Quick, hassle-free onboarding

We simplify adding the employee’s details to Remote by sending an automated invite straight to your new starter’s inbox

Once the employee signs into the platform, Remote asks them to enter administrative details and upload the necessary supporting documents

Remote performs a right‑to‑work check to confirm workers hold the required permissions, work permits or visas for their location

We prepare the employment agreement and send it to the employee for a formal signature

The employee is enrolled in payroll and benefits programs, and their status is activated in Remote.

Employee onboarding software helps you add new hires to your organisation in full compliance with the relevant employment laws, depending on where you’re hiring. For local hires the process is generally familiar: new employees sign an employment agreement and upload required documents, all managed by the onboarding software. Often this software stays in use once the employee starts, because onboarding is usually a feature of a larger employment software suite.

Onboarding remote employees in countries where your company has no legal entity adds extra complexity. Not knowing local laws and practices can slow hiring and make compliance harder. In those situations, employers often engage an employer of record, or EOR, to hire new workers. An EOR enables businesses to employ staff abroad by acting as the local employer of record and handling tasks such as payroll, benefits, tax withholding, compliance, and stock options.

New hires won’t automatically know the ropes when they begin. Even for small businesses, onboarding is the first chance to sort administrative matters, set clear expectations and share your culture. In many countries, onboarding includes deadlines for paperwork and registrations, so companies recruiting across borders need to be especially careful when bringing on new workers.

Few things annoy new employees more than problems with payroll and benefits. You want new hires to enjoy a positive experience with your company and feel an immediate sense of care and belonging.

If their first paycheque is late or they can’t enrol in insurance due to admin mistakes, new team members quickly lose trust and motivation. A streamlined onboarding process creates a positive experience from day one and helps establish a welcoming workplace.

Bringing remote hires on board can be as simple as onboarding in-office staff — or much more complex, depending on the hire’s location and your level of preparation. If remote employees live near your team (for example, in the same city or state), the process is largely straightforward: provide the right equipment and make them feel welcomed and included. The legal steps (for example, signing the employment agreement) are typically the same.

Bringing on remote employees in a different state or country brings extra challenges. Besides dealing with time zones, you must handle the paperwork and registrations that accompany a distributed hire. For example, some countries require a medical exam as part of a new employment offer, even for remote roles.

Usually, some documents must be lodged with the government by specific deadlines, and employees must be enrolled in social programmes within a given time after starting. To hire in a country where your company has no legal entity, you can engage an employer of record, or EOR such as Remote.

Start with the basics when bringing remote employees into your workforce. Do you have everything in place to employ this person legally?

For contractors, onboarding is typically quicker and more straightforward. Use an international contractor management platform like Remote to pay your contractors in their local currencies.

Onboarding full-time remote employees can be more complex. The key is to understand the regulations that apply in the country or region where your new employee lives and works. If you own an entity in the country where you plan to hire, you will be responsible for tasks including local compliance, payroll, taxes, benefits administration and various paperwork. Because of these barriers, companies onboarding remote employees in other countries commonly work with an employer of record.

Remote is designed to remove the cost, risk and complexity of global employment so you can handle compliance with confidence.

Onboarding independent contractors is usually simpler than hiring full-time staff, but don’t be deceived. If you don’t set the right boundaries in the working relationship, you risk fines and potentially losing ownership of intellectual property (IP).

Start by drafting and signing a formal agreement with each contractor. The contract should cover pay rates, deliverables and ownership of any work created. Rules vary by country, so if you hire internationally use an international contractor management tool — not merely a payment service that offers no contractual protections.

You might decide to convert contractors to employees later on. If that happens, you'll have several options and must onboard the contractors into their new roles with the appropriate paperwork for each country.