they waited for a plumber to arrive and turn the water off. Despite the time, we were able to arrange for a restoration company to arrive on site that evening to begin the clean up and take critical steps to minimise further damage to their belongings. We worked with the insurer, loss adjuster and our client throughout the claim, which included the need for temporary accommodation whilst repairs were carried out”.
Companies can rest assured that Woodhams Relocation Centre will ensure employees are aware of the potential risks if they don’t take out personal contents insurance.
International Money Transfers
Another personal challenge facing expatriates moving abroad is the sometimes expensive and time-consuming task of international money transfers.
It is worth considering that transferees can find it difficult to navigate the different fee structures and currency exchange rates offered by different banks and foreign exchange providers, and they can end up with unforeseen costs solely due to their international move.
For example, when making mortgage payments back home or completing salary transfers, employees can lose money through bank/provider fees and foreign exchange rates. While this can be viewed as a personal cost to the transferee, it should also be acknowledged that the they would not incur these costs were they not working for their corporation abroad.
Woodhams informs transferees about options and costs associated with moving funds from Australia and recommends this is further bolstered by organisations providing relevant information internally too.
Suzie Adlington, an UK expat living in Australia found that OFX was the best option. “OFX had the cheapest rates that I could find and it also seemed like the safest. As I was transferring over $90,000, I wanted to make sure the system that I was using was secure, but also simple. OFX was good and the customer service that I received was exemplary compared to previous overseas transactions that I’d made before”.
By choosing to use a global international money transfer service like OFX, employees could save a considerable amount of money when compared to the banks.
For more in depth information concerning either contents insurance or international funds transfers, don’t hesitate to contact us: relocations@relocationcentre.com.au
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