The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on 20 January 2026 held a public consultation with more than 650 stakeholders from government, business, and academia to discuss the key tax challenges and opportunities arising from the global mobility of individuals across borders for work purposes.
The consultation follows the release in November 2025 of a consultation document on the global mobility of individuals that elicited 65+ comment submissions. The consultation document focused primarily on personal income tax and employment income, but also sought feedback on corporate tax issues, including the implications for permanent establishments, profit attribution, residence, and transfer pricing.
The public consultation document noted that a 2025 update to the OECD model tax treaty released on 19 November 2025 includes changes to the commentary on “fixed place of business” permanent establishments and provides certain clarifications.
But the updates to the model tax convention and commentary may leave questions unanswered regarding the triggering of permanent establishments, according to participants during the public consultation. One possible solution floated during the presentation was the introduction of a safe harbour for short-term cross-border work that would specify the number of days in a jurisdiction or the types of activities that could be allowed without creating a permanent establishment.
Speakers during the day-long hybrid meeting in Paris focused on the global mobility landscape and associated challenges, pointing out that the landscape has changed as a result of technological innovations and the globalization of talent and resources. Presenters discussed the main tax challenges, including residence uncertainty, additional compliance burdens for employers, mismatches in tax treatment, timing, and sourcing of income, and cash flow issues.
Panellists at the conference advocated for a range of solutions, including improving the consistency of approach and interpretation of the rules among both OECD and non-OECD countries, enacting standardised frontier agreements for common commuter/remote work “traffic lanes,” and shifting the focus to determine the “source” of income from where work is physically performed to the entity benefiting from the remote work.
The OECD public consultation was an implicit acknowledgment that current tax frameworks may not be up to the task of handling the reality of today’s work models, which now encompass remote and hybrid work, the gig economy, and digital nomads.
In a positive development, the consultation adopted a broader approach to global mobility, going beyond a narrow focus on income tax to include discussions of tax-adjacent issues such as social security systems, payroll mechanics, equity compensation, immigration, and digital nomad regimes. The sense at the consultation was that these issues are inherently related and should not be addressed separately.
The OECD will use the feedback received through the written consultation and the public consultation meeting to determine future Inclusive Framework work on the topic of global mobility and potential guidance updates.
Peter Wuyts
BDO in Belgium
The consultation follows the release in November 2025 of a consultation document on the global mobility of individuals that elicited 65+ comment submissions. The consultation document focused primarily on personal income tax and employment income, but also sought feedback on corporate tax issues, including the implications for permanent establishments, profit attribution, residence, and transfer pricing.
More Questions Than Answers?
The public consultation document noted that a 2025 update to the OECD model tax treaty released on 19 November 2025 includes changes to the commentary on “fixed place of business” permanent establishments and provides certain clarifications.But the updates to the model tax convention and commentary may leave questions unanswered regarding the triggering of permanent establishments, according to participants during the public consultation. One possible solution floated during the presentation was the introduction of a safe harbour for short-term cross-border work that would specify the number of days in a jurisdiction or the types of activities that could be allowed without creating a permanent establishment.
Speakers during the day-long hybrid meeting in Paris focused on the global mobility landscape and associated challenges, pointing out that the landscape has changed as a result of technological innovations and the globalization of talent and resources. Presenters discussed the main tax challenges, including residence uncertainty, additional compliance burdens for employers, mismatches in tax treatment, timing, and sourcing of income, and cash flow issues.
Panellists at the conference advocated for a range of solutions, including improving the consistency of approach and interpretation of the rules among both OECD and non-OECD countries, enacting standardised frontier agreements for common commuter/remote work “traffic lanes,” and shifting the focus to determine the “source” of income from where work is physically performed to the entity benefiting from the remote work.
Broader Perspective
The OECD public consultation was an implicit acknowledgment that current tax frameworks may not be up to the task of handling the reality of today’s work models, which now encompass remote and hybrid work, the gig economy, and digital nomads.In a positive development, the consultation adopted a broader approach to global mobility, going beyond a narrow focus on income tax to include discussions of tax-adjacent issues such as social security systems, payroll mechanics, equity compensation, immigration, and digital nomad regimes. The sense at the consultation was that these issues are inherently related and should not be addressed separately.
Next Steps
The OECD will use the feedback received through the written consultation and the public consultation meeting to determine future Inclusive Framework work on the topic of global mobility and potential guidance updates.Peter Wuyts
BDO in Belgium