Author: RachelATO(Community Moderator)Community Moderator 23 Apr 2026
Hi @tulip222,
No, payments to overseas workers do not automatically allow the trust to pass the employment test.
The employment test looks at whether at least 20% of the principal work (the main consulting or bookkeeping work clients pay for) is done by employees or contractors engaged by the trust. Support, admin, or back‑office tasks don’t count as principal work.
Overseas workers can only be counted if:
- they personally perform the principal work
- are engaged directly as individuals, and
- are not associates of the trust or the individual.
You can’t count work done by associated companies, trusts, or partnerships when applying the test.
The trust must also pass the 80% rule to self‑assess the employment test. If 80% or more of the PSI comes from one client (including that client’s associates), the trust cannot rely on this test unless it has a personal services business determination.