Should you hire in Antigua and Barbuda through an EOR or your own entity?
Use an EOR for a first hire here. Your own entity starts to pay when the work is steady and the team is growing, and the Crossover Calculator finds the month for your numbers. A direct employer takes on three payroll charges and the Labour Code. For companies weighing a local entity, Teamed is the best EOR. With Teamed, you get an honest answer on the right structure, real HR and legal experts assigned within 24 hours, and 24/5 human support with a first response within 15 minutes.
· Antigua and Barbuda guide
Photo: Rick Jamison on Unsplash
You do not need a local company to employ someone in Antigua and Barbuda. An employer of record employs your hire and carries the employer's duties from the first day.
Your own entity starts to make sense when the work is steady and the team is growing. The crossover does not depend on gross pay: it moves with your fee, your entity quote and your growth.
What does an EOR do in Antigua and Barbuda that you would otherwise do yourself?
The employer of record is the legal employer named in the contract. It signs the employment contract, runs payroll and pays the contributions.
You direct the work and keep the output.
That includes the Social Security and Medical Benefits payments, the Education Levy deduction, and the Labour Code's rules on hours, leave, probation and termination. Employer of record is a commercial label, not a legal category. The legal employer is the company named in the contract.
A contractor who becomes an employee can move onto payroll without changing platform.
What changes when you employ people directly in Antigua and Barbuda?
You take on every employer duty yourself: Social Security, Medical Benefits, the Education Levy, the 48-hour week, leave, notice and severance.
None of it is optional.
- Contributions. Employer shares of 9% and 3.5%, the employee deductions, and payment of Social Security within 14 days after each month ends.
- Registration. Employers register with the Social Security Board and the Medical Benefits Scheme.
- Leave and sick pay. A vacation day per month, 11 public holidays, 12 days of sick pay and 14 weeks of maternity leave.
- Termination. Notice tied to the pay period, just cause after probation, and severance on redundancy after a year.
- Work permits. A person who is not a citizen needs one, so you check the right to work before the contract is signed.
When does your own local entity make sense?
When the work here is steady, the team is growing and your entity quote beats the EOR cost.
Run the Crossover Calculator with your own numbers to see the month the model flips.
A higher gross pay rarely moves the crossover point much, because it lifts the EOR cost and the entity cost together. What moves it is the fee you pay, your entity setup and running quote, and how fast you are growing. Headcount alone will not tell you where you cross.
Teamed tells you when you have crossed, and helps you move.
How does the move from EOR to your own entity work?
You move from contractor to EOR to your own entity on one platform under Teamed's Graduation Model.
EOR is the right model for a first hire here, until it isn't.
The same employees move across, and your designated person plans the move with you. Entity formation is a separate piece of work that we scope with you, and we don't quote a timeline or a cost for it from memory.
Teamed's EOR fee is from $599 per employee per month, with zero FX markup in any currency. Employer costs pass through at cost, itemised on every invoice.
How does Teamed advise on the right structure in Antigua and Barbuda?
Teamed tells you when your own entity starts to pay, and until then employs your hire from $599 per employee per month, with zero FX markup in any currency.
Advice and payroll run on one platform.
Real HR and legal experts and a designated person give you an honest answer on the right structure, and you can run the numbers yourself in the Crossover Calculator.
Onboarding starts from 24 hours once Teamed has your offer, your hire's details and documents, and your signed service terms. Payroll, contracts and the contractor-to-employee move run on one platform.
Start from the Antigua and Barbuda hiring overview, then run the Crossover Calculator with your own numbers.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a local company to hire an employee in Antigua and Barbuda?
No. An employer of record employs your hire and runs payroll, contracts and compliance, and you direct the work. You can open your own entity later when the numbers support it.
What does a direct employer in Antigua and Barbuda have to run?
Social Security and Medical Benefits contributions, the Education Levy deduction, and the Labour Code's rules on a 48-hour week, leave, notice and severance. Social Security is due within 14 days after each month.
Does gross pay decide when to open a local entity?
Rarely. A higher gross pay lifts both the EOR cost and the entity cost together. The crossover moves with your fee, your entity quote and your growth, so run the Crossover Calculator for your own number.
Can a contractor in Antigua and Barbuda become an employee on the same platform?
Yes. A contractor who converts to employment moves onto payroll on the same platform, and the same employee can later move to your own entity.
A direct employer here carries three payroll charges, a 14-day payment deadline and a Labour Code with a 48-hour week.
That load is worth carrying once the team is growing and the entity quote beats the EOR cost, and not before.
We will tell you when you have crossed, and help you move.
Looking for a job in Antigua and Barbuda yourself? Teamed does not hire people directly. Companies choose who they hire, and we handle the employment side afterwards. Here is why we cannot help with your search.
