Direct answer
Before making a first international hire, confirm where the person will work, the actual role and reporting line, which entity or provider will employ them, work-authorization facts, locally required employment terms, payroll and benefits, IP and confidentiality, personal-data access, equipment and the start-date dependencies. A checklist cannot determine worker status or make an employer route lawful.
Preparation sequence
- Define the country, work location, role, reporting line, start date and business activity.
- Confirm the intended employer or EOR and document what each group entity or provider will actually do.
- Collect current local term, work-authorization, payroll, benefit, tax and registration questions before promising a start date.
- Prepare IP, confidentiality, privacy, security, equipment and access evidence before onboarding.
- Assign owners for the first-day handoff and ongoing local employment obligations.
Decisions to record
Who is the actual employer?
Name the employing entity or proposed EOR, the country, contract party, payroll route and allocation of management, immigration, IP, data, benefits and termination responsibilities.
Can the start date actually be met?
Map work authorization, locally required written terms, payroll, benefits, registrations, equipment, security and data-access dependencies to dated owners instead of treating a signed offer as readiness.
Does the written model match the work?
Compare the proposed title, employer and terms with the real location, supervision, schedule, equipment, integration and group activity; keep classification and local-law conclusions open for review.
What remains after day one?
Assign owners for payroll, leave, benefits, policy updates, immigration, workplace issues, data access, performance records and later changes to the role or location.
Evidence to organize
- Role, location and reporting record
- Employer or EOR model and current contract
- Compensation, benefits and payroll inputs
- Work-authorization and local-term questions
- IP, data, security, equipment and onboarding plan
Example decision record
A Singapore-based first hire will report to a Hong Kong manager and access customer data in two systems. The team records the Singapore employer route, KET and payroll inputs, work-authorization question, reporting line, data locations, equipment owner and start-date gates. It does not infer that a group company or provider may employ the person merely because it can issue an offer.
Use the result responsibly
This guide does not select a legal mechanism, determine compliance, validate a contract, calculate a legal deadline, or predict an outcome. Laws, procedures, facts, and provider terms change. Check the official sources and obtain qualified advice where the business decision requires it.
Official reference points
Reviewed 2026-09-02. These sources are starting points, not a complete statement of applicable law.