In 2024, over 60% of U.S. workers expressed interest in accessing their wages before payday, according to research by the Financial Health Network.
The demand for real-time compensation models continues to grow, especially among global and remote-first teams. Earned Wage Access (EWA) is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s becoming a competitive differentiator for modern employers.
But for most companies, offering EWA across borders comes with complex legal and compliance challenges.
Rise's Employer of Record (EOR) solution solves that problem, enabling companies to offer on-demand pay in both fiat and crypto, in multiple countries.
Key Takeaways
- Earned Wage Access (EWA) allows employees to access wages they've already earned, before payday.
- Rise's Employer of Record (EOR) model makes EWA legally and logistically possible in the USA, Canada, and UK
- With Rise, companies can offer EWA in local currencies or stablecoins like USDC and USDT.
What Is Earned Wage Access (EWA)?
How It Works
Earned Wage Access (EWA) allows employees to access a portion of their accrued wages before their scheduled payday.
This is typically done via a mobile app or portal, where the employee sees how much they've earned to date and can request a payout. Providers such as DailyPay or EarnIn popularized this model within the U.S. workforce.
Common Limitations
While EWA improves financial flexibility, most solutions only serve the U.S. market and require tight integration with payroll systems.
They also often work through third-party advances, which are repaid on payday, and may come with limits or fees. Extending these features to contractors or international employees is usually off the table.
Why Most Companies Struggle to Offer EWA Globally
Legal and Compliance Hurdles
In most jurisdictions, employers are limited in how and when they can distribute earned wages. Providing early access without formal employment structures can raise red flags with local labor regulators. Moreover, offering EWA to contractors without misclassifying them as employees is a compliance minefield.
Infrastructure Limitations
Managing payroll schedules across time zones, currencies, and banking systems is complex. Without local banking partners or legal entities, offering EWA across borders becomes nearly impossible for traditional businesses.
How Rise's EOR Unlocks EWA Globally
What Is Rise's Employer of Record?
Rise acts as the legal employer on your behalf, assuming responsibility for local employment contracts, payroll, tax filings, and HR compliance.
Instead of requiring you to set up an entity in each country where you want to hire, Rise provides immediate access to a global employment infrastructure. This drastically reduces the time and cost it takes to onboard international talent while eliminating compliance risk.
Our EOR service currently covers full-time employees in the U.S., UK, and Canada, and is expanding to over 60 additional countries by the end of 2025.
Whether you're hiring software engineers in Eastern Europe or operations managers in Southeast Asia, Rise enables you to do so legally and efficiently.
Why This Enables Earned Wage Access
Because Rise is the official legal employer in each supported country, we are authorized to define compliant wage payout structures. This includes:
- Scheduled daily payroll deposits based on time tracked or milestones completed
- On-demand wage access for employees to withdraw earned amounts anytime
- Full payout flexibility in either local fiat currencies or stablecoins like USDC and USDT
By handling the legal, financial, and operational aspects of employment, Rise empowers you to offer Earned Wage Access without crossing legal boundaries or misclassifying your team.
Whether your workforce prefers traditional banks or crypto wallets, Rise supports the payment flow that works best for them, all while keeping your business in full legal compliance.
Daily Payroll vs. EWA: Two Models You Can Offer With Rise
Option 1: Automated Daily Payroll
Daily payroll pays out employee earnings automatically each day. With Rise, this can be configured to local currency or stablecoins and customized to match local labor requirements. It reduces employee stress and enhances financial planning without any manual withdrawal requests.
Option 2: On-Demand EWA
Alternatively, companies can let employees withdraw earned wages on demand. Rise calculates the accrued amount and enables the payout based on preset rules (like a 50% daily cap). This model mirrors the U.S.-style EWA experience but expands it globally.
Why EWA Matters for HR and Finance Leaders
Modern workers expect more flexible pay models, especially in global and remote-first environments, as they seek greater access to pay options.
With Rise, you can:
- Offer premium perks like on-demand pay to international employees
- Avoid fines from misclassification or local employment violations
- Reduce reliance on traditional banks and costly remittance services
- Improve cash flow visibility with automated payment schedules
Rise's EOR Features That Support EWA
Automated onboarding
Rise simplifies global hiring by handling KYC checks, AML compliance, and employment contract generation within just a few days. This drastically reduces time-to-hire and ensures your team can get started without unnecessary delays.
Compliant agreements
Each employee is hired under a fully compliant local employment agreement, tailored to local labor regulations. This helps you avoid costly penalties related to misclassification, tax evasion, or labor law violations.
Flexible pay structures
With Rise, you can pay employees in their local fiat currency or in stablecoins like USDC and USDT. The payroll system also supports hybrid payouts, allowing for a split between crypto and fiat depending on employee preference or location.
Related: Stablecoin Payroll
Benefits included
Rise enables companies to offer competitive benefit packages globally, including private healthcare, local insurance options, and a crypto-friendly 401(k) retirement savings plan. This makes your offer more attractive to top global talent.
Flat pricing
Rise charges a simple, transparent fee of $399 per employee per month. This includes payroll management, compliance, contracts, benefits, and support without hidden fees or markups.
Conclusion: A New Standard for Global Pay
Earned Wage Access is the future of employee compensation, but most companies aren't set up to offer it globally.
Rise solves this by combining an Employer of Record model with a modern, hybrid payroll system that supports fiat and crypto.
Book a demo to learn how Rise helps you offer EWA and daily payroll to your global workforce.
Your team works across borders. Now your payroll can too.
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FAQ
What is the difference between earned wage access and payday loans?
Earned wage access allows employees to access a portion of their earned wages before their scheduled payday, unlike payday loans which are short-term, high-interest loans that must be repaid on the next payday.
What does earned wage access mean?
Earned wage access means providing employees with the ability to access their earned wages before the traditional payday.
How to offer Earned Wage Access?
To offer earned wage access, employers can use Rise EOR that specializes in early wage access solutions.
