As an increasing number of companies become global in their operations, demand has risen for flexible employee benefits solutions able to meet the needs of organisations with employees spread around the world.

The Isle of Man Government has taken advantage of its strong and dynamic partnership with industry to offer a 'one stop shop' for employee benefits solutions aimed at international companies. For example, Isle of Man companies have experience developing bespoke pension solutions to equalise reward schemes across countries.

The new solutions package will mean that international companies can offer a range of benefits to their employees worldwide from the major global companies on the Isle of Man, where the clustering of financial and business services has led to a competitive environment fostering innovation.

The Isle of Man has a highly developed international life insurance industry, a wide range of group pension scheme administrators, a dedicated pension regulator, and specialist trust companies. The Island also benefits from expert support services such as banking, legal, actuarial and accountancy.

John Batty, Department of Economic Development, comments: "The Isle of Man is very active in the employee benefits space, and we pride ourselves on being able to offer varied and flexible solutions. As companies become increasingly international in their operations, the servicing requirements for the employee base changes and it is this shift that has prompted a rise in demand for services such as international pooling and captive insurance as a viable benefits solution. We are proud to be spearheading this industry development and aim to keep abreast of the needs of international businesses."

Jonathan Hall, General Manager (IOM) from Friends Provident International, based on the Isle of Man comments: "There is great demand for these services now and that is only set to grow in the future as the international workforce becomes even more mobile. We are pleased to be at the forefront of this development and are looking forward to working with companies to develop tailor- made solutions"

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FACTS:

  • There are 656 registered pension schemes on the Isle of Man (as of 31.03.10)
  • The Isle of Man is home to 16 life insurance companies
  • The Isle of Man's life insurance sector has over £37.5 billion in funds under management

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.