Out-of-State Domestic (U.S.) Work Arrangement Guidelines for Supervisors
With the changing needs of a diverse workforce, we recognize that units may need to hire and retain employees who will live and work within the U.S. but outside the state of Arizona.
However, the complexities and costs of complying with state and local laws and tax requirements are increasing. To continue to ensure we remain committed to our Arizona community and land-grant mission, requests for out-of-state work arrangements require leadership review and approval and must meet the institutional guidelines on this page.
Quick Facts
Select arrangements are not subject to guidelines
Student workers and graduate assistants/associates are not subject to these out-of-state guidelines.
Employees who periodically travel on university-affiliated business but conduct the majority of their work in the state of Arizona are not considered out-of-state employees.
For this reason, traveling out of state for the following types of arrangements would not be subject to the out-of-state guidelines:
- Sabbatical or other approved leave
- Short-term travel
- Vacation
- Arrangements lasting eight weeks or less
Arrangement durations have been defined
Any out-of-state work arrangement longer than eight weeks (consecutive, or cumulative within a calendar year) must receive approval through the new process. Note: UA International Employees must receive approval from International Faculty and Scholars regardless of length of time. Arrangements eight weeks or less must still continue to adhere to any applicable visa requirements.
Each out-of-state work arrangement may last no more than one year. If a unit wishes to extend an employee's arrangement, the unit must resubmit the request on a year-to-year basis.
The new process applies to new and existing employees
Current arrangements
You must evaluate your current arrangements against the new guidelines to determine the eligibility of existing arrangements moving forward.
New arrangements
You also must follow the new guidelines for new out-of-state work arrangement requests. Job postings and offer letters should not be released until approvals are received from your SVP and the Division of HR.
Request Process
1.
Review request based on position and business needs
Before moving forward, consider if your employee's out-of-state work would require process approval. Employees who periodically travel on university-affiliated business, travel for sabbatical or other approved leave, vacation, or arrangements lasting eight weeks or less.
Please also consider whether an alternative work arrangement, such as a flexible work arrangement or approved leave, may better support your needs.
2.
3.
Obtain documented approval from SVP
Supervisors should first obtain approval from their college or division leadership. Once received, they should submit a request memo to their respective SVP. The memo request should include as much information as possible to demonstrate the suitability for the arrangement, including the employee's name, title, department, and specific expertise, as well as the business rationale for the proposed arrangement and expected length of time outside the state. The SVP will review the request to determine if the arrangement is in alignment with the university's business needs and mission. The SVP does not review requests to determine compliance with university and state eligibility criteria.
4.
Obtain documented approval from the Division of Human Resources
Once SVP approval has been obtained, submit the Division of Human Resources' Out-of-State Request Form, which will ask you to upload a copy of the SVP approval confirmation and memo request packet. The Division of Human Resources will verify SVP approval of business alignment and will then review the request to determine if it complies with the university's eligibility guidelines.
The arrangement will be subject to the final review and approval of the Chief Human Resources Officer. If approved, the Division of Human Resources will send the final confirmation of approval.
Important considerations
These guidelines refer solely to the approval process for out-of-state work locations. If your out-of-state employment request is approved, you may still have other approval processes that you need to complete in addition to this process, such as requisition approval, offer letter approval, visa approval, or other hiring transaction approvals. For questions regarding additional approval requirements and processes, please contact the designated support personnel for these areas.
Eligibility Criteria
Supervisors and managers must ensure their employee's position meets the eligibility criteria for both of the following:
- At least one position type
- The exemption status rule
1. Position Type
RESEARCH/WORK
Faculty and staff conducting research/work located outside of Arizona and directly serving the land-grant mission. This position type does not include employees whose work can be performed and completed within the state of Arizona and does not include employees who live in another state and travel to Arizona to perform their work duties.
FULLY ONLINE INSTRUCTION
Faculty who are teaching and delivering fully online courses in a subject matter area where it would be difficult or impossible to secure someone to work in Arizona. This includes course facilitators who directly support fully online faculty in delivery and management of courses. This arrangement is not intended for tenure-track faculty. This position type does not apply to online advisers who advise online students.
Official out-of-state offices
Any staff, faculty, or administrators serving at an official University office located outside the state of Arizona, such as the Washington, D.C. Center for Outreach & Collaboration
Donor cultivation
Frontline development professionals who reside in a specific region of the U.S., and are assigned to work in that region for the purposes of donor cultivation on behalf of University programs.
Recruitment
Staff recruiting non-resident students.
2. Exemption Status
All eligible employees must meet the Department of Labor’s Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and state-specific exemptions status from the state in which they work. Employees in this category are exempt from both minimum wage and overtime pay.
To qualify for exemption under FLSA, employees must meet a job duties test and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $684 per week. To learn more about exemption status, download the Department of Labor's fact sheet (PDF).
Additionally, some states have labor regulations related to exemptions status that may be more probative than those of the federal government. Each employee’s exemption will be dependent on the state in which they work, their job duties, and wages earned.
Please contact the HR Recruitment team for assistance determining exemption status.
Job Postings
New job postings for work arrangements outside of Arizona may not be posted until the unit completes the request process and receives final approval from the SVP and the Division of HR.
In addition, all job postings must include one of these location designations:
Outside Arizona
Units must mark job postings/requisitions as “Outside Arizona” and provide details of the exact location in the address field if the work is to be performed outside Arizona. You must have final approval from the SVP and the Division of HR to use this language.
If the state or city has not been determined, work with the recruitment team to craft requisition-specific language directed at informing applicants.
Arizona
Units must mark all other job postings/requisitions with a work location of Arizona.
Recruitments that result in a candidate wishing to work out-of-state will need to be submitted according to the Request Process outlined above.
Note: If your unit has an open posting for an out-of-state work arrangement for which you have not yet received approval from the Division of HR, please initiate the request process and seek approval before extending an offer letter. Offer letters should not contain information regarding work location.
Frequently Asked Questions
Existing arrangements prior to July 16, 2021
An agreement with a defined end date
If you already received approval from the Division of HR for an existing arrangement, you may continue through the end date documented in that arrangement. There is no need to amend the arrangement or submit documented SVP approval.
If you wish to extend the arrangement past that date, the unit must resubmit the request using the process on this page.
An agreement without a defined end date (e.g. it was meant to be indefinite or permanent)
If you already received approval from the Division of HR for an existing arrangement, but there was no end date listed for the arrangement, please email HR Recruitment and Outreach for support in determining next steps. Each situation will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to ensure the Division of HR fully understands the circumstances of each arrangement.
If the work arrangement was not reviewed and approved by the Division of HR, you must work with your employee to determine whether the arrangement meets the new eligibility criteria outlined on this page and submit a request. If it does not meet the criteria, you must work with your employee to create a transition plan.
If you already submitted a request that is still pending with the Division of HR, we will present that request to your SVP on your behalf. A final determination will be sent to the form submitter and listed supervisor once the review is complete.
The new guidelines apply equally to employees who were working out-of-state prior to COVID-19, those who transitioned to out-of-state during COVID-19, and any newly requested arrangements.
If a request to work out-of-state is denied, the Division of HR will work with you to identify a feasible transition timeline for the employee. The employee will have the option to continue working from Arizona, however, if an employee is unable or unwilling to relocate to Arizona, the Division of HR will work with you and your leadership to identify next steps.
General questions
Correct, an employee who wishes to work out of state solely for personal reasons will not qualify under the existing position type eligibility criteria. If you wish to support an out-of-state arrangement that does not meet the outlined eligibility criteria, you may request an exception.
If you wish to support an out-of-state arrangement that does not meet the new eligibility criteria, you may request an exception. To request an exception, you should first obtain written approval from your SVP and then submit the request for to the Division of HR. See the Request Process section.
The first campuswide mention that guidance for out-of-state work arrangements was being developed was in an April 21, 2021, message to all employees that was signed by four senior vice presidents: Betsy Cantwell, Liesl Folks, Lisa Rulney, and Michael Dake. In addition, University leadership has been in communication with deans over the past few months regarding the forthcoming guidelines.
Beginning in mid-July, 2021, Liesl Folks, Lisa Rulney, and Helena Rodrigues emailed deans, senior vice presidents, and supervisors to announce and share the new guidelines. The guidelines were then discussed on July 22, 2021, at the HR Supervisors Meeting, and a reminder with clarifying information was emailed to supervisors on Aug. 2, 2021, in the monthly HR digest.
At this time, no mass communications have been sent to all employees announcing these new guidelines. Given the complexity of out-of-state employment arrangements and their unique circumstances, hiring departments should navigate these arrangements in partnership with HR Recruitment and Outreach. Hiring supervisors will be responsible for communicating directly with their affected employees.
If you have questions about a current out-of-state employee in your department and the applicable next steps, please email HR Recruitment and Outreach.
No. The rules for international employment have not been changed at this time. Due to the complexity and cost of complying with country-specific laws and unique tax requirements, individual employees should not work from another country unless necessary for their position and role. However, out-of-state work arrangements related to strategic University partnerships, such as Arizona Global microcampuses, are supported.
Units will be subject to advertising fees of approximately $350 for each job posting with a location outside of Arizona. This fee covers the cost of posting the jobs in state-specific unemployment offices and requesting veteran priority referral, which is required by law. The HR Recruitment team will handle these postings and requests for the unit.
Units may also be subject to costs for obtaining outside legal counsel. This amount is dependent on the type of advice requested and the time needed to research the issue.
Recruitment and hiring decisions for student workers and graduate assistants are not managed by the Division of HR. Individuals in these roles are expected to be working from the state of Arizona. In the exceptional cases when a student worker or graduate assistant/associate is working and living outside of Arizona, responsible units need to ensure accurate reporting of work location addresses.
Approved out-of-state work arrangements within the U.S. should not be included in an offer letter. These arrangements are not guaranteed terms or conditions of employment and are subject to change for reasons such as, but not limited to, employee performance, needs of the team or unit, updated regulations, and guideline revisions.
If the unit has obtained approval for an out-of-state work arrangement, the terms of this arrangement should be communicated to the employee separately and in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in the approval email from the Division of HR.
Please Note: When you create an offer letter in the Talent Offer Letter Builder, you will be asked to include the location associated with the requisition. This location will not populate in your offer letter but will be used for data collection purposes.
Do you need more assistance?
Please contact the HR Recruitment team with questions.