{"id":3096,"date":"2023-09-06T09:27:07","date_gmt":"2023-09-06T09:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/?p=3096"},"modified":"2025-11-28T14:12:32","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T13:12:32","slug":"how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/","title":{"rendered":"How to hire and pay foreign freelancers"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_79_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title ez-toc-toggle\" style=\"cursor:pointer\">Table of contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Why_hire_an_international_freelancer\" >Why hire an international freelancer?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Tax_residence\" >Tax residence<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Tax_rate\" >Tax rate<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Special_Q_A_for_you\" >Special Q&amp;A for you<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Currency_exchange\" >Currency exchange<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Conditions_of_payment\" >Conditions of payment<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Record_keeping_and_accounting\" >Record keeping and accounting<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers\/#Hire_and_pay_foreign_freelancers_legally\" >Hire and pay foreign freelancers legally<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>Technological development has made it easier to reach out to the so-called freelancers, both domestically and worldwide. But in order to <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/hire-freelancers-payments-formalities-law\">hire freelancers<\/a> worldwide and pay them, you need to know how the process works. What 5 things do you, as an employer, need to bear in mind?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_hire_an_international_freelancer\"><\/span><b>Why hire an international freelancer?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With widespread access to technology, companies can easily reach out to freelancers from all over the world and use their services. Why opt for such a cooperation? Here are some arguments:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> You are not limited to subcontractors from your country.<\/strong> You gain access to a larger range of specialists, regardless of where they are currently located.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> Worldwide freelancers show the company a different perspective.<\/strong> The experience of living in another country allows subcontractors to look at some of your activities from a different angle, which may be very beneficial for you.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> A worldwide freelancer knows how to reach potential clients from a particular country.<\/strong> You can only grow your business in a specific market if you meet the expectations of the consumers there and follow their habits.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These are just some of the advantages of hiring subcontractors from another country. Despite the benefits that come with it, you may have concerns about how to<a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/all-you-need-to-know-about-laws-and-regulations-about-freelancers-contractors-and-independent-workers\/\"> legally hire<\/a> and pay foreign freelancers. Below we&#8217;ll discuss a few formalities that you need to know.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Download the <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/business-report\"><b>2025\/2026 Business Report<\/b><\/a> to access the strategic market data and proven solutions required to seamlessly hire, pay, and onboard world-class talent<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/business-report\"><b>click here<\/b><\/a><b> to download the report.<\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tax_residence\"><\/span><b>Tax residence<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the simplest terms, tax residence is the place where a taxpayer has all his or her income taxed. Depending on the country, the conditions determining tax residency may vary. In some countries, for example, a factor is whether the taxpayer is domiciled in their country or has resided there for more than a certain statutory period (e.g. in Germany it is six months, in Poland 183 days).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Tax residency is important because, firstly, it determines the settlement of accounts with the freelancer and, secondly, it allows you to pay the relevant taxes on time and avoid double taxation. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tax residency determines how you should hire and pay foreign freelancers.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consider, for example, Croatia, where you can settle any service with a freelancer by means of a contract of specific work, a copyright assignment agreement or an artist\u2019s contract. Whereas in some countries, such as Romania and France, the freelancer is obliged to set up his or her own business and, as a result, settlement with the freelancer will be based on the subcontractor&#8217;s invoice.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tax_rate\"><\/span><b>Tax rate<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tax rates will vary depending on the tax residence of the freelancer Below you can find some onformation about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.federalreserve.gov\/releases\/h10\/current\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tax rates<\/a> for freelancers in three selected countries:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> the United States<\/strong> &#8211; freelancers&#8217; tax rates depend on their income and tax status. The federal income tax system in the United States is progressive, meaning that as income increases, the tax rate increases. Rates fluctuate between 10% and 37%.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> Canada &#8211;<\/strong> tax rates depend on income and province. The tax system in Canada is also progressive, with rates ranging from 15% to 33%.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> United Kingdom<\/strong> &#8211; tax rates depend on the income and location of the freelancer &#8211; for example, rates in Scotland may differ from those in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Also, we&#8217;ve got a blog post on the topic of How to<a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/hire-a-freelancer-from-italy\/\"> hire a freelancer from Italy<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/hire-and-pay-freelancers-from-argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/hire-and-pay-freelancers-from-mexico\/\">Mexico<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/hire-and-pay-freelancers-from-ukraine\/\">Ukraine <\/a>where you&#8217;ll find information about country specific tax rates.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Special_Q_A_for_you\"><\/span><b>Special Q&amp;A for you<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hiring and paying foreign freelancers can be complicated. If you\u2019ve got any questions, then we&#8217;re here to help.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Ask our<\/b> <b>team of business experts, industry specialists and lawyers <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; we\u2019ll come back with the best answers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<script>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\twindow.hsFormsOnReady = window.hsFormsOnReady || [];\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\twindow.hsFormsOnReady.push(()=>{\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\thbspt.forms.create({\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tportalId: 27198211,\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tformId: \"23df5c2f-c0af-48a6-b6db-8834f739c11f\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\ttarget: \"#hbspt-form-1775522224000-5210286918\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tregion: \"eu1\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t})});\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hbspt-form\" id=\"hbspt-form-1775522224000-5210286918\"><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Currency_exchange\"><\/span><b>Currency exchange<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to hire and pay foreign freelancers you also need to pay attention to the currency in which the subcontractor will be paid. If the payment will be made in a different currency to the one used in your country, you will need to exchange it. You can do this through your bank or a currency exchange office. <\/span><b>Remember, however, that the exchange rate will vary depending on current market conditions and the currency itself.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conditions_of_payment\"><\/span><b>Conditions of payment<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The conditions of payment specify in which currency the payment is to be made, its amount and the due date. <\/span><b>Writing down such arrangements will allow you to avoid unnecessary disputes in the future.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> When working with a freelancer from abroad, you need to take into account the fees your bank may charge for making international transfers and the current exchange rate, which may be unfavourable to you on certain days.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-3103\" src=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers-5-things-you-need-to-know-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"hire_and_pay_foreign_freelancers\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers-5-things-you-need-to-know-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers-5-things-you-need-to-know-2-980x654.jpg 980w, https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/how-to-hire-and-pay-foreign-freelancers-5-things-you-need-to-know-2-480x320.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1024px, 100vw\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Record_keeping_and_accounting\"><\/span><b>Record keeping and accounting<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If you want to hire and pay foreign freelancers the final element which you need to consider is record keeping and accounting.<\/p>\n<p><b>Record all payments and arrangements that may be crucial for tax purposes.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Keeping records of these types of documents will also allow you to better control your expenditures and carry out an analysis of whether the money invested in this way is yielding the expected results.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Accounting for freelancers from abroad is not that challenging if you decide to work with one\/two people. Things may look a little different when you manage a larger distributed team. First and foremost, you then have to work legally with everyone, i.e. sign a proper contract, take care of a number of obligations, familiarise yourself with the taxes applicable in the country in question, all this by studying the legal and tax regulations of the country in question.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Neglecting to do so can be very unprofitable for you. <\/span><b><a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/risks-associated-with-illegal-labour\/\">Illegal employment of freelancers carries serious consequences,<\/a> including heavy fines\/pecuniary penalties, loss or suspension of your business license, change of management, or a damaged reputation.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hire_and_pay_foreign_freelancers_legally\"><\/span><b>Hire and pay foreign freelancers legally<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The process of paying freelancers worldwide gets simple with <a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/for-employer\/\">Useme<\/a>. With just a few clicks, you&#8217;re able to manage international cooperations and get rid of thinking about legal issues, preparing contracts, archiving documentation and contacting your accountant every time you need to establish the terms and conditions of a subcontractor&#8217;s settlement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Simply invite freelancers to Useme by requesting an invoice for the work that needs to be done.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><!-- end HubSpot Call-to-Action Code --><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once freelancers upload the finished work into the system, you can accept it and the freelancer will receive the payment within 48\u00a0 hours and you&#8217;ll receive an invoice. If your team of freelancers consists of more than one person, you can also pay them collectively.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"hs-cta-embed hs-cta-simple-placeholder hs-cta-embed-93302916817\" style=\"max-width: 100%; max-height: 100%; width: 2112px; height: 330px;\" data-hubspot-wrapper-cta-id=\"93302916817\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cta-eu1.hubspot.com\/web-interactives\/public\/v1\/track\/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLJDXspIEW2LK3dpuaXFhBT7Bvg85WEZKNOrd0IjrmnTRxxoDzuVrJ4pO05FgKD8SFOBKo%2FLl8tzvmhIj7Ua5QSghjdp2OOZLsIiNEFkGEwoeV3LzKy65jP18dufYI5cpfK5xHYmkHINpWkx8nqoG5IrPjinMUKTFgPFNhFGLMjIWSSaQhzF&amp;webInteractiveContentId=93302916817&amp;portalId=27198211\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" style=\"height: 100%; width: 100%; object-fit: fill;\" src=\"https:\/\/hubspot-no-cache-eu1-prod.s3.amazonaws.com\/cta\/default\/27198211\/interactive-93302916817.png\" alt=\"\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re interested in the topic of paying freelancers, you should also read<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-pay-your-freelancer\/\"> this blog post.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More and more companies are choosing to hire freelancers to relieve their full-time employees, to speed up projects or delegate a task to an industry specialist. Read our blog post and discover five things you need to know before you decide to hire and pay a foreign freelancer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3101,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","content-type":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-for-employers"],"modified_by":"\u017baneta","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3096"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3096\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5704,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3096\/revisions\/5704"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/useme.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}