Hiring Guides by Country: What It Costs and What the Law Requires

One guide per country, built from statutes and checked against what providers publish. See what an employee really costs, which rules apply, and whether an employer of record or your own entity makes sense.

  • Employer cost
  • Pay floors
  • Notice and exit pay
  • Work permits
  • EOR fees
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12 guides

What each hiring guide covers

The same questions answered in every country, so you can compare markets without learning a new layout each time.

01

Employer cost on a real salary

Social security, health, pension and mandatory bonuses applied to one worked salary, with every cap shown.

02

Pay floors and employment terms

Minimum wage, working hours, probation and contract rules, including where regions or sectors set their own.

03

Leave and benefits

Statutory leave, public holidays and the benefits an employer must provide before any perks.

04

Termination and exit pay

Notice periods and severance priced for several lengths of service, so the cost is known before you hire.

05

Work permits for foreign hires

Which permit applies, who files it and how long it takes in practice.

06

EOR or your own entity

Published provider fees, who holds the contract locally, and the headcount where a company becomes cheaper.

How we check the numbers

Figures are calculated in code, matched against statutes and circulars, and dated on each guide so you can see how fresh they are.

Manjuri Dutta
Manjuri DuttaCo-founder and Editor, HR Stacks
  • Rates and caps. Matched across compliance publishers that cite the statute or circular.
  • Provider check. We read each EOR provider's own country page and record only what it states.
  • Worked examples. Cost lines, break-even points and exit pay are calculated, then rounded for display.
  • Rechecks. A guide is rechecked when a contribution rate, wage order or permit rule changes.

Plan the next step in your hiring

Once you know the country, these pages help you choose how to employ and pay the person.

Best Employer of Record providersProviders ranked on price per employee and country coverage. Payroll softwareWhat to run once you own an entity and pay staff yourself. HRIS softwareKeep contracts, leave balances and records in one place. HR softwareAll-in-one platforms for teams that hire across borders.

Hiring in a country we have not covered?

Tell us where you are hiring. We write the guides people ask for most first.

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Frequently asked questions about hiring abroad

Short answers. Each country guide has the detail.

How do I hire an employee in another country without a local company?

Use an employer of record (EOR). It becomes the legal employer in the country, runs payroll and pays statutory contributions, while you manage the day-to-day work. Each country guide shows published EOR fees and which providers say they employ through their own local entity.

How much does an employee cost on top of salary?

It depends on the country. Social security, health and pension contributions, mandatory bonuses and paid leave all add to the base salary. Each guide works through a real salary line by line so you can see the total employer cost before you make an offer.

When does my own entity cost less than an EOR?

Usually once you employ several people in one country and can carry setup and running costs. The guides show where that point falls at published EOR fees, and flag capital requirements and registration time that headline numbers leave out.

Do I need a work permit to hire a foreign national?

In most countries, yes. The permit type, who applies and the processing time vary. Each guide has a work permit section covering the current route and what to expect on timing.

Which countries do the hiring guides cover?

We currently cover Australia, India, Israel, Malaysia, Netherlands, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, UAE, United Kingdom, Vietnam. New guides are added as each country is researched, and this list updates when they go live.

How often are the hiring guides updated?

We recheck a guide whenever a contribution rate, minimum wage order or permit rule changes, and each guide shows the date its figures were last checked.

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