How much does it cost to use an Employer of Record (EOR) in Egypt?
- Gegidze • გეგიძე | Marketing
- Jul 5
- 10 min read
Table of contents:
Introduction
How much does it cost to use an Employer of Record (EOR) in Egypt?
Let’s just say, less than a lawsuit, more than a Stripe subscription.
You’ve found the developer. Cairo-based. Fluent in JavaScript, fluent in English. Wants to start next week.
But your finance lead is side-eyeing the invoice template, and your legal counsel just said the words “tax exposure.” You were hoping to avoid an entity setup. You were definitely hoping to avoid fines. And now you’re wondering: how much is this going to cost us to do right?
Here’s the thing: EOR services in Egypt aren’t a mystery box. They’re a structure. A way to hire full-time employees without opening a local company, while staying fully compliant with Egyptian labor law, tax rules, and benefit requirements. You get a monthly invoice. Your employee gets paid legally. The government gets its share. No surprises, no risks, no guesswork.
Unless… you skip the math.
Because cost isn’t just about the EOR fee. It’s about what’s included, what’s not, who handles what, and what happens if you miss a payroll tax deadline by 24 hours.
This article breaks it all down:
What EORs in Egypt really cost
What you get for that cost
Where hidden expenses like equipment or workspace creep in
And how to compare EORs with setting up your own entity or hiring “contractors”
If you’re a founder, CFO, or hiring lead trying to enter Egypt’s talent market without walking into a compliance minefield, this is for you. Let’s talk numbers, and save you from that “wait, we owe how much in back taxes?” moment.
What does the EOR fee typically cover?
An EOR fee isn’t just some vague monthly charge. It’s the price of doing things right, from day one to termination notice. In Egypt, that means not just hiring legally but staying legal.
So, what exactly are you paying for when you use an Employer of Record?
Here’s the breakdown.
1. Legal employment and compliance
Your hire isn’t a freelancer. They’re a full-time employee—on paper, on payroll, and in the eyes of Egyptian labor law.
That means the EOR becomes the legal employer, taking full responsibility for:
Drafting locally compliant employment contracts
Registering the employee with tax and social security authorities
Navigating Egypt’s labor codes on leave, termination, and workplace protections
Avoiding misclassification risks, fines, or IP disputes
You don’t need to hire a local lawyer. The EOR already has one.
2. Payroll processing and tax filing
Egypt’s payroll isn’t rocket science, but it’s not plug-and-play either. The EOR handles it all:
Monthly salary calculations
Withholding and filing income tax
Social insurance contributions (both employer and employee share)
Payslip generation in EGP
Compliance with minimum wage laws and overtime rules
You get a single invoice. The government gets its taxes. Your employee gets paid, on time and above board.
3. Benefits administration (mandatory and market-standard)
Some benefits are legally required. Others are what top talent expects. A good EOR in Egypt knows the difference and manages both:
Mandatory:
Paid annual leave
Social insurance coverage
Sick leave and termination notice periods
Common extras (that help you retain talent):
Private health insurance
Equipment stipends
Work-from-home allowances
If it’s part of the offer, the EOR will make it happen, compliantly.
4. Local contracts in Arabic and English
You can’t just send over a contract in English and hope for the best. Egyptian labor authorities require Arabic documentation.
Your EOR will:
Draft bilingual contracts that hold up legally
Include probation periods, termination clauses, job scopes, and benefits
Ensure IP transfer clauses and NDAs are locally enforceable
Forget Google Translate. This is real, legal protection.
5. Currency exchange and salary disbursement
Your company pays in EUR, USD, or GBP. Your employee expects EGP in their local bank account.
The EOR:
Handles currency conversion
Mitigates FX volatility risks
Ensures legal salary disbursement into local accounts
No hidden markups. No delays. No confusion.
6. Onboarding and ongoing HR support
An EOR isn’t your head of people, but they make sure your hire can actually start:
Tax number registration
Social insurance setup
Employee documentation
Ongoing local support for compliance questions or updates
You handle team culture, Slack channels, and daily standups. The EOR handles everything else that would otherwise land on Legal’s desk.
Breakdown of EOR Costs in Egypt
Hiring in Egypt through an EOR isn’t free, but neither is cleaning up compliance messes. The question isn’t whether it costs money. The question is how much, what you’re paying for, and whether it scales with your business.
Let’s break it down.
EOR fee: flat rate or percentage-based?
Most EOR providers in Egypt follow one of two pricing models:
Flat-rate fee: You pay a fixed fee per employee each month, no matter their salary.
Percentage-based fee: The EOR takes a cut, usually 8–15%, of the employee’s gross monthly salary.
Team Up charges a flat fee of €199 per employee/month in Egypt. That means zero surprises when your developer negotiates a raise. You grow your team without inflating your EOR costs.
So what does it look like in real numbers?
Let’s run the math on typical monthly cost scenarios based on Egyptian gross salaries and Team Up’s flat-rate EOR pricing.
Role Level | Gross Salary (EGP) | Approx. EUR Equivalent | EOR Fee (Flat) | Total Cost (EUR/month) |
Junior Developer | 20,000 EGP | €600 | €199 | €799 |
Mid-Level Dev | 35,000 EGP | €1,050 | €199 | €1,249 |
Senior Engineer | 60,000 EGP | €1,800 | €199 | €1,999 |
Note: These totals exclude taxes and social contributions, which are calculated and paid on top by the EOR and included in your invoice. But the point is: the EOR fee stays the same.
Now compare that with a percentage-based EOR charging, say, 12%:
Role Level | Gross Salary (EUR) | 12% EOR Fee | Total EOR Cost |
Junior Developer | €600 | €72 | €672 |
Mid-Level Dev | €1,050 | €126 | €1,176 |
Senior Engineer | €1,800 | €216 | €2,016 |
It might look cheaper at the junior level. But once you start scaling senior roles or growing a full team, percentage fees can balloon. You’re paying more for the same service.
So what’s actually better?
If you’re hiring just one or two junior roles, a low-percentage EOR might feel cheaper, on paper.
But if you’re building a real team with varying seniority levels, a flat-rate model gives you predictability, scalability, and lower total costs over time.
And honestly, if your developer gets a raise? That should cost you, not reward the EOR.
Flat-rate = control.
Percentage-based = margin creep.
If you like clean forecasting, your CFO has already made the decision.
Employer of Record vs setting up your own entity: Cost comparison
Hiring in Egypt sounds simple until someone says, “Let’s just open a local entity.”
Then suddenly, you’re talking lawyers, registration paperwork, tax inspections, and a two-month delay to onboard a single developer.
So what’s cheaper? EOR or setting up your own company in Egypt?
Let’s compare.
Upfront setup vs ongoing EOR fees
Setting up your own entity in Egypt comes with hard costs:
Legal & notary fees: €1,500–€3,000
Company registration: €1,000+
Accountant retainer: €300/month
Payroll software or service: €100/month
Time spent navigating it all? Priceless (in a bad way)
Meanwhile, Team Up’s EOR model costs €199 per employee/month, with zero setup fees. You start hiring next week, not next quarter.
Unless you plan to hire a full office in Cairo and stay for the long haul, you’re likely burning cash just to exist legally.
Administrative overhead and compliance management
With your own entity, you handle:
Monthly payroll tax filings
Social insurance registration
Labor law updates
Employee contracts in Arabic
Termination processes
Equipment policies, benefits, audits, etc.
With Team Up? That’s our job. You focus on managing your team. We make sure they’re legally employed and paid properly.
Translation: no headaches, no HR bureaucracy, and no tax authority drama.
Risk exposure and hidden expenses
Entity setup often brings hidden costs:
Late filing fines
Missed compliance deadlines
Contractor misclassification risks
IP disputes due to unenforceable contracts
Severance miscalculations
Liability for unclaimed benefits
Even one mistake can cost more than a year’s worth of EOR fees.
Team Up’s EOR service shields you from that risk. Contracts, payroll, taxes, benefits—done right, from day one. No surprises.
Short-term flexibility vs long-term scalability
If you're testing the Egyptian talent market, an entity locks you in. EOR gives you flexibility:
Hire one person now, three next quarter
Pause or scale without sunk costs
Avoid overhead until you're ready for local operations
If things go well and you decide to open an office later, great—we’ll help you transition.
Until then, you're running lean, legal, and compliant.
Bottom line?
Factor | Employer of Record | Own Entity in Egypt |
Upfront Setup Cost | €0 | €2,500–€5,000+ |
Time to Hire | 1 week | 6–12 weeks |
Monthly Admin Overhead | Included in €199 fee | €300–€1,000+ |
Legal & Compliance Risk | Covered by EOR | On you |
Contract & Tax Management | Done for you | Your problem |
Scalability | Easy to grow or pause | Locked-in, bureaucratic |
Unless you're planning to hire dozens of employees and build a permanent base, the EOR model isn’t just cheaper, it’s smarter.
Payroll taxes and mandatory benefits
Hiring in Egypt comes with real responsibilities, especially when it comes to payroll taxes and statutory benefits. If you don’t know the rules, you’ll break them. And if you break them, it gets expensive fast.
Here’s what you’re on the hook for, and how an EOR takes that load off your plate.
Payroll taxes in Egypt: What employers pay
Employers in Egypt are required to contribute to several social insurance funds. These aren’t optional. Miss a payment, and you could trigger backdated penalties or lose your ability to hire locally.
Here’s a simplified breakdown of monthly contributions (as of 2025):
Contribution Type | Employer Share | Employee Share |
Social Insurance (Pension + Disability) | 18.75% | 11% |
Unemployment Insurance | Included above | Included above |
Income Tax (PAYE) | Withheld from salary (based on brackets) | Yes |
Social insurance is calculated based on a capped base salary, which changes annually and is defined by the government. So you’re not paying 18.75% on unlimited income, but you are responsible for calculating and filing it correctly every single month.
With Team Up as your EOR? That’s all automated.
Mandatory benefits in Egypt
Beyond salary, employees in Egypt are entitled to:
Paid annual leave: 21 working days minimum
Paid sick leave: Partial pay based on tenure and doctor certification
Paid public holidays: Typically 14+ per year
Maternity leave: 90 days of paid leave, with restrictions on dismissal
Social insurance: Includes pension, disability, and survivorship
End-of-service benefits: Legally structured through social insurance
Minimum wage compliance: Varies by sector and skill level
Healthcare? Public health coverage is included under the social insurance system, but many companies supplement it with private plans, especially to attract senior or tech talent.
How does an EOR handle all this?
Short version: you don’t.
Team Up handles:
Enrollment in Egypt’s social insurance system
Monthly payroll tax filing and remittance
Payslip generation with proper breakdowns
Employment contracts that reflect legally mandated benefits
Optional add-ons like private health coverage or equipment stipends
Adjustments for raises, leaves, and tax bracket changes
Your employee gets full compliance. Your finance team gets clean invoices. You get peace of mind.
Talent acquisition & management costs
Hiring in Egypt shouldn’t mean hiring chaos. But when you try to do it all in-house from sourcing to compliance to payroll, costs (and stress) pile up fast.
That’s where an Employer of Record flips the script.
Why EOR is the shortcut to Egypt’s talent pool
Instead of flying blind, you get immediate access to pre-vetted candidates, localized employment infrastructure, and built-in HR support. You don’t need to set up shop or build a local HR department. The EOR already did.
Team Up’s flat-rate model means you get full-time, fully compliant employees in Egypt without the overhead of entity setup, legal navigation, or tax headaches.
That’s not just a compliance win. It’s a budget win.
What you don’t need to pay for when using an EOR:
Local recruitment consultants charging 15–25% of annual salary
Legal review of Arabic contracts
Payroll software subscriptions
Tax advisory services
Local HR staff or admin hires
All of that is baked into your EOR fee. You pay €199/month per employee, and Team Up handles everything from onboarding to offboarding.
So, what talent can you actually hire through an EOR in Egypt?
The short answer: highly skilled, English-speaking professionals across a wide range of functions.
Here are some real examples of Team Up clients that have been hired in Egypt:
Role | Monthly Gross Salary (EUR) |
Frontend Developer (React) | €1,000–€1,500 |
Backend Engineer (Node.js) | €1,200–€1,800 |
Mobile Developer (Flutter) | €1,300–€1,900 |
QA Engineer (Manual/Automated) | €900–€1,400 |
UI/UX Designer | €1,000–€1,500 |
DevOps Engineer | €1,500–€2,200 |
Customer Support Rep (EN/FR) | €700–€1,100 |
You get the talent you need without the time sink of vetting suppliers, navigating job boards, or wondering whether your offer is legally structured.
Equipment and workspace costs in Egypt
You’ve hired someone great in Egypt—now what? They need a laptop, a stable setup, maybe even a desk outside their home. But who pays for it? How much does it cost? And what’s actually expected?
Let’s make it simple.
What’s typical in Egypt?
Egypt’s remote talent market has grown fast, especially in tech and customer support roles. Most professionals expect to work from home, but with proper tools provided by the employer or reimbursed.
Here’s what candidates don’t expect:
To buy their own laptop for a full-time job
To work out of noisy cafés forever
To chase HR for a screen or mouse that was promised 3 weeks ago
So, who covers equipment costs?
Here are the most common setups we see:
Setup | Who Pays? | Notes |
Laptop + basic accessories | Employer (via EOR) | Either shipped or reimbursed locally |
Monthly internet stipend | Employer | €20–€40/month is standard |
Coworking desk | Optional add-on | Paid by employer if offered |
Home office furniture | Sometimes reimbursed | Case-by-case, not mandatory |
Team Up supports all of these through its EOR model. You decide what to offer. We make sure it’s compliant and processed on time.
What does it actually cost?
Whether your hire works from home, a shared space, or a private office—you’ve got options.
Workspace Type | Monthly Cost Estimate (€) | Notes |
Remote (home setup) | €69 (equipment lease) | Or buy a laptop locally for €600–€900 |
Coworking Desk | €100–€150 | Popular in Cairo, Alexandria, remote cities too |
Private Office | €500–€1,200 | For local managers or small hubs |
Need help sourcing or shipping gear? We’ve done it. Want to offer coworking as a perk? We can handle that too.
Conclusion
Hiring in Egypt doesn’t have to be a legal maze or a budget black hole. But it can become both fast, if you don’t know what you’re doing.
An Employer of Record gives you the fastest, safest path to building a remote team in Egypt without setting up a local entity, misclassifying contractors, or playing tax roulette. And the costs? Transparent, predictable, and far lower than cleaning up a compliance mistake.
With Team Up, you get:
A flat monthly EOR fee of €199 per employee
Full legal employment and payroll management
Tax compliance, benefits, and bilingual contracts handled for you
Optional workspace and equipment solutions
Access to Egypt’s growing pool of tech and support talent
We do the boring stuff. You get to focus on building a great team.
Ready to hire in Egypt without the legal drama?
Let’s make it official. Book a call and we’ll show you exactly how simple it can be.