Doing business with an Australia PEO & Employer of Record
A highly developed market economy and strategic location continue to make Australia a leading player in the world’s trade sectors. GDP has remained steady for years. As a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, (APEC), G20, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the WTO, it has a broad appeal for foreign investors. Australia is very supportive of entrepreneurial growth, with government initiatives and a thriving economy that encourages new business development. The government is pushing strongly for growth in the areas of cybersecurity, infrastructure, and digital payment platforms, making tech startup entries very appealing.
With four legal business structures, making an entry into the Australian market can become complicated. The most popular solution for any start-up interested in testing out the possibilities of a new Oz business is to partner with local Australia PEOs (Professional Employer Organizations) and Employer of Record services.
As they operate as legal employers, they can handle everything from hiring and human resources to payroll and other benefits management. They make the transition into the country much faster and more simple than undertaking it alone and can expedite nearly every facet of employee onboarding.
We’ll look at more benefits of Australia PEOs/EORs, and look at the best ones for your needs.
Why partner with a PEO/EOR in Australia?
Despite the friendly climate towards foreign businesses, the initial set up and launch of a business can be slow. A local PEO/EOR presence is invaluable. In addition to handling the legal hiring of talent, they can continue to handle the variety of HR issues that are covered under their umbrella.
Best Australia PEOs and Employer of Record
Horizons
Horizons are leaders in providing comprehensive support services for Oceanian business ventures in a variety of countries. Horizons has a diverse worldwide portfolio that includes Fortune 500 companies. In Australia’s business expansions, their local presence extends to staffing, recruitment, entity setup, and more. Tailored solutions are key to their fast growth in the country.
For businesses that want to try out the market, Horizons offers a full suite of Australia PEO/EOR solutions. A reliable partner in delivering turnkey business openings, they can handle everything from finding office space to recruiting and managing staff. It’s a simple answer to the question of how to explore the possibilities without setting up legal entities for hiring.
GlobalizationPedia identified some of Horizons’ key advantages compared to its competitors:
- A 100% Horizons-owned entity in Australia.
- Australia HR experts on-site in Sydney.
- Competitive pricing, with a scalable pricing model that gets even more affordable the more employees you hire.
- Hire in any territory of Australia with their Australia EOR.
Website: Horizons
Global PEO
A presence in more than 100 countries has positioned Global PEO nicely in the Australia PEO game. Their workforce solutions, allow clients to interface with HR and payroll areas while remaining remote. For new companies that have found their own local specialists in Australia, they can offload HR support issues to their all-purpose system.
Global PEO promotes fast onboarding and recruitment solutions as they handle hiring and workforce management as the legal employer.
Website: GlobalPEO.com
Globalization Partners
Serving 170+ countries to date, Globalization Partners is experienced in foreign market entry. Their global platform deployment can provide a nearly hands-off approach to payroll and human resources management. By keeping it all in-house, their reach is quite broad.
GP’s sheer size can limit the qualities that a company looking for more personal solutions might require. It’s possible that an Australia PEO/EOR with local consultants can provide a more tailored solution for new businesses.
Website: Globalization-partners.com
Why are Deel, Remote, or other companies missing?
Deel, Remote, and other market-leading EORs are fine companies – but they may not be the best choice for hiring in Australia due to several factors:
- Such companies often prioritize hyper-growth, driven by investor demands for rapid expansion, over ensuring compliance with local regulations and protecting the interests of their customers. This can lead to potential legal and financial risks for companies utilizing their Australia EOR services.
Example: A company focused on hyper-growth might encourage employers to hire de-facto employees as contractors, opening the client up to employee misclassification risk unnecessarily. - In the past, we’ve seen that such ‘young & tech-driven’ providers may not meet the necessary license requirements for providing Australia EOR services – as may take years to apply for – further jeopardizing compliance.
Example: Different territories in Australia have different requirements for an Australia EOR or an Australia PEO to operate. For example, in Queensland “the Labour Hire Licensing Act 2017” requires all labour hiring providers in Queensland to hold a license specific to the territory. Before engaging an Australia EOR or an Australia PEO, ask plenty of questions to make sure they are fully licensed and aware of the licensing requirements in Australia. - Relying on a virtual-only support team can make it challenging to address any issues or concerns that may arise, potentially causing delays or disruptions in operations.
Example: If there are no local support staff in-country, your Australia employees may be left without answers to their important questions. If you go with a company that outsources their support staff to another time zone or to non-HR specialists, you risk losing candidates, or worse, employees.
As such, it is recommended to carefully evaluate EOR providers based on their track record of compliance, experience in Australia, and support capabilities, rather than solely on their growth and pricing potential.
Request a Proposal
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of using a PEO for your expansion into Australia, fill out the form below and the GlobalizationPedia will connect you with the best PEO matches for your business.
