These days, moving someone for work happens more often than not. Whether it’s a new hire coming in from another city or an internal transfer abroad, the real challenge isn’t the move itself; it’s ensuring that people have the support they need to get settled and start strong.
This guide breaks down exactly what goes into a relocation package, how much it typically costs, and how to structure one that works for both your business and your employees.
What Is an Employee Relocation Package?
An employee relocation package is a perk some employers offer that helps employees move to and ease into a new location for work. For example, employers may offer it if they need to relocate an employee for business needs or if an employee wants to transfer to another one of the company’s locations.
Sometimes, employers offer relocation packages to new hires that are relocating to take the job. As the name suggests, a relocation package includes several items to help employees successfully relocate.
Why Companies Offer Relocation Packages
Sometimes your best candidate isn’t local. And sometimes your top performer needs to be somewhere else to keep growing, or to help the business grow. That’s where a relocation package stops being a nice-to-have and becomes part of the plan.
For leadership, it’s not just about covering moving costs. It’s about removing friction, speeding up onboarding, and keeping people focused instead of buried in logistics. Done right, relocation support saves time, reduces churn, and avoids compliance headaches when crossing borders.
What’s Typically Included in a Relocation Package
No two relocation packages are the same, but most cover a core set of needs. Think of it less like a checklist and more like solving for, “What will get this person moved and ready to work with as little disruption as possible?”
Here’s what usually makes the cut:
Professional Moving Services
Most companies cover the cost of movers, packing, transport, sometimes unpacking. It’s about speed and avoiding damage. Some also include moving insurance, especially for long-distance or international moves.
Temporary Housing
If the employee doesn’t have a place lined up, you’ll likely need to cover short-term accommodation. Thirty days is standard. Enough time to settle in, explore neighborhoods, and handle the paperwork for a rental or home purchase.
Travel and Transport
Flights, train tickets, mileage, rental cars, whatever’s needed to get the employee (and sometimes their family) from Point A to Point B. For international moves, this might also include airport transfers and shipping personal items.
Real Estate or Lease Assistance
Selling a home quickly or breaking a lease gets expensive. Many companies help offset these costs, either by reimbursing penalties or offering support through relocation firms that manage listings and paperwork.
Immigration and Visa Support
For cross-border moves, this is critical. Work permits, visa applications, document prep, it adds up fast and delays can kill momentum. Good packages handle this up front, often with help from a global mobility partner.
Flexible Start Date
Relocation takes time. Good packages don’t just pay for the move, they account for it in the onboarding plan. Flexibility on the start date is a simple but valuable part of the offer.
Family Support
If the employee is relocating with a partner or kids, support might extend to job search services for spouses, school search help, or even cultural onboarding for the family.
Types of Relocation Packages
There’s no single way to handle employee relocation. The right approach depends on the role, the urgency, the destination, and how hands-on your team wants to be in managing the move.
Below is a breakdown of the most common types of relocation packages and how they work.
How to Structure a Relocation Package at Your Company
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, but you do need a plan. A relocation package that works across roles, locations, and budgets starts with internal clarity and external benchmarks.
Here’s how to build one that holds up:
Talk to Your Employees
Ask people who’ve moved before what helped and what didn’t. Look at past cases where relocation went smoothly, or badly. Internal feedback beats assumptions every time.
Benchmark the Market
Review what competitors and global-first companies in your industry are offering. Focus on roles and regions similar to yours. If your offer falls short, so will your close rate.
Define Eligibility
Who qualifies? All roles or just senior staff? Only international moves or any relocation beyond a certain distance? Be clear to avoid confusion later.
Set Clear Inclusions
List what’s covered and what’s not, housing, shipping, flights, immigration, taxes, family support. This reduces back-and-forth and prevents mismatched expectations.
Choose a Delivery Model
Will you go with lump sums, reimbursements, or a third-party partner? Many companies use a mix depending on role seniority or location complexity.
Get Finance, Legal, and HR Aligned
Make sure cost limits, tax implications, and local labor laws are factored in. International moves in particular need legal and payroll sign-off to stay compliant.
Communicate It Clearly
Once it’s live, make it visible. Update the employee handbook, include it in offer letters, and train managers to explain the package when discussing moves or offers.
How Much Does the Average Relocation Package Cost?
Relocation isn’t cheap, but it can be predictable if you break down the variables. Below is a detailed look at the typical costs involved, categorized by employee profile and type of relocation.
Average Total Package Cost
Cost Breakdown by Category
Cost Management Tip
Instead of offering everything to everyone, many companies define relocation tiers (e.g. entry-level, mid-level, leadership) and set regional caps based on destination city cost-of-living.
Common Mistakes to Avoid with Relocation Packages
There’s no shortage of ways relocation packages can go sideways, even with good intentions. Here are a few things companies tend to get wrong:
Trying to use one package for every situation
Moving a grad hire across the country isn’t the same as relocating a senior manager and their family to another continent. Still, some companies stick to a flat package for everyone, which usually ends up being too much for some and not nearly enough for others.
Not checking the tax or legal side
This one comes back to bite people more than you'd expect. In some countries, relocation benefits are taxable, or there are restrictions on what you can pay for. If legal or payroll isn’t looped in early, you might create problems you didn’t plan for.
Leaving employees to figure things out alone
Telling someone, “Just book what you need and send us the receipts,” might seem flexible, but it usually ends in delays and frustration. The best packages reduce friction, they don’t shift the workload to the person moving.
Being vague about what’s actually included
If your relocation policy is two bullet points in the offer letter, you’re setting yourself up for a lot of follow-up questions, and potential disappointment. People want clarity. They want to know what’s covered, what isn’t, and how to get help.
Forgetting that the move doesn’t end when they land
Relocation isn’t over once the flight touches down. There’s a real adjustment period, especially for international hires or anyone moving with kids. Even a simple 30-day check-in makes a difference.
Real-World Relocation Package Examples
Apple
Apple doesn’t talk much publicly about its relocation benefits, but current and former employees have shared a consistent picture of what’s typically included. New hires, especially in engineering and product roles, often get a lump-sum payment to help cover moving costs, usually starting around $7,000, though it can be higher depending on the role and seniority.
They also offer temporary housing for up to 45 days, usually through pre-arranged corporate housing near the office. Flights for the employee and their family are covered, and they’ll often take care of moving household items through approved vendors.
In some cases, Apple also handles tax gross-ups, so the employee doesn’t end up with a surprise tax bill for benefits that are technically considered income.
What stands out is the focus on keeping the process smooth. Employees are often paired with a relocation advisor to manage logistics, which helps reduce the back-and-forth and lets people focus on settling in.
Jobbatical
Jobbatical isn’t a relocation package provider in the traditional sense, they don’t pay for housing or flights. What they do handle, and what a lot of companies lean on them for, is everything to do with visas and immigration.
If you’re relocating someone internationally, especially to a country with complex paperwork, Jobbatical basically becomes your back office for the process. They prep all the documentation, handle local compliance, and work directly with immigration authorities. For employees, it means fewer unknowns and less back-and-forth with HR. For your team, it means fewer mistakes that could delay a start date or trigger fines.
They also help with dependent visas and give ongoing guidance to employees moving with family. The whole thing runs through a clean, digital interface, so both sides can track where things are at without chasing email threads.
It’s not flashy, but it’s the kind of partner that makes relocation actually work, especially when your internal HR team isn’t equipped to manage global mobility on its own.
