Global Mobility Guide | How important is it to ensure you have a solid pension scheme for globally mobile staff?

How to provide pensions for the elderly represents a challenge for businesses and governments. And the solutions offered vary widely between countries. As a result, the provision for the retirement of employees is organised and regulated across different jurisdictions in many ways: ways that are often not particularly consistent with each other.

For example, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), in addition to end-of-service benefit, many employers offer private pension schemes to their expat workforce, to which both the employer and employee contribute. They are paid in a cash lump sum when the employee retires or leaves the company. However, if a contract is terminated early, the employee may lose the employer contributions.

In Malaysia, private sector employers are required to contribute to a government-established fund that employees may use in part for retirement provision and part for buying a home or emergency medical expenses over the age of 55.

In most other countries, the provision is by way of a pension that is paid out from retirement until death, providing some guaranteed income in old age.