The Richmond, Va.-area firm Piascik & Associates continues to see remarkable growth in its service helping international companies opening business entities in the U.S. The Piascik Passport program is designed to address business and personal needs of executives and their families when dealing with relocation, says Steve Piascik, president and founder of P&A, one of the busiest niches of which is international taxation.
He cites language barriers, business tax and legal issues, time-zone differences, and cultural differences as among the many challenges for those relocating. Piascik Passport provides services from subletting an apartment to arranging for insurance and school enrollment for children, to arranging for transportation, hotels, and even groceries and doctor's appointments, among other services. Business-related services include subletting of office space, and arranging for meetings, payroll, Internet, phone, and cable service, mail processing and call answering (in the client company's native language, if need be).
"We literally take care of everything involved in setting up a company in the state of Virginia," says Piascik, who adds that the firm's service can sometimes also accommodate setting up businesses in other states, as well.
P&A's growing international practice spans seven countries and four continents, and the firm is engaged by other CPA firms across the country to handle international tax needs. Piascik himself also takes an annual trip to Europe, and says that a stop in Germany recently netted two new clients for the Passport service, which is offered only to existing P&A clients.
The service, which started after frequent requests from international clients, has some two-dozen clients, he says, most of which are establishing U.S. sales distributorships but who also include domestic companies looking to establish operations on the East Coast. "It really does strengthen the relationship," he adds, "and we've been getting one of these clients a month."
By way of fees, a virtual office but not a dedicated space runs a Passport client some $400 a month, says Piascik. P&A charges $85 an hour for ancillary services to facilitate a move. P&A also makes sure all international clients have been credentialed by the government.
Passport is pulling its weight in a firm that has already experienced fast growth, says Piascik.
"When we started this service in 2001, we had one partner and seven employees. This July, we'll be bringing aboard our second partner, and we have 27 staffers," he says. Passport has also had to start a waiting list for clients who want office space.