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Supporting Employee Secondments from UK to US: A Case Study

Supporting Employee Secondments from UK To US

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Managing Temporary Assignments with Long-Term Compliance in Mind

A fast-growing technology company expanding its global footprint by deploying sales and development staff to the US. On a two-year secondment basis, the company sent eight UK employees to New York to support business development and product delivery in the US market.

As the company scaled up its US presence through seconding employees to its new subsidiary, it faced the challenge of ensuring tax and payroll compliance for its employees who were going to be temporarily based overseas. These employees, while still connected to the UK business, required a structure that avoided unnecessary UK deductions and ensured proper US tax treatment—without disrupting their compensation or benefits.

FD’s Approach

Frazier & Deeter (FD) delivered a tailored global mobility solution that balances the needs of the business with the expectations of employees, ensuring compliance in both jurisdictions.

Global Mobility & Payroll Structuring

  • Split Payroll Implementation: Designed and implemented a split payroll system to allocate gross salary between the UK and US, ensuring a portion of the net pay is delivered in each location for the secondee.
  • Shadow Reporting: As part of the split payroll, established shadow payroll reporting to ensure the total salary is appropriately reported in each country to maintain compliance with reporting and withholding in both jurisdictions.
  • Housing & Benefits Advisory: Provided guidance on the tax implications of temporary housing and accommodation benefits offered to secondees.

Tax Compliance & Employee Support

  • Dual Tax Filings: Managed UK and US tax returns for all seconded employees, ensuring accurate reporting and avoiding any double taxation.
  • National Insurance & Pension Opt-Outs: Advised on how to structure secondments to avoid unnecessary US social security payments. Meaning employees can keep within the scope of UK National Insurance and the UK pension scheme during their US secondment.
  • Employee Support: Delivered clear, accessible guidance to employees on how their compensation, benefits and personal tax obligations would be handled during their time abroad. Ensuring secondees were not burdened from increased complexity in their payroll and personal tax affairs during the secondments.

The Results

Frazier & Deeter ensured full tax and payroll compliance in both the UK and US for the company and its secondees, giving leadership confidence in the cross-border structure. Employees benefited from assignments that were carefully structured to meet their expectations while avoiding unnecessary deductions or liabilities, resulting in strong satisfaction throughout the process. By removing administrative hurdles, the company was able to deploy talent quickly and efficiently to the US, maintaining operational continuity during a critical growth phase. In addition, the framework we developed is scalable, providing the client with a repeatable model that supports future secondments and ongoing international expansion.

Looking Ahead

As more companies look to deploy talent globally, having the right structure in place is critical. Whether it’s a short-term secondment or a long-term relocation, we help businesses and employees navigate the complexities of cross-border compliance with confidence.

Planning to send employees abroad? Let us help you build a compliant, tax-efficient framework that works for your business and your people. Reach out today.

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