Regulatory updates
for Global Employers

Ongoing geopolitical unrest and regional uncertainty are prompting many expatriate employees in the UAE to temporarily return to their home countries or relocate to alternative residences. While short-term remote work can provide a practical stopgap, it carries increasing compliance risk if extended beyond a limited window. In practice:

• Short-term remote work may be feasible, but typically only as a bridge of 4 to 8 weeks.
• Stays beyond 30 to 60 days (depending on the country) can trigger local tax, employment law, and permanent establishment risks.
• UAE employment contracts may remain in place temporarily, but are not designed for long-term cross-border work.

As relocations extend, the compliance position becomes more rigid and requires formal action:

• UAE employment must be terminated if the employee is no longer living and working in the country.
• Employers must complete end-of-service payments, including gratuity, and cancel visas.
• Ongoing remote work under a UAE contract becomes non-compliant and increases legal exposure.

To retain talent without taking on this risk, Employer of Record solutions can act as a compliant way to retain talent:

• Employees are rehired compliantly in their new country.
• Payroll, tax, and benefits are managed locally from day one.
• The employee continues in the same role with minimal disruption to the business.

The Modern Slavery Bill was introduced to Parliament and would establish New Zealand’s first mandatory modern slavery reporting regime for entities operating in New Zealand with consolidated annual revenue above NZD 100 million. It would require annual public modern slavery statements (via an online register) and add enforcement features such as offences/penalties and reporting on modern slavery incidents and complaints. The Bill’s commencement is drafted as 6 months after Royal assent, meaning the regime is not yet in force.

New South Wales has passed amendments to its workers’ compensation laws affecting primary psychological injury claims, including limiting weekly payments beyond 130 weeks unless higher permanent impairment thresholds are met (25% from 1 July 2026, with further increases scheduled). The reforms also legislate a freeze on average premium rate increases by the Nominal Insurer from 30 June 2026 to 30 June 2028 and establish a return-to-work intensive support program of up to 12 months for eligible workers. These changes may influence claim duration and premium settings for employers with employees in NSW.

Italy’s government has issued a draft legislative decree to implement EU Directive (EU) 2023/970 on pay transparency and equal pay, following preliminary approval by the Council of Ministers. The draft would introduce requirements such as publishing pay information in job postings, restricting salary-history questions, and giving workers a right to request pay data by job category. It also sets phased gender pay gap reporting obligations for larger employers (first reports expected from June 2027 for 150+ employees, and from June 2031 for 100–149 employees), subject to the decree being finalised.

The UK government has opened consultations on implementing parts of the Employment Rights Act 2025 covering a new “reasonableness” test for rejecting flexible working requests (intended to come into force in 2027), proposed restrictions on contract changes linked to “fire and rehire”, and new requirements to consult workers when developing or reviewing tipping policies and an associated statutory Code of Practice. The consultations close on 1 April 2026 (fire and rehire; tipping) and 29 April 2026 (flexible working). These measures would apply across Great Britain and may affect employer policies, contract change processes and approaches to tips distribution in relevant workplaces.

On 3 February 2026 the Belgian government submitted a draft act to Parliament proposing a package of working-time reforms to modernise work regulations. Key measures include reducing the minimum weekly part-time threshold from one-third to one-tenth of full-time, abolishing the general prohibition on night work, and introducing a single voluntary-overtime regime. The draft act is currently pending.

Poland has amended its Social Insurance System Act to clarify the rules on sick leave use, introduce statutory definitions of gainful employment and activities incompatible with sick leave, expand certification authorities (including nurses and physiotherapists), and allow employees with multiple jobs to obtain sick leave certificates applicable to only one role; key provisions entered into force on 27 January 2026, with further changes on 13 April 2026 and a provision permitting selective work during sick leave effective 1 January 2027.

The Finance Bill 2026 proposes new income-tax exemptions for foreign companies on specified India-sourced income, including income linked to procuring data centre services from a notified, Indian-owned and operated data centre (available up to 31 March 2047, subject to conditions such as sales to Indian users via an Indian reseller). It also proposes an exemption (available up to 31 March 2031) for income from supplying capital goods/equipment/tooling to an Indian contract manufacturer located in a customs bonded warehouse producing electronic goods on behalf of the foreign company. In addition, certain non-resident businesses (including cruise ship operations and services/technology for setting up an electronics manufacturing facility in India) are proposed to be excluded from MAT.

Effective February 1, 2026, Kenya's National Social Security Fund (NSSF) will raise the Lower Earnings Limit to KES 9,000 and the Upper Earnings Limit to KES 108,000. This adjustment increases the maximum monthly employee contribution to KES 6,480, matched by the employer, totaling KES 12,960 per employee. Employers should prepare for higher payroll costs and ensure compliance with the updated contribution rates.

Amendments to Alberta’s Employment Standards Regulation took effect on 1 January 2026, increasing the maximum entitlement to unpaid, job-protected long-term illness or injury leave to 27 weeks per calendar year. This replaces the previous entitlement of 16 weeks and applies to leave taken for an employee’s own long-term illness or injury. The change aligns Alberta’s entitlement with several other Canadian provinces.