🌐 How to Work with International Contractors & Build Relationships

Issue #1, September 26, 2023

Author

Sahil from Dots
September 26, 2023

Welcome to the Payouts Club! 💸

Payouts Club is a bi-weekly newsletter about everything payout-related featuring guides, written content, interviews with founders, case studies, and collective thoughts from fintech leaders and creators.

Each week we’ll cover the most relevant topics from for anyone who works with payouts on the daily which includes:

  • Companies paying out contractors like freelancers and gig workers

  • Contracted freelancers, creatives, gig workers

Here’s this week’s edition:

🌐 How to Work with International Contractors & Build Relationships

Working with an international contractor can be one of the easiest ways to create value without significantly increasing costs.

Oftentimes, there are skill sets that are missing from your existing team, or instances where your employees time and energy are better suited on different projects.

With the global contractor market standing at $885 billion in 2023–many companies and freelancers alike already know how much value outsourcing work can bring for both parties.

In today’s newsletter, we’ll explore:

📊 The advantages of working with international contractors

💸 Top global payment methods and advantages of local currency payouts

🌎 The current global freelance market and demographics

👍 How to build and maintain relationships with global contractors

📚 Gentle Guides:

  • Access a broader pool of talent

  • Find workers with specialized skills

  • Create opportunities for new markets and global expansion

  • Save on hiring costs

  • Get 24-hour coverage and productivity

W-8BEN Forms are a critical part of hiring foreign employees and contractors. These forms are for contractors who are classified as a non-US citizen on the payroll. Filling out this form ensures that tax reporting is correct and that the proper amount of income is withheld.

The rise of digital payments means you can offer multiple payout options for your contractors and allow your contractors to get paid in their local currency. Digital payment APIs also implement encryption and authentication processes to protect against fraud, meaning these transactions are much more secure even when occurring across the world.

Payout APIs can automate tax reporting and compliance for businesses that work with international workers, making it even simple for companies to work with and pay freelancers on time.

So where are most contractors located?

According to a recent report by ICORating,

  • 50.7% of global freelancers are from North America

  • 29.3% are from Europe

  • 11.4% are from to Asia

  • 4% are from South America

  • 3.3% are from Australia

  • 1.4% are from Africa

🔎 Fresh Finds: Global Contractors Edition

Our weekly pick for the best posts, articles, and other content from the community about working with international contractors.

Saibu conducts a deep-dive into the legal and regulatory requirements working with global contractors.

By: Saibu Baba

This medium article that Nami tweeted about goes into detail for the different types of W-8 forms beyond just W-8 Ben and when you need to file for each of them.

By: Niural via @namibaral

💬 Talks & Tweets:

I’m talking to you small startup team member, here’s a reminder you don’t have to do everything. Outsourcing is your best friend.

Having empathy for foreign contractors are one of the easiest ways to build strong relationships.

For our dear contractors out there: don’t be afraid to renegotiate.

Remember to show appreciation for your contractors! It’s one of the best ways to ensure they also deliver the highest quality work for your business.

💡 Bonus: Global Contractor Platforms To Check out:

TL;DR: We want you to join a not-so-secret club for all things payouts! International contractors can bring a lot of value for your business. There are specific regulations for taxation and global payments, but we’ve provided many guides such as the Form W-8 Ben Guide to make it easy.

That’s all folks.

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