Stay fully compliant when engaging global contractors.

When contractor classification gets risky, Mercans becomes your Agent of Record. We reduce legal exposure, protect your business in complex jurisdictions, and ensure every engagement is defensible.

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Stay fully compliant when engaging global contractors.

Why companies need an Agent of Record

Global contractor engagements are powerful, but legally complex.

While hiring contractors globally can accelerate your team's progress, it also introduces significant risk due to the varied international definitions of independent work. Non-compliance, which becomes increasingly challenging across multiple markets, can lead to serious consequences. These range from fines and back taxes to forced employment recognition and damage to your company's reputation.

Core pain points

Unclear. shifting classification rules

Each jurisdiction defines contractors differently. Standards change frequently and vary by industry. This creates uncertainty and legal ambiguity.

High penalties for misclassification

Governments increasingly crack down on contractor misuse. Fines, penalties, and back dated benefits can cost millions.

Inconsistent documentation and contracts

Contracts not aligned to local law are one of the biggest risk drivers. Many teams unknowingly reuse templates that do not meet regulatory standards.

Contractors working like employees

Lack of clear boundaries, control, and engagement style can lead to reclassification.

No internal expertise for every country

Legal teams cannot realistically maintain deep, current knowledge of contractor laws in dozens of markets.

Positioning the solution

Mercans becomes the compliance backbone behind your contractor strategy.

As your appointed Agent of Record, Mercans takes on the formal responsibility of an intermediary. Our role is to guarantee that all your contractor engagements are structured, documented, and executed in full compliance with the legal requirements of every relevant country. This structure offers you enhanced protection and clarity, provides contractors with legally sound terms, and allows your internal teams to concentrate on operational execution instead of being preoccupied with legal risks.

Compliance ownership for contractor engagements

We manage country specific requirements, documentation, and classification processes.

Defensible. audit ready engagements

Every contractor engagement is backed by correct contracts, risk assessments, and documented working practices.

Local experts in 160+ countries

You get real time, market based compliance expertise without hiring local legal specialists.

Seamless workflow integration

AOR works in harmony with Contractor Management and Contractor Payments to form an end to end compliant ecosystem.

Compliance ownership for contractor engagements

We manage country specific requirements, documentation, and classification processes.

Defensible. audit ready engagements

Every contractor engagement is backed by correct contracts, risk assessments, and documented working practices.

Local experts in 160+ countries

You get real time, market based compliance expertise without hiring local legal specialists.

Seamless workflow integration

AOR works in harmony with Contractor Management and Contractor Payments to form an end to end compliant ecosystem.

What the Agent of Record actually does

Structured questionnaires

Scoring tied to country specific rules

Recommendations to adjust engagement structure when needed

Documentation that protects you during audits or disputes

This integrates directly with Mercans Contractor Management Learn about Contractor Management →

Built for HR, Finance, and Legal together

Why choose Mercans as your AOR

Minimize misclassification risk

Ensure every contractor engagement is defensible

Country specific accuracy and documentation

Business outcomes and ROI

Reduce risk, Gain confidence, Scale faster.

Outcome statements

Reduction in misclassification exposure and penalty risk

Significant savings by avoiding fines, remediation, and legal disputes

Faster expansion into new markets without waiting for legal research

Higher contractor satisfaction through compliant, consistent processes

Most clients treat Agent of Record as strategic insurance that enables safe global scaling.

Reduce risk, Gain confidence, Scale faster.

Testimonials

Global digital services company

Our biggest worry was misclassification. especially in Europe. Mercans became our Agent of Record and gave us a defensible structure for every contractor.

Chief Legal Officer

International mobility and logistics group

We had no internal expertise for Asia Pacific markets. With Mercans as our AOR. we expanded into five new countries without adding internal legal specialists. Zero compliance escalations since launch.

VP HR

Fintech scale up

Mercans gave us the confidence to use contractors where we could not hire full time. The documentation, risk scoring, and ongoing oversight are incredibly valuable. Our board sees this as a major risk reduction lever.

Chief Operating Officer

How AOR works

Turn contractor complexity into compliance

Engagement review

We assess the contractor’s role, scope of work, and jurisdiction.

Classification and recommendations

Clear guidance on how to structure the engagement to remain compliant.

Contract creation

Local. compliant contractor agreements are drafted and executed.

Onboarding and verification

Required documents. forms, and checks are completed through a guided flow.

Ongoing compliance management

We monitor changes in work patterns, renewals. and legal requirements.

Optional integrated payments

Pair AOR with Contractor Payments for a complete risk managed payout process.

Who AOR is designed for

This service is ideal if you:

Engage contractors in markets with complex or shifting rules

Cannot risk misclassification penalties or disputes

Lack local legal expertise for contractor compliance

Want a trusted compliance partner to support large scale contractor operations

Use contractors for long term or high value roles that may trigger classification scrutiny

Explore Contractor Management → & Contractor Payment →

Frequently Asked Questions

Contractor Management handles operational workflows. The AOR service takes on legal responsibility for ensuring that contractor engagements meet country specific standards. Both work together but solve different problems.

No. Your legal team retains oversight. Mercans provides the local, specialized compliance expertise needed for contractor engagements across multiple countries.

Yes. Many clients use AOR only in high risk markets while managing lower risk countries internally.

Yes. The service is designed for scalability across dozens of markets and hundreds or thousands of contractors.

AOR covers compliance of contractor engagement. not employment payroll. However, when paired with Contractor Payments, we provide compliant payout flows and required documentation.

Mercans updates contracts, documentation, and recommended working practices as local rules evolve.

Most clients go live quickly after completing an initial compliance and classification setup. Timelines depend on the number of markets and contractor roles.

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Our team will guide you through our contractor payment solutions and show you how we can tailor our services to fit your needs.

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