Relocation dilemma

cottonsocks

Hi all,

I could really do with some advice on a work situation I have.

I am from Ireland, but based in London for the last 10 years. I finally made the decision to move back to Ireland late last year, and my English partner was due to move to Ireland with me.

I secured a job in Dublin that was due to start in April (with a company operating in both Ireland and the UK). My partner secured a position at a bank, however he was told the job would be put on hold due to COVID. Also due to COVID, I was forced to start my role in London remotely, with my move to the Dublin office to be reviewed in 6 months (by that point the plan was the pandemic will have calmed to the point offices would be open and there being no quarantines, restrictions on moving etc).

Over the last few months we have had doubts about moving to Dublin. My partner has been told this week that the role he was due to move into will be pulled. We had doubts about his role following it being placed on hold, as such he held off handing his notice in his current job.

My issue is this - we are now feeling like moving to Ireland when my office opens again (probably November) when only one of us has secure employment (me being the lower salary earner of the two of us) a very risky move. My partner currently has secure employment with a bank in London, and although he has continued to look for roles in Ireland, is finding very little. We are concerned about how the job market in Ireland will be affected this year by COVID.

I am finding that the line managers I report to (two are based in Ireland, and one in the UK) are increasingly beginning to ask when I will be looking at relocating to Ireland. Of course, now I have serious doubts about going we haven't moved ahead with plans to move, and even though I wouldn't be able to work in the office in Dublin anyway (due to it being closed currently), it seems people are beginning to wonder why I haven't started to plan my move. I was asked by three different colleagues today (two of them bosses) wondering why I didn't relocate to Ireland and work from there, and in each instance, I said my partner's current company wouldn't allow him to work outside the UK (he is also working remotely due to the pandemic) as a means of deflection.

I am finding it very difficult to deal with questions regarding my relocation date when the truth is, I am no longer sure moving to Ireland is the best choice. The only real option for me is to speak to my manager and ask if it is possible for me to continue being based in the UK on a permanent basis, and explain that since I accepted/started the role, my personal situation has changed and I no longer feel that moving to Dublin is the best option for us in the long term.

We are very conscious that this might not suit them as a business and they might say no and the job is only available if I move to Dublin.

How can I best frame it to help present my situation? I would be interested in other people's thoughts on how they would navigate this situation.

Dav010

Are there not significant tax implications to being employed by a company in Ireland but living and working remotely in another country?

Peregrinus

Dav010 wrote: »

Are there not significant tax implications to being employed by a company in Ireland but living and working remotely in another country?

Per the OP, his employer already has operations in both countries. This means that, if they are minded to accommodate his wish to do the job from London, they probably have the structures already in place to accommodate him.

OP, it seems to me that you have nothing to lose by raising this with your employer. You can be frank with them and say that your personal circumstances have changed and that you would prefer to do this job from a London base, if this is possible. They will then have to weigh up (a) the nature and requirements of the job, and (b) how much they like you and wish to retain you, and then either say yes, we can accommodate this or no, we can't.

If they say yes, great. If they say no, you and your partner then face a difficult choice. But it's a choice you face now anyway, so you're no worse off.

I don't think you will harm your position with your employer by enquiring about this possiblity. They won't regard you as flighty or indecisive; they will understand that the CV19 pandemic has changed a lot of things for a lot of people. If they say no, and your eventual decision is to move to Ireland, I don't think the fact that you enquired about not moving is likely to be held against you in any way.

Batgurl

First things first, you should ask them when they are reopening their Irish offices. Most Irish companies have given an indication of when they intend to reopen. Let this be your marker to base any of your decisions on. If they can’t give you one, then that’s all the answer you need to give anyone when they ask you when you are moving.

I’m very sorry to hear that your partner lost his job offer. I do think securing a job in Ireland will be tougher throughout the rest of the year so if him working for an income is a necessary part of your plan, you will need to take this into consideration before deciding on a move.

However, if it results in you losing your job here, are you prepared to make that sacrifice for him? That would put a lot of strain on a relationship. It could be that you need to look at a LDR for a while.

beauf

If it were me I'd postpone all plans for 12 months.

We are still in honeymoon period with the covid payments. Once they stop things could be very different. But it will take a couple of month's after that to see. What happens.

cottonsocks

Peregrinus wrote: »

Per the OP, his employer already has operations in both countries. This means that, if they are minded to accommodate his wish to do the job from London, they probably have the structures already in place to accommodate him.

Correct Peregrinus, I was initially on an Irish contract as I was meant to start in Ireland, but when it became clear I would have to start in the UK they moved me to a UK contract to facilitate this from a tax perspective, so in either country they can put me on an appropriate contract.