An Employer of Record is the legal employer in the hiring country. They handle contracts, payroll, tax withholding, and statutory contributions. You direct the work. They own the compliance.
For most companies hiring their first 5–20 people in a new market, EOR is faster and cheaper than entity setup. Onboarding takes 2–4 weeks through an EOR. Entity registration takes 3–6 months and costs €15,000–30,000 before the first employee is on payroll.
This guide lists 9 EOR providers evaluated on payroll capability, compliance scope, scalability, pricing transparency, and transition support. If you need a detailed evaluation framework specific to Vietnam, see our 7-point scoring framework for comparing EOR providers.
TL;DR
- The best Employer of Record services provider combines compliant payroll execution, statutory governance, work permit support, and scalable workforce operations into a single accountable delivery model.
- For foreign businesses planning beyond the first few hires, the strongest providers are those that support team expansion, governance continuity, and eventual transition into a legal entity structure.
- The most reliable EOR partners share three traits: strong compliance ownership, transparent service boundaries, and the ability to scale from tactical hiring support into a long-term workforce operating model.
What to evaluate before choosing an EOR provider
Five criteria separate a reliable EOR from one that will cause problems at the first labor inspection or client due diligence review:
• Compliance ownership. Does the provider have a legal entity in the target country, or do they sub-contract to a third party? Sub-contracting adds a layer between you and the compliance responsibility. Ask directly: “Who is the legal employer on the employment contract?”
• Onboarding speed. What is the contractual time from signed agreement to employee on payroll? The industry range is 2–8 weeks. Anything over 4 weeks for a standard hire in a single country warrants clarification.
• Payroll accuracy and SLA. Is the payroll date a contractual commitment or a general target? Ask for the written SLA. Late payroll erodes employee trust faster than any other operational failure.
• Scalability path. Can the provider support you from 1 hire to 20? From EOR to entity setup? If you outgrow the EOR model, does the transition involve starting over with a new provider, or does the current one support the handover?
• Data security. Your EOR handles salary data, tax IDs, bank details, and identity documents. ISO 27001 certification and a signed GDPR Article 28 DPA should be standard, not optional. If your own clients audit your vendors, a weak EOR becomes a sales blocker.
For a detailed, evidence-based evaluation specific to Vietnam including SHUI scope, work permit handling, and offboarding SLAs – see our guide to comparing EOR providers in Vietnam.
9 Best Employer of Record Services Companies
Note: We evaluated providers based on payroll capability, statutory compliance, work permit support, scalability into dedicated teams, pricing transparency, and transition support toward legal entity setup.
Sunbytes
Sunbytes is a Dutch-founded company with 15+ years of experience across 300+ international projects. Headquartered in Utrecht with a delivery hub in Ho Chi Minh City, Sunbytes offers EOR, recruitment, payroll, and staffing services as part of its Accelerate Workforce Solutions pillar.
Headquarters: Netherlands (Utrecht) with Vietnam delivery hub
Speciality: Vietnam market entry, workforce acceleration, and scalable team operations for Dutch and EU companies
Key services:
• Employer of Record (EOR) and Contractor of Record (COR)
• Payroll services and compliance support
• Staffing services
SLAs:
• Time-to-hire: 14 days from signed agreement
• Payroll: on the contracted date, every month
• Offboarding: within 24 hours, no lock-in
What sets Sunbytes apart: the same company that handles your EOR also provides dedicated development teams (Transform) and cybersecurity solutions (Secure). If your Vietnam hiring is for a tech team, this means one partner, one DPA, and one management layer — from employment contract to code delivery to security compliance.
PamGro
PamGro is a global Employer of Record (EOR) provider enabling businesses to hire, onboard, and pay international talent without setting up local entities. Recognized among the top employer of record companies in Netherlands, PamGro acts as the legal employer, managing payroll, statutory benefits, tax compliance, and employment contracts while your company retains full operational control.
Headquarters: London
Key Services:
- 100% Compliant Employment: Adheres to local labor laws, tax regulations, and statutory requirements.
- Transparent & Predictable Pricing: No hidden costs, clear breakdowns for better budget planning.
- Flexible Payment Plans: Designed to support companies at different growth stages.
- Dedicated Relationship Manager: Expert guidance for smooth onboarding and ongoing workforce support.
- End-to-End Payroll Management: Accurate, multi-country payroll with timely payments and filings.
- Rapid Global Onboarding: Hire talent quickly without the delays of entity setup.
Pricing:
Starting from 100 GBP per employee per month (Typically structured as a per-employee monthly model with no surprise fees.)
Country Coverage:
PamGro supports compliant hiring in 150+ countries, backed by 18+ years of experience, $150M+ in payroll processed, and 13 established entities, making it a strong partner for businesses planning seamless international expansion.
Gloroots
Gloroots is a global hiring and employment platform that runs the employment layer end-to-end, allowing companies to employ and manage international teams without setting up local entities.
Headquarters:
New York, United States
Speciality:
Global Employer of Record infrastructure, predictable pricing, and centralized workforce governance
Key Services:
- Global Employer of Record (EOR)
- Global Payroll Management
- Compliance & Employment Governance
- Benefits & Statutory Coverage
- Workforce Visibility & Reporting
- Employment Lifecycle Management
- Recruitment Support (Select Markets)
- Human Support & Account Ownership
Gloroots employs full-time team members compliantly across 150+ countries, running payroll in local currencies with consistent execution and in-house compliance management. Each account gets a dedicated account manager with retained business context, replacing ticket-based support with human-led operations.
What sets Gloroots apart is fixed, country-level pricing with no percentage-of-salary fees and no hidden add-ons, giving Finance teams accurate cost forecasting as headcount scales. Local execution stays compliant country by country, while HR, Finance, and Legal retain centralized oversight across the full employment lifecycle.
GoGlobal
GoGlobal is well-suited for enterprises expanding internationally that require strong governance, payroll control, and legal risk management.
Headquarters: United States
Specialty: Enterprise global expansion and payroll governance
Key Services
- Employer of Record services
- Global payroll
- Compliance advisory
- HR operations support
- Multi-country governance workflows
GoGlobal is especially relevant for larger foreign investors that need workforce consistency across several international markets while maintaining central operational control.
Parakar Group
Parakar Group is an attractive option for Dutch and European companies, including those in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Ireland..etc due to its strong alignment with EU governance standards and international employment workflows.
Headquarters: Netherlands
Specialty: Dutch-led international expansion and local employment support
Key Services
- Employer of Record services
- Payroll support
- Compliance advisory
- Local HR administration
- Expansion support
Its governance style and European operating standards make it a natural fit for organisations seeking predictable expansion support without sacrificing control.
INS-Global
INS Global is an Employer of Record and expansion partner designed for organisations seeking rapid international hiring without setting up a local entity. Its model is well-suited for foreign investors who require both workforce agility and compliance across multiple markets.
Headquarters: Singapore
Speciality: Global expansion, multi-country compliance, and workforce mobility
Key Services
- Employer of Record services
- Global payroll
- Recruitment support
- Independent contractor management
- Company incorporation support
- Payroll outsourcing
INS Global distinguishes itself with an expansion-focused model, extensive international reach, and integrated support in EOR, payroll, recruitment, and entity setup. It is a strong choice for organisations seeking a structured approach from initial hiring to large-scale international growth.
Playroll
Playroll is a global HR and payroll platform providing Employer of Record services in 180+ countries. It stands out for its compliance infrastructure. Playroll is built on 25+ years of expertise, backed by 120+ in-house legal and tax experts who track labor law changes as they happen. That expertise runs across the whole platform, giving global teams one system instead of juggling multiple vendors.
Headquarters: London
Specialties: Employer of Record, global payroll, contractor management, global benefits, immigration support, entity setup, and workforce compliance.
Key Services:
- Compliant Local Contracts: Locally compliant employment agreements in 180+ countries, with IP and invention rights fully protected.
- Transparent, Flat-Rate Pricing: No hidden fees, no annual commitments, and zero onboarding or offboarding charges.
- Dedicated Human Support: A dedicated Customer Success Manager for your team and an Employee Success Manager for every hire, at no extra cost.
- Payroll & Benefits in One Place: Centralized payroll, statutory and premium benefits, and expense management across every market you hire in.
- Compliance & Risk Protection: GDPR and SOC 2 compliant, with built-in contractor misclassification checks.
- Fast Onboarding: New hires onboarded in 2-5 days, with no legal entity required.
Pricing:
Starting from $399 per employee per month for Employer of Record, billed monthly with no minimum commitment. (Contractor Management starts at a $35 flat fee per contractor per month.)
Country Coverage:
Playroll supports compliant hiring in 180+ countries, with 24×5 employer and employee support. The platform holds a 4.7-star rating on G2.
FoxHire
Website:https://www.foxhire.com/
Headquarters: United States
Specialty: Employer of Record services for U.S. multi-state hiring, with back-office employment, payroll, and compliance support for recruiters, staffing agencies, and direct employers.
Key Services:
- Employer of Record (EOR) services
- Back-office employment and compliance for recruiters and staffing agencies
- Contingent workforce and contractor management
FoxHire is a U.S.-focused Employer of Record platform that helps companies hire and pay W-2 employees and contractors across all 50 states without setting up their own legal entities. The platform handles state registrations, payroll tax setup, benefits administration, and worker classification.
FoxHire’s infrastructure supports HR teams, recruiters, staffing firms, and professional services companies that need to place or hire workers quickly while staying compliant. It centralizes legal employment, onboarding, payroll, and benefits in a single system. With over 30 years of experience, FoxHire is a strong partner for organizations building U.S.-based teams without establishing local entities.
Second Talent
Second Talent is a tech talent and Employer of Record partner designed for companies seeking to hire senior developers from Asia quickly and compliantly. Its model is well-suited for organisations that need pre-vetted engineering talent, fast onboarding, and reduced HR administration when building remote or distributed teams.
Headquarters: United States
Speciality: Senior developer hiring, AI-native engineering talent, and compliant cross-border employment
Key Services:
- Pre-vetted developer hiring
- AI-native engineering talent sourcing
- Employer of Record support
- Contract and payroll management
- Equipment and onboarding support
- Cross-border recruitment support
Second Talent distinguishes itself with a speed-focused hiring model, access to senior engineering talent across Asia, and built-in employment support covering contracts, payroll, and compliance. It is a strong choice for companies that need to scale technical teams quickly without managing the full hiring and HR setup internally.
When EOR makes more sense than entity setup
The most common alternative to EOR is setting up a local legal entity. The comparison is straightforward when you look at the numbers:
Entity setup in Vietnam takes 3–6 months for registration, and costs approximately €15,000–30,000 in legal and administrative fees before the first employee can be legally engaged. Once established, the entity carries ongoing obligations: annual filings, statutory audits, and a local representative.
EOR onboarding takes 2–4 weeks. There is no registration cost, no entity maintenance, and no lock-in. The EOR is the legal employer. You direct the work.
For most companies hiring their first 5–20 people in a new market, EOR is the faster and more cost-effective starting point. The break-even where entity setup becomes more economical is typically around 20 employees — when the per-head EOR fee exceeds the amortised entity maintenance cost.
The smarter question is not “EOR or entity” but “EOR first, entity later.” Starting with EOR gives you operational presence in the market within weeks. If the business case holds after 12–18 months, you transition to an entity with employees already in place, contracts already running, and compliance already handled. For detail comparision with two model, read on our guide Pros and Cons of using an Employer of Record
How to shortlist the right EOR for your expansion stage
The right EOR depends on where your company is in its expansion, not on a generic feature comparison.
Testing the market (1–3 hires). Priorities: speed, transparent pricing, and the ability to hire without a legal entity. At this stage, providers with startup-friendly onboarding and flexible contractor-to-employee conversion are the most practical choice. PamGro, Gloroots, and Playroll all offer rapid onboarding with clear per-employee pricing.
Structured team building (4–15 hires). Priorities shift to local talent access, work permit support, and the capacity to scale from commercial hires to engineering or delivery roles. Providers with a physical presence in the target country — not just sub-contracted local partners — handle this stage more reliably. Sunbytes, Parakar, and INS Global operate in this range with direct compliance ownership.
Scale-up and transition (15+ hires). At this stage, the EOR becomes part of your workforce operating model. Priorities: governance, cybersecurity standards, payroll complexity, and a documented transition path toward entity setup. The provider should be able to support the handover without disrupting existing employee contracts.
Three questions to anchor your shortlist:
• Are you testing the market or building for scale?
• Will the target country become a delivery or engineering hub?
• Do you need a future transition into a legal entity?
If your team requires a more thorough due diligence framework, refer to our guide on choosing the right EOR provider. It covers legal structure, compliance accountability, IP protection, and pricing transparency in detail.
Planning to hire in Vietnam? Sunbytes EOR: 14-day onboarding, payroll on the contracted date, offboarding within 24 hours. No lock-in. Talk to us about your hiring plan →
FAQs
Employer of Record pricing generally ranges from $250 to over $800 per employee per month, depending on the provider’s operating model, payroll complexity, and required local support. Fees are higher if the provider manages work permits, statutory benefits, or assists with legal entity setup.
Yes, some providers may add costs beyond the monthly service fee. Common examples include security deposits, onboarding fees, foreign exchange markups, off-cycle payroll charges, bonus processing, and reimbursement administration fees. Before signing, foreign investors should request a full pricing breakdown to avoid unexpected costs later.
Yes. This is the most common path for companies entering a new market. Start with EOR to validate the business case (typically 12–18 months), then register a local entity and transfer employees. The transition requires careful handling of employment contracts, SHUI continuity, and employee communication. Ask your EOR provider upfront whether they support this transition or whether you will need to re-engage employees under a new entity.
The industry range is 2–8 weeks depending on the country and whether work permits are involved. For a standard hire in Vietnam through Sunbytes: 14 days from signed agreement to employee on payroll.
Using an EOR does not create a Dutch employment relationship — the employee is legally employed in the target country under local labor law. For Dutch companies, the relevant compliance considerations are GDPR (ensure a signed DPA covers cross-border data processing), transfer pricing (ensure the cost allocation between your Dutch entity and the EOR is documented), and social security (determine which jurisdiction’s social insurance applies under applicable treaties).
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