Expat Relocation (ER)
entry by Julie M. Marx, Global Family Expert at Expat Valley
Expat Relocation, often shortened to ER in practitioner language, refers to the end-to-end process of moving an employee and, where applicable, their family from one country to another for work, including physical move management, immigration, temporary housing, settling-in support, and the practical set-up of daily life. From the family’s perspective, ER is the operational container for their transition experience the visible expression of how seriously their employer takes the human impact of the move.
Comparable terms
Employee Relocation ER (Family Dynamics); International Assignment (Transitions & Mobility); Destination Services (Professional Support Roles); Global Mobility Program (HR practice)
Why this matters
This entry matters because expat relocation is where strategy, policy, and lived family experience meet. When ER is designed with the family system in mind, it reduces stress, accelerates adjustment, and protects assignment ROI; when it is treated as a shipment and paperwork exercise, it can undermine even well-designed global mobility policies.
Cross-references
Expat Relocation (Family Dynamics); Destination Services Provider (Professional Support Roles); Soft Landing (Transitions & Mobility); Family Support Specialist (Professional Support Roles) Expat Relocation (ER) names the overall move process described technically under Employee Relocation and administered via Destination Services Providers, with Soft Landing and the Family Support Specialist capturing the quality and continuity of support families actually experience inside that process.
Sources
Worldwide ERC. Relocation Industry Standards and Definitions. Worldwide ERC.
« Back