International Expansion

International Expansion Skill

Matter context

Matter context. Check ## Matter workspaces in the practice-level CLAUDE.md. If Enabled is ✗ (the default for in-house users), skip the rest of this paragraph — skills use practice-level context and the matter machinery is invisible. If enabled and there is no active matter, ask: "Which matter is this for? Run /employment-legal:matter-workspace switch <slug> or say practice-level." Load the active matter's matter.md for matter-specific context and overrides. Write outputs to the matter folder at ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/employment-legal/matters/<matter-slug>/. Never read another matter's files unless Cross-matter context is on.

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Purpose

International hiring gets handled sloppily at scaleups because nobody owns the full picture. Legal knows the employment-law questions but not the PE risk questions. Finance knows the cost model but not the employee-representation triggers. HR knows the comp benchmarks but not the Day 1 compliance requirements.

This skill doesn't replace any of those functions. It maps the terrain, drafts the right questions for each stakeholder, produces a briefing request that walks outside counsel through the country-specific issues, and creates a tracker that keeps the project moving across sessions.

This skill assumes expansion is decided. It is not a "should we expand?" framework.

This skill does not contain country-specific employment law. The substantive rules change frequently and vary by role, headcount, and industry — the skill routes every country through an outside-counsel briefing rather than relying on a stored reference table.

Load context

Read ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/employment-legal/CLAUDE.md → jurisdictional footprint, escalation table, any existing expansion notes.

Output header

Prepend the work-product header from ~/.claude/plugins/config/claude-for-legal/employment-legal/CLAUDE.md → ## Outputs (it differs by user role — see ## Who's using this).

Workflow

Step 1 — Information gathering

Ask all of the following in a single block:

Before I build the expansion plan I need to understand the shape of this expansion. Please answer what you can — gaps in the answers are themselves useful data:

The expansion

• Which country?
• What roles are you hiring? (Job function matters — a sales rep closing deals creates different legal exposure than an engineer writing code)
• How many hires are planned in the next 12 months?
• When do you need the first person to start?

Current state

• Do you already have a legal entity in this country?
• Have you used an EOR provider before? Are you already considering one?
• Has tax or finance been looped in yet?
• Do you have outside employment counsel in this country?

Strategic context

• Is this a long-term strategic commitment (building a real team) or testing the market (one or two hires, see how it goes)?
• Who is the executive sponsor making the structure decision?

Wait for responses before proceeding.

Step 2 — EOR vs. entity framing

Do not make this decision. Frame it with enough precision that the CFO and tax counsel can make it.

Work through the following factors against the intake answers and produce a structured framing document:

The core trade-off:

Specific headcount break-even points, EOR markup ranges, setup costs, and timelines vary by country and provider — do not hardcode them. Route those questions to tax/finance and the EOR provider.

PE risk flag (route to tax counsel): If roles include sales, business development, account management, or anyone with authority to negotiate or sign contracts on behalf of the company — flag this explicitly:

PE Risk: [Role type] may create a taxable permanent establishment in [country] even before a legal entity exists. This is a tax question, not an employment question. Tax counsel must assess before the first hire.

Produce the question for the CFO/tax:

Questions for your CFO and tax counsel:

• At [N] hires over 12 months, at what headcount does entity setup become more cost-effective than EOR (accounting for EOR markup, setup costs, and ongoing compliance burden)?
• [If PE-risk roles:] Do these role types create a taxable permanent establishment in [country]? If yes, does that change the entity timeline?
• If we start with EOR and convert to entity later, what are the transition risks for the employees already on the EOR?
• Who is our preferred EOR provider for this country, and have we vetted their local compliance track record?

Step 3 — Cross-functional triggers

For each function that needs to be looped in, state: what they need to do, and the specific questions legal should ask them. Do not just say "loop in finance." Draft the ask.

Tax counsel (always required before first hire)

What they need to do: PE risk analysis, determine whether entity is required for tax purposes, advise on equity tax treatment in this jurisdiction.

Questions legal should ask:

• Does hiring a [role type] in [country] create a permanent establishment or taxable nexus before we have an entity?
• What is our exposure window if we start hiring before the PE question is resolved?
• How are our equity awards (RSUs/options) taxed in [country]? Do we need local tax counsel to advise employees at grant and vesting?
• If we set up an entity, what intercompany services agreement is needed between the subsidiary and the US parent?

Finance / Payroll (required before first paycheck)

What they need to do: identify local payroll provider (or confirm EOR handles it), budget mandatory employer contributions, set up local banking if entity.

Questions legal should ask:

• Have we identified a local payroll provider? (If EOR: confirm EOR handles payroll including local social contributions)
• What are the mandatory employer contributions in [country] — pension, social insurance, healthcare — and are these budgeted in the comp model?
• How will equity grants be administered for employees in [country]? Has anyone modeled the employer-side tax withholding obligations at vesting?

HR / Total Rewards (required before offer is made)

What they need to do: benefits benchmarking, comp benchmarking against local market, confirm mandatory vs. supplemental benefits.

Questions legal should ask:

• What benefits are legally mandatory in [country] vs. market-standard? (Do not want to accidentally promise more than required or less than market)
• Is our standard equity package competitive in this market, or does local practice differ significantly?
• Who will be this person's day-to-day manager — local or remote from HQ? (Affects employee-representation analysis and employment agreement terms in some jurisdictions)

Outside counsel (required — do not skip)

What they need to do: research and advise on the local employment framework for this role and headcount, review/draft local employment agreement, flag any structural issues with the proposed arrangement.

The outside-counsel briefing request in Step 4 is the agenda for this engagement. Send it at the start — do not ask piecemeal.