Who employs the hire?

Opus does, directly, in the hire’s home country. Your company manages the person’s day-to-day work; Opus carries the employment relationship, including local payroll, labor compliance, and benefits.

Do I need a legal entity in Latin America to hire through Opus?

No. Because Opus employs each hire directly, your company never has to open a foreign entity, register as a local employer, or run international payroll.

How does the hire get paid?

Opus runs the hire’s payroll in their home country. Your company pays Opus one flat monthly rate in USD that covers salary, payroll, and compliance.

Is this a contractor arrangement?

No. The hire is a full-time employee under Opus’s direct employment model, dedicated exclusively to your team, not an independent contractor invoicing you.

Who handles employer-side obligations and local labor rules?

Opus, as the direct employer, is responsible for employer-side payroll and labor-law obligations in the hire’s country. Your company’s obligation is one monthly invoice to Opus.

Payroll & compliance

Payroll compliance for US companies hiring in Latin America

Opus handles payroll compliance for US companies hiring in Latin America through its direct employment model. Opus employs each hire directly in their home country and covers local payroll, labor compliance, and benefits in one flat monthly rate. Your company signs a single agreement with Opus and never has to open a foreign entity, register as a local employer, or run international payroll.

How the direct employment model handles compliance

The compliance question in nearshore hiring is really an employment question: someone has to be the legal employer in the hire’s country. Contractor arrangements dodge that question and push the risk onto you. Opus answers it directly: Opus is the employer. It runs payroll where the hire lives, carries the employer-side obligations that come with local labor rules, and administers benefits, while the person works full-time and exclusively for your team, on your hours, with US timezone overlap.

One monthly rate through Opus covers talent, payroll, and compliance.

What one monthly rate covers

Salary. The hire’s full compensation.
Local payroll. Run by Opus in the hire’s country, paid on local rails.
Labor compliance. Employer-side obligations sit with Opus as the direct employer.
Benefits. Administered by Opus, not by you.

For role-by-role benchmarks of that all-in rate against the fully loaded cost of a US hire, see the 2026 LatAm salary guide.

What your company does, and does not, have to do

You do: manage the work. Your hire reports to you, joins your meetings, and works inside your tools, like any other full-time placement.
You do not: open an entity, retain local counsel for routine employment admin, run foreign payroll, or track labor-law changes in the hire’s country. That is the model 325+ companies use through Opus, and it is part of how Opus keeps its 97% one-year retention: hires who are properly employed, paid, and covered stay.

Curious how this compares with a temp agency arrangement? See staffing through Opus vs traditional staffing firms.

Frequently asked questions

Who employs the hire?: Opus does, directly, in the hire’s home country. Your company manages the person’s day-to-day work; Opus carries the employment relationship, including local payroll, labor compliance, and benefits.
Do I need a legal entity in Latin America to hire through Opus?: No. Because Opus employs each hire directly, your company never has to open a foreign entity, register as a local employer, or run international payroll.
How does the hire get paid?: Opus runs the hire’s payroll in their home country. Your company pays Opus one flat monthly rate in USD that covers salary, payroll, and compliance.
Is this a contractor arrangement?: No. The hire is a full-time employee under Opus’s direct employment model, dedicated exclusively to your team, not an independent contractor invoicing you.
Who handles employer-side obligations and local labor rules?: Opus, as the direct employer, is responsible for employer-side payroll and labor-law obligations in the hire’s country. Your company’s obligation is one monthly invoice to Opus.

Hire in LatAm without the paperwork

One agreement, one monthly rate, zero foreign entities. 3 vetted candidates in 5 days, onboarded in 14 on average.

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