Why hire on Ascension Island through an EOR
A working island — literally. No job, no right to be there.
Ascension Island doesn't work like anywhere else on this list. There's no employer social security contribution — we've found no evidence one exists. Instead, income tax on non-military staff is a flat 27%, and Ascension-incorporated companies pay no corporate tax at all. Most strikingly: there's no right of abode. Everyone on the island is there specifically because they hold a job, and when the contract ends, so does their right to stay.
No entity required
Employ staff on Ascension without registering a company there — genuinely rare given the island's tiny scale.
An honest picture, not a guess
We won't invent an employer social charge that doesn't exist just to fill a template. Here's what actually applies.
Contract-tied residency understood
The fixed-term-contract-only structure genuinely matters for how you plan a hire here — we factor it in from day one.
Independent advice
We tell you plainly when a cost genuinely doesn't apply, rather than inventing a plausible-sounding figure to fill a template.
Deal directly, if you'd rather
A market almost nobody else bothers covering
With roughly 800 residents, no indigenous population, and every single person there because of a job, Ascension Island is about as niche as international hiring gets. Almost no HR or payroll provider covers it. If you have a genuine need here, get in touch and we'll talk you through exactly how it works.
Ask about an Ascension Island hire →Employer costs at a glance
Ascension Island's headline numbers
Employer costs explained
Why Ascension genuinely doesn't fit the usual template
No employer social security charge that we can find
Unlike every other jurisdiction on this site, we've found no evidence of a mandatory employer social security contribution on Ascension Island. We'd rather tell you that plainly than invent a plausible-sounding percentage. If that changes, or if your specific hire involves a nuance we haven't accounted for, we'll flag it before you commit to anything.
A flat 27% income tax, and tax-free companies
Non-military staff earning income on Ascension pay a flat 27% income tax — a single rate, not a progressive scale. Separately, companies incorporated on Ascension itself pay no corporate tax at all, a genuinely distinctive structural feature worth knowing if you're thinking about how to structure a longer-term presence there.
Employment is the reason you're allowed to be there
Ascension has no right of abode. Every resident is there either because they hold a contract of employment or because they're the partner of someone who does — there's no other route to living on the island. Contracts are fixed-term, though they can be renewed; once a final contract ends, the employee (and any accompanying partner) must leave. This genuinely shapes how a hire here needs to be planned from the outset.
Employment basics
What's standard for an Ascension Island employment contract
Income tax
27% flat, non-military staff
A single rate, not a progressive scale.
Employer social security
No contribution identified
We've found no evidence of a mandatory employer scheme, unusually for a jurisdiction on this list.
Currency
St Helena pound (parity with GBP)
Both pounds and US dollars are accepted in some locations, including the US Air Force base.
Residency
Tied entirely to employment
No right of abode — presence on the island requires a current contract of employment.
Before you budget an Ascension Island hire
Get our free spreadsheet of employer social charges across 150 countries and see how Ascension compares.
Common questions
Hiring on Ascension Island, answered
Is there really no employer social security contribution?
Based on our research, we've found no evidence of one — genuinely unusual compared with every other jurisdiction we cover. We'll flag it immediately if anything about your specific hire changes that picture.
Can someone just move to Ascension Island to work remotely?
No — there's no right of abode. The only way to legally reside on the island is to hold a genuine contract of employment there, or to be the partner of someone who does.
Do I need an Ascension entity to hire someone there?
Given the island's tiny scale, an EOR arrangement is almost always the practical route — we become the legal employer, handling the specifics of island employment, while you keep full control of the person's day-to-day work.
Ready to talk about an Ascension Island hire?
Tell us the role and we'll give you an honest picture of the real cost — including what genuinely doesn't apply.
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