Remote work is becoming an increasingly popular form of employment among information technology workers in Belarus. However, there are many pitfalls in the correct execution of the contract in this form of work. In this article we will look at changes that have taken place in remote work in IT companies in Belarus by 2024 and what prospects await specialists in this field.
Since January 1, 2024, the Labor Code of Belarus has officially established the possibility of remote employment. This form of work is especially relevant for companies that hire IT staff since experienced employees rarely need to be in the office every day to work successfully on projects.
Remote work can be:
1. Combined
This is an alternation of remote work and work at the workplace. A workplace is a place of work prescribed in an employment contract or a contract concluded with an employee. It is usually the location of the company where the employee is employed.
The combined work looks like this: part of the employee’s working time is working remotely, and part is at the workplace. For example, an employee works in the office several days a week or one day a week, and the rest of the days are remote. An employee may work part of every working day in the office and part of it remotely. Other variations of combined work within working hours are also possible. Working time is the time prescribed in the employment contract concluded with the employee, during which he must stay at the workplace or in another place agreed with the employer and perform his work tasks. Overtime tasks the employer assigns to the employee outside the established working hours are also included in working hours.
It is assumed that combined remote work is permanent and established for the employee for the entire period of his work in the company.
2. Permanent
This is the performance of work remotely on an ongoing basis. In an employment contract or a contract with an employee of an IT company, a condition for remote work is prescribed. Sometimes, it doesn’t matter to the employer where the employee who is hired for remote work is located. However, the contract may set limits and prescribe the time during which the employee must be available for communication.
3. Temporary
Temporary remote work is performed during the period specified by the employer in his order, which may not be longer than six consecutive months during a calendar year. In the case of temporary remote work, changes to the employment contract are not necessary.
When establishing remote work for employees, two mandatory requirements must be observed:
When applying for a job, an employment contract specifies that an employee performs work remotely permanently or in combination. In the case of combined work, the work periods are determined remotely and at the workplace. What else is defined in the employment contract regarding the conditions of remote work:
It is possible to provide for the procedure and cases of exchanging paper documents or paper copies of electronic documents. However, from January 1, 2024, there will be no mandatory exchange of paper copies of documents between the employer and the remote employee.
Features of an employment contract for permanent or combined remote work:
Transfer to permanent remote work
You can transfer employees to permanent remote work anytime, but valid economic or organisational reasons must justify the transfer. Starting from January 1, 2024, the transfer of employees to remote work is considered a change in essential working conditions. The step-by-step translation looks like this:
Step 1. Warning employees
Any change in the already accepted employees should be notified in advance—1 month in advance—and employees should be warned in writing.
Step 2. Issuing a transfer order
The employer issues an order to transfer to remote work. Employees who are assigned to remote work are introduced to the order.
Step 3. Changing employment contracts
When transferring employees to permanent remote work, changes are made to the employment contracts concluded with them. Make changes to employment contracts with additional agreements. The supplementary agreements provide the same conditions as in employment contracts for remote work.
Company employees who refuse to work remotely may resign because they refuse to continue working under the changed essential working conditions.
There is no need to warn employees about temporary transfer to remote work. There is a temporary transfer to remote work step by step:
Step 1. Issuing a temporary transfer order
The employer issues an order for a temporary transfer to remote work due to production necessity. The term of such transfer should not exceed 6 months during a calendar year.
Step 2. Familiarising employees with the order
Employees are introduced to the order for temporary transfer to remote work.
No changes are made to the employment contracts previously concluded with employees.
When an employment contract with a remote worker is concluded in Belarus, it is formally valid only in Belarus’ territory. In the case of conscientious fulfilment by the employer and the employee of their obligations under the employment contract, the employee’s location does not matter when performing work tasks.
However, when an employee of a Belarusian company is physically abroad for more than 183 days a year, he ceases to be a tax resident of Belarus. The tax inspectorate may have questions for such a person, even when the salary was transferred to the employee’s account in a Belarusian bank.
The rule on the personal conclusion of an employment contract with a Belarusian IT company works for both Belarusian and foreign employees. A foreign employee must personally sign an employment contract with a Belarusian company in Belarus.
The state authorities argued that a foreign employee hired for remote work in a Belarusian company should perform remote work on the territory of Belarus. If the company is not a resident of the Hi-Tech Park, it will need to obtain permits in order to employ a foreign citizen.
When the hiring company is a resident of the Belarusian Hi-Tech Park (HTP), it does not need to obtain a work permit for a foreign citizen. This applies to foreigners who do not have a permanent residence permit in Belarus and have signed a contract with an HTP-resident IT company. Such a company must inform the migration service at the place of residence of the foreigner in Belarus in writing about his employment within 3 working days from the date of employment of the foreigner and attach a copy of the employment contract to the notification. Based on this information, the migration service will issue a temporary residence permit to a foreigner in Belarus for the duration of the employment contract and 2 months after its termination. Such employees do not need a visa to enter Belarus, even if a visa regime is established.
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