Not too long ago, global expansion used to require companies to open pricey legal entities, navigate complex regulations, and take on significant financial risk — all before hiring a single employee. The process was costly for businesses in terms of both time and money.
Today, that’s no longer the case. Thanks to modern collaboration tools and Employer of Record (EOR) partners, companies of all sizes can compliantly hire international workers, even without a hefty budget or a dedicated global HR team.
But how do companies decide where to hire? Every country varies in labor costs, workforce availability, and regulatory complexity.
By matching business needs with the strengths of specific markets, companies can build a scalable, forward-looking global expansion strategy.
Key takeaways:
- Remote work, EORs, and digital collaboration tools make it easy for enterprises, startups, and SMBs to expand internationally.
- A global business expansion requires evaluating talent availability, labor costs, regulatory environments, and alignment with your business goals.
- Established markets offer access to skilled labor and stable systems, while emerging markets provide cost advantages and access to top skills.
What to Look for When Evaluating a Country for Expansion
As global hiring becomes more accessible, organizations are exploring new markets and tapping into digital-first workforces. The World Economic Forum predicts global digital jobs will grow by 25% by 2030, reaching more than 90 million roles.
Many companies start their search for international remote workers in well-established hiring markets, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, or Germany. However, fast-growing regions across Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region, and Eastern Europe are increasingly worth considering.
Your expansion strategy shouldn’t center solely on finding the cheapest labor or the area with the largest number of skilled professionals. You must consider multiple factors that impact operations, team dynamics, and long-term success.
Key factors include:
- Talent availability and local skills market: Look for a region that is home to a plentiful supply of skilled workers who possess relevant technical and/or language skills.
- Labor cost trends and total employment cost: Don’t only look at salaries; factor in social security contributions, employer taxes, and statutory benefits to account for the total employment cost.
- Ease of doing business: Evaluate the regulatory complexity, licensing requirements, bureaucratic overhead, and employment laws you’ll need to follow.
- Time-zone alignment: Consider how time zones will impact internal collaboration and decision-making, especially for customer support roles.
- Language and cultural compatibility: Understand regional norms related to language proficiency, business culture, communication styles, and work expectations.
- Stability of legal and financial systems: Assess regulatory volatility, and determine if the country has a stable economy, as well as existing legal protections in place to guard against unnecessary risk.
- Local employment requirements: Learn the local probation periods, notice periods, severance pay requirements, and mandatory benefits to budget accurately and avoid making compliance mistakes.
- Immigration environment: Review visa and residency requirements to prepare for potential employee relocation or facilitate intra-company transfers in the future.
- Local universities and training programs: Regions with excellent industry education and training programs will support future hiring needs.
Popular Countries for Global Expansion
These well-established markets are often the first places companies look to when expanding internationally. They provide reliable infrastructure, a robust professional workforce, and relatively stable, business-friendly regulatory environments.
United States: Massive Market and Deep Talent Pool
The United States remains one of the largest consumer and enterprise markets globally, offering easy access to clients, venture capital, and partnership opportunities.
The U.S. workforce is strong across the tech, finance, healthcare, and professional services sectors. Major hubs like San Francisco, New York, Austin, and Seattle are magnets for specialized talent, particularly in fields such as software engineering, data science, and product management.
With that said, employment laws vary from state to state, creating compliance complexity. For example, states like California have strict labor protections, while others, like Texas, are more business-friendly.
Additionally, healthcare costs are high, and a common expectation is for employers to provide comprehensive benefits packages.
Labor costs in the U.S. are among the highest worldwide, but the tradeoff is access to innovation and a culture that values entrepreneurship and rapid economic growth.
United Kingdom: Global Business Hub With Strong Talent
With English as the primary language, a highly skilled workforce, and a concentration of talent in tech, finance, creative, and operations sectors, the U.K. is a popular choice for international hiring.
For firms seeking to hire in Europe, U.K. cities such as London, Manchester, and Edinburgh offer a strong balance of global reputation, a mature regulatory environment, and time-zone overlap with both North America and Europe.
Employment laws in the U.K. are straightforward compared to those in many European Union (EU) markets. Regulations are straightforward, with clear rules governing contracts, notice periods, and statutory benefits.
Canada: Stable, Multicultural, and Highly Skilled
Canada is an attractive hiring market for companies that want a North American presence without the regulatory complexity or cost structure of the U.S.
Hiring in Canada is also quite affordable: salaries are often 20-30% lower than comparable U.S. roles, while the quality of talent remains high.
Cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary offer thriving tech scenes with diverse, multilingual workforces. The workforce is strong in sectors such as engineering, software development, biotech, and advanced manufacturing.
Employment laws are strict but well-defined, with clear regulations around termination, severance, employee benefits, and workplace protections.
Germany: Engineering Strength and EU Market Access
Germany is known for its strength in engineering, manufacturing, automotive, and other research-heavy sectors. Its central location also makes it an ideal gateway to the broader EU market.
Berlin has emerged as a major startup ecosystem, while Munich and Frankfurt remain strongholds for finance, automotive, and enterprise technology.
Here's the caveat: companies must navigate process-heavy labor laws, works councils, strict termination rules, and detailed employee protections.
Mandatory employer contributions to social security and employee benefits are also substantial, often adding 20-25% on top of base salaries.
However, the tradeoff is high productivity, a strong work culture, and access to exceptionally qualified professionals.
Ireland: EU Access With Business-Friendly Environment
Ireland has become one of Europe's most attractive destinations for expansion, particularly for tech and pharmaceutical companies.
Dublin serves as the European headquarters for major players like Google and Meta, creating a robust ecosystem of talent and infrastructure.
Time zone alignment with both the U.K. and mainland Europe also makes coordination and collaboration seamless.
The corporate tax rate is competitive at 12.5% for smaller businesses, and the country offers straightforward employment laws with strong English proficiency.
Singapore: Gateway to Asia-Pacific Markets
Singapore offers political stability, strong legal protections, and a regulatory environment that's more business-friendly than many other countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
English is an official language, reducing communication barriers for international companies. The talent pool is strong in finance, technology, logistics, and professional services.
While labor costs are higher than in many other APAC regions, the ease of doing business and reliable infrastructure are ideal for companies serving Asia-Pacific customers and markets.
Fast-Growing Emerging Markets to Watch
If you can navigate slightly more complex regulatory environments, emerging markets offer access to an affordable, rapidly growing labor market.
Brazil: LATAM’s Largest Talent Market
As the largest country in Latin America by population, with over 212 million people, Brazil offers access to a massive workforce of skilled workers, particularly in technology, customer support, marketing, and operations.
Labor costs are often significantly lower than those in North America or Western Europe, making it cost-effective for scaling support, development, or back-office functions.
Brazil has complex tax and labor regulations, though, including multiple social contributions, vacation bonuses, and strict termination rules. (Psst: an EOR can manage these challenges for you.)
Mexico: Strategic Location With Competitive Labor Costs
Mexico's proximity and time zone alignment with the United States and Canada make it a desirable nearshoring destination.
The availability of qualified candidates is growing rapidly, particularly in technology, finance, and professional services, and labor costs are more affordable than many alternatives.
Local regulations regarding profit-sharing and social security contributions require careful attention; however, Mexico's overall regulatory environment is straightforward.
India: Deep Technical and Operational Talent
India remains one of the largest regions for global skilled labor across software engineering, IT, support, and operations. The country produces millions of STEM graduates annually, creating a continuous pipeline of technical talent.
Hiring in India is cost-effective, with salaries often 60-70% lower than Western markets for comparable roles. English proficiency is strong, and the startup ecosystem is booming.
However, time zones can be challenging, and regional differences across states in labor laws, cultural norms, and employment practices require careful attention to detail and due diligence.
The Philippines: Exceptional Talent for CX and Operations
The Philippines is a top hiring choice for customer support, operations, and back-office functions.
The region has a large, English-fluent workforce and strong cultural alignment with Western markets, making onboarding and team integration smooth.
Cost-efficient hiring, combined with a large pool of remote-ready professionals, makes the Philippines an attractive destination for teams in need of reliable and affordable customer experience, administrative support, or finance operations workers.
Poland: A Growing Tech Hub in Eastern Europe
Poland is emerging as a strong option for engineering, IT, cybersecurity, product development, and analytics talent at a more accessible price point.
The country is an EU member with stable regulations and strong worker protections, offering the benefits of European expansion without the premium costs of Western Europe.
Poland's time zone is well-suited for coordinating with European and Middle Eastern operations, and its workforce is highly educated with strong technical skills.
Vietnam: Rising Talent Market in APAC
Vietnam is one of the fastest-growing talent markets in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly for engineering, quality assurance, and design professionals.
Vietnam is emerging as a compelling alternative to traditional APAC markets like Singapore or Hong Kong, offering tech-savvy, English proficient workers at a fraction of the cost.
The government has also implemented foreign-investment-friendly policies and invested in technology infrastructure, modernizing the business environment.
Comparing Markets: How to Make the Right Decision
So, how do you decide which are the best countries to fulfill your hiring needs? Start by mapping your specific international business goals to each country’s strengths to narrow your focus to markets that best meet your needs.
If you're primarily focused on cost efficiency, emerging markets such as India, the Philippines, or Vietnam offer significant salary advantages. For customer proximity and market access, the U.S., U.K., or Brazil may be more suitable options.
Keep time zones in mind, particularly for customer-facing roles. Some companies thrive with distributed, asynchronous teams, while others need more overlap with headquarters.
Finally, evaluate the compliance complexity and cultural compatibility of the region to plan for challenges. You should also consider long-term versus short-term growth plans to determine if hiring in a particular region aligns with your goals.
EORs Make Global Expansion Faster and More Cost-Effective
With an EOR, you can easily employ talent in new markets without opening a local entity, eliminating months of setup time and saving tens of thousands of dollars. The model is ideal for testing new markets before making long-term investments, giving you the flexibility to scale up or pivot as needed.
EORs handle operational complexity, including payroll processing, tax withholding, benefits administration, statutory compliance, and employment contract management, all in accordance with local laws.
They also reduce risk by ensuring proper worker classification, creating compliant contracts, and adhering to all local labor laws — protecting you from potential fines, back payments, or legal disputes.
Expand Your Global Reach With RemoFirst
With digital-first remote work trends and the availability of EOR and global payroll solutions, companies today have more options and flexibility than ever before.
Carefully weighing your needs — technical, operational, cultural, and regulatory — against the advantages found in both established and emerging markets will guide you toward the best regions to source new talent, which could also vary depending on what roles you need to fill.
RemoFirst can help you hire employees in more than 185 countries and contractors in over 150 countries, enabling you to quickly enter new markets.
We handle compliance, payroll, benefits, and contracts, so you can focus on building exceptional teams wherever the best talent lives.
Schedule a demo to see how RemoFirst can help you build your global team.
