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Our verdict
Connect Resources is a leading Employer of Record (EOR) and staffing company in Dubai and the Middle East. It provides strong HR, payroll, visa and compliance support for any company looking to expand operations and hire in the Middle East.
Pros
- Strong regional expertise, including for the Dubai 'Emiratization' process
- Full stack HR, including EOR, payroll, recruitment, visas and more
Cons
- A regional Employer of Record — those hiring outside the Middle East will need an additional hiring partner
Visit Connect Resources
How is this calculated?
We calculate the Overall Rating by combining the ratings of several testing categories.
Learn more by reading our testing and review methodology.
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Connect Resources is a leading Employer of Record (EOR), recruitment and staffing agency specialized in supporting businesses in the Middle East. They provide hassle-free and fast market entry in the Middle East, ensuring full compliance with local regulations.
Unlike some other EORs, Connect Resources can support your company with global mobility/visa services and guide you through the ‘Emiratization’ process (more on this below). For this reason, Connect Resources is considered one of the leading EORs in Dubai, the Middle East and North Africa.
Read on to find out more about Connect Resources.
Key features
1. Employer of Record
As a leading Employer of Record in the Middle East and North Africa, Connect Resources can hire your overseas team for you, in full compliance with applicable laws. This saves you time and around 85 percent of the cost of hiring in the Middle East yourself. It also ensures that your hiring is in full compliance with local labor laws.
Currently, Connect Resources supports companies creating a distributed workforce in Dubai and the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Lebanon, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan and Egypt.
2. Payroll
Connect Resources offers a payroll platform that enables client companies to outsource their payroll processing — under the watchful eye of a dedicated Account Manager. Connect Resources takes care of the complete WPS (Wage Protection System) and salary transfer process for clients: Payroll outsourcing minimizes payroll errors, ensures payroll compliance, and gives you the space to focus on your Middle East operations.
Payroll processing can be offered either as part of an EOR solution, or as a standalone service for businesses that already have a subsidiary in the Middle East or North Africa.
3. Compliance
Tax and labor laws in the Middle East can be complicated. When you choose Connect Resources as your EOR, they become responsible for labor and payroll tax compliance in the region.
Connect Resources is fully accredited by the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratization, ensuring that your company’s hiring meets all local legal requirements.
4. Recruitment
Through their recruitment service, Connect Resources can source you top professionals throughout Dubai and the Middle East. Connect Resources has a large internal database of candidates — fully screened to enable quick deployment to your company. In addition to regular recruitment, Connect Resources can provide you with:
- Executive headhunting support
- Temporary staffing services where you don’t need permanent employees
- Contract Staffing support for fixed-term or special projects.
Connect Resources also provides guidance through the ‘Emiratization‘ process. This Dubai/UAE government policy gives preferential hiring status to Emiratis over expats. With ‘Connect Emiratization’, Connect Resources can ensure that your company is in full compliance with this policy.
Connect Resources is partnered with the global recruitment company Randstad — one of the world’s leading talent acquisition firms.
5. Visa Support
Through their global mobility services, Connect Resources can support yor company with all aspects of the work visa process including:
- Administrative and compliance support from dedicated mobility specialists
- Employee relocation assistance
- Advice on how to minimize tax and compliance risks throughout the Middle East.
Unusually for a Middle East EOR, Connect Resources can support your business with the complete list of different Dubai visas, including the Job Seeker Visa, the Golden Visa and Family Visas.
Pros and cons
Pros
Benefits of choosing Connect Resources include:
- Unrivalled regional expertise — no other Employer of Record in Dubai and the Middle East can boast the same familiarity with local legal and business requirements, from Abu Dhabi to Cairo.
- Extensive HR add-ons — Connect Resources is not just an EOR. They can also support your business with staffing, recruitment, temp labor, contract hires, visa support and more.
- Emiratization support — through ‘Connect Emiratization’, no other Employer of Record can provide the same assurance that you comply with the legal requirements for Emiratization in Dubai and the UAE.
Cons
A potential downsidesof going with Connect Resources is that it provides regional coverage only — Connect Resources currently operates in nine countries. For full international coverage you will need to engage another EOR as well.
Unique Selling Point
Connect Resources USP is its specialization in Dubai and UAE visa and employment services. While Dubai is an extremely attractive global hiring destination, local labor laws (such as the Emiratization regulations) can be confusing for international companies.
Connect Resources is the only EOR with a dedicated service offering ‘Connect Emitarization’ to ensure that your Dubai hiring and recruitment is in complete compliance with local laws.
Customer and Employee Reviews
Connect Resources is highly regarded by customers and employees alike with ratings of:
- 4.8/5 — Glassdoor
- 3.8/5 — AmbitionBox
RemotePad Score for Connect Resources
9/10 Our expert score for Connect Resources
Our team came to this score by considering the following components in the following weightings:
| Employer of Record features | 25% |
| Payroll features | 10% |
| HR features | 10% |
| Compliance features | 10% |
| Platform features | 10% |
| Pricing | 20% |
| User reviews | 15% |
For each component, Connect Resources received the following score:
| Employer of Record features | 20/25 |
| Payroll features | 10/10 |
| HR features | 10/10 |
| Compliance features | 9/10 |
| Platform features | 10/10 |
| Pricing | 17/20 |
| User reviews | 14/15 |
Top competitors (alternatives)
Horizons vs Connect Resources
Top provider for:
Global EOR
Read Horizons Review
Monthly fee per employee
From $299
Remote vs Connect Resources
Top provider for:
Direct EOR solutions
Read Remote Review
Monthly fee per employee
From $599
Deel vs Connect resources
Top provider for:
Compliance
Read Deel Review
Monthly fee per employee
From $599
Our Verdict
Connect Resources is a leading Employer of Record and HR company in the Middle East. With its strong regional presence, visa support and staff/payroll outsourcing solutions it is particularly useful as an HR partner for companies looking to hire in Dubai and the UAE.
By supporting companies with global mobility and recruitment as well as EOR services, Connect Resources ensures that your company only needs one regional partner for all HR and payroll needs.
FAQ
Yes. Connect Resources is a leading Middle East and Dubai PEO, as well as an Employer of Record in the region.
Connect Resources was established in 2016.
