Professional Employer Organization (PEO) in Georgia

What is a PEO?

PEO stands for professional employer organization. Companies appoint PEOs to handle their HR responsibilities, including; managing payroll, administering compensation and benefits packages, as well as remaining compliant with labor or employment laws in Georgia.

Without the assistance of a PEO, companies looking to hire abroad would need to familiarize themselves with foreign payroll regulations and learn how to process it correctly. Using PEO services in Georgia saves companies from the huge expense of hiring additional teams of people just to manage HR for their international workers. 

PEO services aren’t just limited to Georgia. In fact, they can help you to build a global team of workers that are based virtually anywhere in the world. 

Your partner PEO will manage payroll on your behalf, paying your employees on time in the correct currencies, with the guarantee that your company will remain compliant with local legislation. 

To check whether using a PEO is the right route for your business, chat with one of the experts at Skuad. 

What are the benefits of using a PEO provider in Georgia?

By outsourcing your international HR responsibilities in Georgia to a PEO, you’ll free yourself from the financial and time-related restraints that would otherwise make it an arduous undertaking. There’s also numerous other benefits you might not even have considered yet.

Hire the best that Georgia has to offer

Gone are the days when you’d have to hire within a strict radius from your company’s headquarters. Businesses that geographically restrict their search for talent will usually find slim pickings. 

So, with the means to affordably hire highly trained workers based throughout the whole of Georgia, why wouldn’t you?

A PEO will unlock the door to the bustling talent pool in Georgia, allowing you to select the finest employees to drive your company to success. 

Position yourself as a globally competitive company

Before long, your company’s name will be recognized on a worldwide basis, with the global talent pool competing to be employed by you.

In return, your PEO can set them up with unrivaled benefits packages that go beyond statutory requirements to attract and retain the most qualified workers. 

Cut your hiring expenses

Using a PEO streamlines the hiring process in Georgia. Without their payroll services, you would need to hire personnel who specialize in Georgian HR, payroll and compliance with statutory requirements. 

Even the largest corporations wouldn’t bother attempting to hire in Georgia without a partner PEO. It’s an unnecessarily large expenditure that would be better invested back into the business itself. 

Test the waters in a new market

Before you launch full steam into a market that your company isn’t familiar with, it would be wise to gain some initial insights. Expanding your operations into Georgia is a smart way to get closer to the market to observe its behavior.

Once your strategy is more informed with this newfound information, you’ll be better set up to enter the Georgian or Eastern European market with success. 

Convinced on the multitude of benefits of using a PEO to hire in Georgia? Book into a demo with Skuad to get started today.

Avoid setting up your own legal entity in Georgia

A PEO also allows a company to bypass the process of setting up their own legal entity in Georgia. A reputable PEO will have their own entity already established in Georgia, which they can then use to hire Georgian employees or contractors to work for your company. 

The alternative of legally incorporating your own entity in Georgia is both time-consuming and costly. You would need to source the legal expertise that specializes in Georgian employment law and be ready to dig deep into your pockets to pay for this specific expertise.

Thankfully, a PEO will take this burden off your plate. You can hand over all of these responsibilities, making hiring within Georgia as easy as hiring in your home region. 

Become culturally aware

As with any new country that you expand your business into, there will be cultural differences in Georgia to that of your own country. 

A PEO in Georgia can guide you here, to ensure that as an employer, you’re aware of any cultural practices that you’ll be expected to know.

For instance, while the Georgian people are known for their friendliness, hospitality and welcoming nature, it can sometimes take some time to strike a business deal. Initial meetings usually take place to determine the compatibility of the working relationship before any deals are closed.

Remain compliant in Georgia

When employing internationally, you’ll have to get to grips with the country’s unique employment legislation.

This includes carrying out payroll in accordance with local regulations, administering the correct statutory benefits (and then some) as well as contributing the right amounts to pension funds. 

Any non-compliance could cost your business significantly in fines or potential penalties. 

Here are some of the considerations when employing workers in Georgia:

Payroll

• Georgian employees are paid in the Georgian Lari (₾, GEL)
• While the minimum wage in Georgia is 20 GEL, it has remained unchanged since the 1990s, so employers don’t use it as a guideline. 
• The standard working week in Georgia is at 40 hours - 8 hours per day.
• There is no mandatory health insurance in Georgia. Those on low income or over a certain age receive vouchers, but it is otherwise optional.
• Severance pay in Georgia should consist of at least one month of wages.
• Probation periods may last up to six months and should be declared in writing.

Tax and employer contributions

• Corporation tax is 15%.
• VAT is 18%.
• Employees must contribute 2% to their pension fund - which is matched by employers.
• Employees pay a flat rate of 20% on income tax.

Paid leave

• Annual leave:
  Once an employee has worked for a business for 11 months, they will then be entitled to 24 days of annual leave.
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• Public holidays:
  Georgian employees are entitled to take paid time off on any of the 15 national public holidays.
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• Sick leave:
  For every month worked, an employee is entitled to 10 days of sick leave.
  While this sick leave can accumulate, it is capped at 720 hours - or 30 days.

• Maternity leave:
  Pregnant women are entitled to 126 days paid pregnancy leave.
  Where the mother is expecting twins or experiencing complications, pregnancy leave is increased to 143 days.
  After the birth date, new mothers are entitled to up to 604 days of maternity leave

• Paternity/parental leave:
  The mother can opt to transfer up to 57 days of her maternity leave to the father or parent of the child. 

Think you’ll need help to stay compliant in Georgia? Book into a demo with Skuad today to check out our PEO solution.

What does it cost to build a team in Georgia?

Company incorporation in Georgia

Forming a legal entity in Georgia is relatively more expensive than what you’d see in some other countries, costing $1,700 USD just to register the company, followed by a charge of $1,550 in the second year. 

While this still may not seem a huge expense in the grand scheme of things, we’re only just scratching the surface of the costs of setting up a business in Georgia. Once you factor in the specialist Georgian legal help to acquire the right business licenses, the registered office space, banking fees and more, you’ll be looking at a significantly larger budget. 

Alternatively, you could register with a PEO in Georgia.

PEO in Georgia

Pricing will vary depending on the PEO provider, as well as the type of package that you’re after. 

Skuad lets you get started for free and allows you to cancel at any time. From just $19 dollars a month, you can start onboarding and paying your employees in Georgia or in any of the other 160 countries in which we currently operate. 

If you’d like us to hire your international workers on your behalf, manage their payroll, benefits, and compliance, then you’ll benefit from our employer of record services - which start at $199 a month. 

We’re on hand to work out custom prices for enterprises looking to scale their operations with Skuad. 

Want to demo our platform?

To kickstart your hiring journey in Georgia, book into a demo of Skuad’s second-to-none PEO solution today.