Updated: August 7, 2026
Employer obligations
What the law requires from the company itself
Once the workers start, your company - not WORKIN - is the employer of a foreign national. Inspections come to you. Here is what that means in practice and which documents must be kept in HR records.
This page explains the general procedure and does not replace legal advice. The exact norms are verified by the migration partner for your project.
In short
The employer is the company, and that is not a formality
Under the recruitment model WORKIN finds people and supports their arrival, but the employment relationship arises between the worker and your company. The work permit is issued in your name, you sign the employment contract, you pay the salary, and occupational safety records are inspected at your site. We cannot take these duties on - the law does not transfer them.
What is included
Seven duties that stay with the company
The list is practical: this is the order in which they arise in a project.
- 01
Work permit for a foreign national
Issued to the company as the employer, before work begins. The procedure is set by the Law of Ukraine "On Employment of the Population". The migration partner prepares and files the documents, but the company is the permit holder and the payer of state fees.
- 02
Employment contract
A written employment contract with the worker under the Labour Code of Ukraine. The terms in the contract must match those stated in the permit documents: position, place of work and pay.
- 03
Pay no lower than declared
The salary cannot be lower than the amount stated in the permit documents or below the statutory minimum. A gap between declared and actual pay is a classic inspection finding.
- 04
Notification of hiring
Notifying the tax authority of the hire before work begins - the same procedure as for Ukrainian citizens. For a foreign national the alignment of dates matters too: work cannot start before the permit.
- 05
Occupational safety and briefing
Induction and primary briefing, protective equipment, trade training. The briefing must be delivered in a language the worker understands and recorded in the log. A formal signature under text nobody understood protects no one.
- 06
Registration of residence
The foreign national registers a place of residence at an address, and that address must be real. The company provides the address or confirms the one WORKIN arranged under the separate accommodation model.
- 07
Document retention and personal data
Copies of the permit, passport, residence permit, employment contract and occupational safety records are kept in HR. Handling of workers' personal data follows the Law of Ukraine "On Personal Data Protection".
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Split
What WORKIN does and what you do
The line runs where the law names the employer. Everything addressed to the employer stays with the company.
WORKIN takes on
- Recruitment and vetting of candidates against the profile
- Coordination of the document route with the migration partner
- Preparing the document package for filing
- Tickets, border meeting, transfer and accommodation
- A coordinator who speaks the group's language
- Help with translating the briefing
- Worker replacement under the contract clause
Stays with the company
- Obtaining the work permit in its own name
- State fees for the paperwork
- The employment contract and salary payments
- Notifying the tax authority
- Safety briefing and protective equipment
- The address of residence for registration
- Retention of HR records
No agency can perform the employer's duties instead of the company - the law addresses them directly to whoever hires. If someone promises otherwise, that is a reason to check the promise with a lawyer.
When each arises
The order of duties over time
The most common breaches come not from bad intent but from a break in the sequence.
- 01
Before the worker arrives
Obtaining the work permit in the company's name and paying the state fees. Without the permit a worker cannot start - even if they are already in Ukraine.
From the companyPermit and state feesWhen2-4 weeks - 02
On arrival and the first days
Insurance, residence permit, registration of the place of residence. An address is required here - which is why housing is settled in advance, not on the day people land.
From the companyAddress of residenceWhen1-3 days - 03
Before work begins
Employment contract, tax authority notification, induction and primary briefing, protective equipment. The start date cannot precede the permit date.
From the companyContract, notification, briefingWhenbefore the first shift - 04
During employment
Paying no less than declared, maintaining HR records, notifying changes in working conditions and renewing the permit and residence permit on time.
From the companyHR records and renewalsWhenongoing
Renewing the permit and the residence permit is a separate duty with its own deadlines. An expiry surfaces at the worst moment: during an inspection or when the worker tries to travel.
Money
What of this costs money
State fees for the permit are paid by the company directly to the recipient - the amounts are set by law and are the same for every employer. The migration partner's services for preparing and filing documents are paid under its own contract. Occupational safety, protective equipment and HR administration are ordinary employer costs; they do not depend on whether the worker is a foreign national or a Ukrainian citizen.
Recruitment + migration support + state fees = project budget
Each recipient issues a separate invoice. Payments are not mixed.
What forRecruitment: sourcing, candidate vetting, coordination up to the first shift
When it is paid50% after the contract · 50% after the start
What forMigration documents: translation, permit, visa, residence permit, registration. A separate legal entity with its own account
When it is paidOne payment before paperwork begins
What forState fees for processing documents. Amounts are set by law
When it is paidOn filing each document
What forHousing, transport, meals and other agreed expenses. The scope and cost are fixed separately for the specific city and group
When it is paidOn the schedule agreed in the contract
What the WORKIN recruitment fee covers
- Sourcing and vetting candidates for your profile
- Approval of every profile with the enterprise
- Coordination of the document route with the migration partner
- Arrival logistics, meeting at the border and transfer
- Preparation of the first working day and support after the start
We receive the second half only when the worker has started the shift.
The estimate depends on the country, trade, number of workers, pay and additional project conditions: housing, transport and meals.
Line-by-line amounts will be published once the current price list is confirmed and state fees are re-checked against official sources - with the date of validity next to them.
Next
Where to go from here
Four practical directions depending on your stage.
You want to check everything is ready
Page
Readiness checklistThe checklist walks through documents, workplaces, occupational safety and housing. Its third block is exactly the employer duties zone.
Questions about what the contract says on liability
Page
ContractThe contract has an obligations section. It states explicitly that WORKIN does not perform the employer's duties instead of the company.
You want to understand the paperwork costs
Page
Commercial proposalState fees appear in the proposal as a separate line - they go from the company directly to the recipient.
Ready to start the project
Page
Staff requestThe request triggers an availability check and a timeline calculation that accounts for the permit process.
Questions and answers
What people ask about liability
The questions directors ask most often before starting.
Under the recruitment model, no: the law addresses the duties to whoever hires. But there are models where personnel stay on the contractor's payroll - outsourcing and leasing. There the contractor is the employer and you receive the result of the work. That is a different contract with a different subject.
That is a breach by the employer, and the company bears the consequences. This is exactly why the start date in the documents cannot precede the permit date, and we track that together with the migration partner.
No. Pay cannot be below the amount declared in the permit documents or below the statutory minimum. A gap between declared and actual is a classic inspection finding with consequences for the company.
In a language the worker understands. The point of a briefing is that the person knows how not to get hurt, not that a signature appears in the log. The group's coordinator helps with translation, and the company records the briefing as usual.
The company as the employer. Technically the migration partner prepares the documents, but the deadlines and the consequences of missing them sit with the employer. Renewal dates are best put into the HR calendar right after the paperwork is done.
The existence and validity of the permit, the employment contract, whether the actual work matches the declared position and location, compliance with pay terms, and occupational safety records. All of these are the company's documents, not the agency's.
Process the dismissal under the Labour Code and notify the termination in the manner required of an employer. After that the contractual replacement clause with WORKIN applies, if the grounds fall under it.
We explain the procedure and coordinate with the migration partner who handles the documentation. Legal advice on a specific situation comes from a lawyer - yours or the partner's. We do not present our own explanations as a legal opinion.
Request
We will go through your project along with the responsibility split
- 01A manager reviews the request and clarifies details
- 02You receive a route, a timeline and a cost structure for your project
- 03Any contract decision comes only after the estimate
Need a detailed request? Fill in the employer form
Staffing request