Connecting Small Businesses to International Talent

Big businesses have always had the resources to tap into global talent pools. Small businesses deserve the same competitive edge, but they need a partner who understands the unique complexities they face—and the importance of maintaining a local, “one-team” touch. 

At Justworks, we’re excited to step into this role. It’s an opportunity to help more types of small businesses grow with confidence and ensure that every team member, no matter where they live or work, feels valued and supported. Here’s how we’re getting started.

International Contractor Payments at Justworks

We’re launching contractor payments that transcend borders—directly addressing the needs of small businesses looking to seamlessly hire, onboard, and pay global talent.

To get at solving the unique challenges that our customers face, we worked with over 250 small businesses looking to leverage global talent. Some were looking to explore hiring contractors abroad for the first time. Others were already there, but frustrated with the status quo of third-party solutions. By co-creating with our customers and building international payments directly into the Justworks platform, we’re giving small businesses a consolidated international payments experience that is tailor-made for them. 

With 1,000 customers now up and running from our waitlist, we’re excited to further empower small businesses with access to global talent in the months ahead. 

With these new international capabilities:

• All Justworks PEO customers can now manage their international contractor payments in the same tool as their domestic contractors and employees

• Customers will see currency exchange rates for every transaction

• Customers can pay people in 30 countries, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and the U.K, with more coming soon.

International contractor payments is Justworks’ first step into supporting global workforces. A native Employer of Record (EOR) platform is in the works and set to debut later this year.

Our international capabilities will be grounded in the same easy-to-use software and sense of partnership that over 10,000 small businesses in the U.S. rely on. So, whether you're compensating a contractor or employee in Dallas or Dublin, the experience will be unified. As will the experience. For example, the intuitive flow our customers love when onboarding U.S. contractors? We've already mirrored that for international, too.

From New York to International

Early on in Justworks’ history, after getting a foothold in New York and earning the right to serve a few hundred customers, we felt the pressure to expand quickly and do more. 

The pressure to support other states, features, and benefits partners crept into every decision point. This was a tough thing for our team. At times, it felt existential, with lots of potential investor money tied to building what outsiders were telling us was right. But our instinct was to stay focused on the customers we had—and listen. We wanted to get really good at serving companies in New York before we took on the incremental complexity of other markets. 

In doing so, we learned how to deliver a truly exceptional customer experience. And, we were able to codify the early organizational and product principles that would later support achieving it at scale. This fork in the road has echoed throughout Justworks’ history. And, until recently, it is why we have remained laser-focused on U.S. small businesses and teams. 

Looking Ahead: Our Local Vision for Global Teams

When we first began exploring building our own international capabilities, our quest was to understand the complexities of cross-border money movements, legal nuances, and global employment norms. As we delved deeper, a consistent message emerged. The experience of international talent often felt second-class, lacking the same attention, tools, and even empathy as their domestic colleagues.

The status quo stories we heard were concerning: international teammates feeling like an afterthought, forgotten due to separate systems, experiencing subpar (or no) service, or being forced into annoying annual contracts by their employer’s global payroll provider. It became clear that the industry's approach to global talent mirrored the sentiment sometimes reserved for temporary staff. The ethos? "Good enough for international."

The big unsolved challenges aren’t logistical. They’re human. While others in this space seem content simply “handling” an international workforce—we see an opportunity to think about new team members’ lives and well-being. It’s about more than just punctuality in pay—it's about valuing the unique needs and expectations of international teammates. Because they deserve it.

We want to give every team member—no matter their location—the same exceptional experience. This doesn't just mean a one-size-fits-all global product but, ultimately, a tailored, culturally-relevant offering for each country. We envision a future where U.S. entrepreneurs can seamlessly manage and take care of their people in Spain, Canada, and other corners of the world with the same simplicity and sense of partnership they get from Justworks already. International contractors and employees should feel first-class. Their contributions are a critical part of the modern small business’s journey, and we plan to build the experience they deserve.