Expatriate expatriation employee refers to an individual who is sent to work in a different country. This process, known as expatriation, involves filling a work assignment in another country. The person who is sent to work in a foreign country is called an expatriate. The return of the expatriate to his or her home country is known as repatriation. Both the outbound and return of expatriates pose potential problems for the employee and their family. International human resource management deals with the challenges of expatriation and repatriation. The process is complex due to language differences, cultural disparities, and various laws that greatly impact the success or failure of the work assignment. Other categories of international human resource management include third country nationals, resident aliens, and host country nationals. Expatriates and their families often face anxieties related to family life, such as adapting to the new culture and maintaining productivity. Being away from their families and dealing with challenging work relationships, primarily with new colleagues, are common experiences. Repatriation is also problematic as returning expatriates often find it difficult to readjust to the culture they left behind. The process of expatriation and repatriation can strain marital and family relationships. To test your understanding, consider the following multiple-choice question: Expatriate expatriation refers to: a) The process of making a law from idea to law. b) Working for a company in one's own country. c) Working in another country for a company in a third country. d) An employee who takes a work assignment in another country. The correct answer in this case is d) An employee who takes a work assignment in another country.