Professional Employer Organization (PEO) in Thailand

What is a PEO?

A Professional Employer Organization (PEO) is, broadly speaking, an external HR service for your business. 

Say you partner with a PEO to help you grow. They’ll take care of the hiring, onboarding, and payroll process for every one of your employees, leaving you free to deal with the more pressing issues of running your operation.

A PEO gives your employees access to services and resources that may have been difficult for you to provide. It also gives you peace of mind knowing that everything is done by the book. 

Some workflows that a PEO will take on include:

• Recruiting and hiring
• Payroll
• Onboarding 
• Termination and redundancy management
• Taxation services
• International employment services
• Compliance with different regulations across the globe
• Employee benefits

Get in touch with a Skuad team member today to chat about whether a PEO is right for your needs. 

Benefits of working with a PEO in Thailand

Running a business is rewarding… but exhausting. There’s always so much to do! But one of the main benefits of partnering with a PEO is how much your workload will be reduced.

Delegating employee management to an experienced company that you trust will bring massive changes to your workflow. Once you don’t have to deal with Thailand’s bureaucratic red tape and intricate payroll regulations, you can focus on running and growing your company!

Plus, working with a PEO allows you to operate less like a small business and more like a long-established company. You (and your employees) get access to many of the benefits usually only available to larger organizations –– while you still maintain the flexibility and autonomy of a smaller company. 

Offload the admin work to a trusted PEO and you’ll be able to focus more on growing internationally. Hiring the best talent around the world, without having to worry about the legal ramifications of a global team, will do wonders for your business. 

Plus you’ll also have the peace of mind of having an expert team handling all the bits and pieces you don't want to spend your time on!

Speak to one of Skuad’s international hiring experts today. 

Considerations when hiring in Thailand

There are plenty of motivating factors when it comes to hiring teams in Thailand. For one, the average age of Thailand’s population is 39 years old — so international companies are increasingly aware of Thailand as a talent hub for a highly-skilled, connected, and low-cost remote workforce.

Plus, Bangkok is the most popular city in Asia for digital nomads –– and ranks fourth globally –– thanks to affordable internet and living costs.

But, unless your business is based in Thailand, you can’t just start hiring Thai workers as and when you want. Sure, you could ​​set up an entity or business in Thailand, which will probably be much more hassle than it’s worth. This is where a PEO comes in. 

Working with a PEO like Skuad means that you can easily hire, onboard, and pay employees in Thailand without the headache of complying with local laws. 

A PEO will provide employee management services and administrative assistance, including payroll processing, onboarding, recruiting, benefits management, and HR services to all your employees in Thailand –– and around the world!

Sure, you could handle the hiring and payroll process in-house to save costs. If that’s the route you’re going to go, there are a lot of local regulations to keep in mind. Unfortunately, it’s not as straightforward as treating your Thai employees the same way you do your local workers. As you surely know by now, every country around the world has its own payroll quirks. 

Thailand’s payroll rules and regulations

In Thailand, employers withhold employees’ tax contributions from their salaries. That means you’d be responsible for deducting tax from your employees’ paychecks and sending that to the Thai government. 

Also, employers are mandated to contribute to the Workmen’s Compensation Fund. The amount varies between 0.2% and 1% of salary for each employee. The range depends on the level of risk for the role and the employer’s previous safety record.

There are 13 official paid holidays in Thailand. Though workers typically work a 38-hour week, many companies require shifts for half-days on Saturdays. Overtime is paid at a minimum of 150% of salary on normal working days, 200% for normal working hours on holidays, and 300% for overtime on holidays.

It’s not mandatory, but it’s common courtesy in Thailand to provide 30 days’ notice for termination. Severance compensation depends on the employee’s time with the company. It starts at 30 days’ pay for those with more than 120 days of service and moves up through six bands to 400 days’ pay for those with at least 20 years’ service.

It’s a lot to take in, right?! That’s why so many businesses choose to partner with PEOs who are experts in the process of hiring and managing employees in Thailand. It’s not just about reducing your workload; it’s about the peace of mind knowing you’re complying with local laws. 

‍Get in touch today for a demo and learn more about how Skuad can help your business grow.

What does it cost to build a team in Thailand?

Setting up a business in Thailand may conjure up images of beach-side co-working and island hopping in between meetings. But establishing a legal entity in this country can be more of a headache than you’d think...

Cost of company incorporation in Thailand

Businesses will encounter several fee categories when starting up in Thailand, including professional fees and government fees. And you’ll need at least $90,000 in registered capital for each work visa you want to issue. That can add up fast.

PEOs are the alternative way of doing business in Thailand. Not only does a PEO work out at the fraction of the cost versus a legal entity of your own, it gets you ready-to-hire much faster well.

Cost of PEO services in Thailand

The cost of contracting a PEO can vary, based on the services you need, the size of your company, and the type of employee you’re looking to bring on. 

Before beginning a partnership with your PEO, it’s important to understand exactly what they’re going to deliver –– and your responsibilities to them. You don’t want to sign a contract only to be hit with hidden fees you didn’t expect. 

At Skuad, we pride ourselves on being super transparent about our costs and our services. You’ll start for free and you can cancel at any time. We’re not out here trying to trick you since we live by the motto “no hidden costs, no long-term commitments.”

Our cost for a full-time employee starts at $199 per month, no matter where they are (or you are) based around the world. This cost covers payroll, benefits, and compliance. We offer:

• Competitive salary and benefits packages tailored to the country of employment
• Management of employment documents based on local laws
• Secure IP and invention rights so you have peace of mind
• An easy-to-use platform for employees to track and manage paid time off
• Multi-channel assistance with a dedicated account manager 

Only bringing on contractors, not full-time employees? We’ve got you covered here too. 

Starting at $19 per contractor per month, we onboard and pay your contractors anywhere in the world with one unified platform. This includes:

• Paying workers on time and in the currency of their choice
• Onboarding and contract signing management
• An online secure platform for you to manage all contractor documents
• Easy and instant tracking of invoices and the exact number of hours worked for each contractor
• Live chat support to offer guidance every step of the way
• Compliance with local labor laws

Yes, working with a PEO does require a monthly fee. But the peace of mind that it comes with is priceless. You’re saving yourself from admin headaches, not to mention the potential fines that could come with accidental non-compliance.

Get started with a PEO in Thailand today

If you’re eyeing talent in Thailand and hoping to expand your global workforce, then a PEO is really your best option. There’s no point missing out on hiring stellar employees just because you can’t handle the complexities of international payroll.

If it sounds like a PEO could be a great asset for your growing company, then you’re probably right! Get in touch with us today at Skuad for a demo to see how we can work together.