Is transferring employee data between offices a problem?

It can be, if the offices are in different countries. Moving staff data from an EU office to one outside the European Economic Area is a restricted transfer under GDPR and needs a valid safeguard. Transfers within the same country, or to an adequate country, are more straightforward.

What are standard contractual clauses used for here?

They are the most common tool for legitimising a transfer to a country without an adequacy decision. Both the sender and recipient sign the European Commission's approved clauses, committing to protect the data to a GDPR-equivalent standard. They are often paired with a short assessment of the destination country's laws.

Do non-EU privacy laws restrict transfers too?

Yes. Brazil's LGPD, China's PIPL and Thailand's PDPA, among others, each impose their own transfer and consent rules. They are not identical to GDPR, so a mechanism that satisfies European law may not automatically satisfy another country's. Transfers often need to be checked against every jurisdiction involved.

How does an EOR handle cross-border data transfers?

A credible Employer of Record processes employee data under a data processing agreement and uses recognised safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses, for any transfer between countries. It is fair to ask a provider how it moves your workers' data and what mechanism it relies on to do so lawfully.

Glossary

Cross-Border Data Transfer

A cross-border data transfer is the movement of personal data from one country to another, such as sending payroll records from a European subsidiary to a United States head office, which triggers privacy-law obligations under regimes like the GDPR, LGPD and PIPL.

Reviewed by Teamed's in-house employment-law team·Last updated 28 July 2026

What is Cross-Border Data Transfer?

A cross-border data transfer is any movement of personal data across a national border, whether by sending a file, granting remote access, or storing data on servers in another country. In global employment, it happens constantly: payroll, tax and HR records routinely move between the country where staff work and where the company is based.

Many privacy laws restrict these transfers to protect the people the data is about. Under the GDPR, personal data can leave the European Economic Area only with a valid safeguard, such as an adequacy decision, standard contractual clauses, or binding corporate rules. Other regimes, including Brazil's LGPD and China's PIPL, set their own conditions that differ from the European model.

For employers, this means a transfer that seems routine can carry real compliance duties. Sending employee data to a parent company, a payroll provider or an Employer of Record in another country needs a lawful basis and appropriate safeguards, not simply a working file-sharing link.

What counts as a cross-border data transfer?

More than emailing a spreadsheet abroad. It includes giving a team in another country remote access to a database, hosting data on overseas servers, and using a cloud provider whose infrastructure sits outside your region. If personal data becomes accessible from another country, a transfer has effectively taken place.

This broad reading is why routine IT and HR setups, not just deliberate data exports, can fall within transfer rules.

How can data be transferred out of the EU lawfully?

The GDPR allows it only with a recognised safeguard. The main routes are an adequacy decision, where the destination country is deemed to offer equivalent protection; standard contractual clauses signed by both parties; and binding corporate rules within a group. Limited one-off derogations, such as the individual's explicit consent, also exist.

Why does this matter for HR and payroll data?

Because employee data is personal data, and it crosses borders whenever a company centralises HR or uses an overseas payroll provider or Employer of Record. Each transfer needs a lawful basis and safeguards. Overlooking this is a frequent gap for companies that manage a distributed workforce from a single head office.

Key facts

GDPR restricts transfers: Under GDPR Article 44, personal data may be transferred outside the European Economic Area only where the conditions in Chapter V, such as an adequacy decision or standard contractual clauses, are met, including for onward transfers.Source: GDPR, gdpr-info.eu· verified 2026-07-28

Frequently asked questions

Is transferring employee data between offices a problem?
It can be, if the offices are in different countries. Moving staff data from an EU office to one outside the European Economic Area is a restricted transfer under GDPR and needs a valid safeguard. Transfers within the same country, or to an adequate country, are more straightforward.
What are standard contractual clauses used for here?
They are the most common tool for legitimising a transfer to a country without an adequacy decision. Both the sender and recipient sign the European Commission's approved clauses, committing to protect the data to a GDPR-equivalent standard. They are often paired with a short assessment of the destination country's laws.
Do non-EU privacy laws restrict transfers too?
Yes. Brazil's LGPD, China's PIPL and Thailand's PDPA, among others, each impose their own transfer and consent rules. They are not identical to GDPR, so a mechanism that satisfies European law may not automatically satisfy another country's. Transfers often need to be checked against every jurisdiction involved.
How does an EOR handle cross-border data transfers?
A credible Employer of Record processes employee data under a data processing agreement and uses recognised safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses, for any transfer between countries. It is fair to ask a provider how it moves your workers' data and what mechanism it relies on to do so lawfully.

Related terms

Note

This is general information, not legal advice. Statutory rules vary by country and change over time.

Glossary

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Last verified 2026-07-28