A relocation budget needs a start-date decision

Make the date a financial assumption

An employee already entitled to work in Latvia and a candidate relocating there can produce very different launch cash patterns. The salary may be identical, yet a relocation can add document costs, travel commitments and a period when the proposed start date is uncertain. Treat that date as an assumption to validate before promising a fixed payroll launch.

Ask the candidate where they will physically work, what citizenship and residence status apply, and whether any existing permission is tied to another employer. Share the necessary information through the provider’s secure intake. Finance needs a confirmed route and cost schedule, not copies of sensitive documents scattered through a budget spreadsheet.

Use the official route distinctions

OCMA’s employment guidance updated in February 2026 distinguishes Union citizens from third-country nationals. It describes invitation procedures for short-term employment and sponsorship procedures for long-term employment of third-country nationals. These categories are a starting point; the person’s facts determine the requirements and any exceptions.

Ask the proposed legal employer to confirm whether it can support the candidate’s specific route. A country listed for EOR service does not itself establish immigration sponsorship eligibility. Request the responsible adviser, required steps and a dated estimate of costs before treating the offer as ready to fund.

Split the relocation cash

Create separate lines for official application charges, document preparation, professional support, travel, temporary accommodation and any relocation allowance the business chooses to provide. Mark each as confirmed, quoted or still unknown. Agree who pays initially and whether reimbursement creates payroll consequences.

Then attach a trigger to each spend. For example, travel might remain unbooked until the relevant permission is confirmed, while document preparation may need to begin earlier. These are proposed commercial controls, not statutory rules. Refundability and cancellation terms matter as much as the sticker price when the start date can move. Do not count a refundable travel credit as immediately available treasury cash.

Run the delayed-start case

Build an illustrative one-month-delay scenario using your actual planned spending. Identify which costs move with the start date, which are already committed and whether provider fees or security become due before employment begins. Ask the EOR to distinguish its onboarding work from legal permission to start work.

If a delay would make the hire unaffordable, change the offer timetable or internal spending approvals before booking travel. Avoid solving the timing problem by assuming the person can start as a contractor; that is a different engagement requiring its own assessment.

Teamed should receive the candidate scenario with the Latvia budget request so service eligibility, employment funding and immigration support can be discussed together. The strongest result is a conditional cash plan the founder understands: what can be spent now, what depends on an external decision, and when the salary commitment actually begins. That is more decision-useful than an optimistic universal onboarding deadline.