A recruitment company, oftentimes called an employment agency, acts as the bridge between employers with job openings and people looking for work. Recruiters are tasked with finding qualified candidates, through their own databases, online job advertisements, or direct headhunting. 

Recruiters also screen applicants, provide recruitment consulting, conduct job interviews, negotiate salaries, and help companies streamline their hiring processes. They also serve as a useful avenue for a potential employee to get their foot in the door. Such companies can also work to provide human resources and supply workers for clients’ businesses based on requirements and specific circumstances. 

In a region as diverse as the UAE, economic growth and diversification has created a high demand for effective recruitment consulting. Companies have various goals, focusing on hiring either local and international talent, and are looking for recruiters and HR consultancies that can leverage digital tools, understand recruitment trends, and conduct effective candidate matching to bring them the best talent. 

For entrepreneurs looking to reap the potential of the recruitment industry in the UAE and set up a recruitment agency, here are three of the business activities you can choose from. As the fastest free zone, SPC Free Zone provides instant business licenses, along with a range of other benefits.

Let’s unpack these.

7810.00 – Activities of employment placement agencies

To stand out as an employment placement agency, a company needs high efficiency, expertise in several key industries, access to a wide talent pool, and competitive pricing. On the other hand, they also need to provide networking opportunities, industry knowledge, and career guidance for job seekers.  

With this license in tow, companies can list employment vacancies, conduct referrals, and place applicants for employment. Remember that none of these employees can be ones who work as employees of the agency itself. 

6 distinct business licenses fall under this category (7810.01 – 7810.06). Apart from personnel search, selection referral, and placement activities (both offline and online), casting agencies and bureaus can operate under this license as well. This includes theatrical casting agencies that work to find the perfect performers who can bring characters on stage to life, sourcing the best talent for each unique role. Note that agents for individual artists cannot operate under this license.

Labor recruitment brokerage office services, meanwhile, connect the supply and demand sides of the labor market, specifically for blue-collar or manual labor jobs. Beyond blue-collar jobs, regular employment brokerage office services are included here as well, encompassing everything from accounting and marketing to project management services and more.  

Recruiters can also operate within the medical industry. For medical manpower supply, recruiters can match qualified medical professionals with relevant healthcare facilities. This includes everyone from doctors and nurses to therapists, physicians, and other healthcare workers. 

Third-party Approval: Business activity 7810.00 is exempt from this requirement

Filing of Economic Substance Return: Business activity 7810.00 is exempt from this requirement

Anti-Money Laundering Compliance: Business activity 7810.00 is exempt from this requirement

7820.00 – Temporary employment agency activities

Connecting businesses to temporary help services, let’s explore what this license enables recruiters to do. 

7820.01: Here, the recruitment agency provides temporary workers to businesses for short periods of time. These workers must be employed by a temporary help service, not the recruiter themselves. An important point to note is that the temporary help service is responsible for the workers—however, they will not directly supervise them at their place of employment. 

For example, a business may be in need of an accountant. In this scenario, the recruitment agency acts as a bridge between the temporary help service, where the accountant is employed, allowing the accountant to work at the business for a short period of time and provide their expertise.

7820.02: Similar to the business activity above, on demand labor supply for temporary employment allows blue-collar workers to be assigned to business for short periods of time. As employees of the temporary help service, these individuals will work at the business for a fixed period of time, and will not be supervised by the service.

For example, a construction business may require a few more employees to fill up their crew. In this scenario, they would reach out to the recruiter, who, in turn, reaches out to the temporary help service. They provide a number of skilled construction workers to the construction business for a few months. During this time, the workers will be supervised by the construction business themselves. 

7820.04: Tadbeer Centers in the UAE are licensed agencies that help with recruiting and employing domestic workers. They connect families seeking domestic help with qualified maids, nannies, and other household staff. 

They also handle visa processes for domestic workers through the Tadbeer visa program, authorized by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE). Acting as a government-sanctioned intermediary, they also offer additional services such as time-based packages and live-in/out options for domestic workers. 

Third-party Approval: Business activity 7820.00 is exempt from this requirement

Filing of Economic Substance Return: Business activity 7820.00 is exempt from this requirement

Anti-Money Laundering Compliance: Business activity 7820.00 is exempt from this requirement

7830.00 Other human resources provision

Companies in this category typically fill positions for the long term and may handle all the human resource tasks involved, like recruitment, benefits, and payroll.

These companies act as the legal employer (employer of record) for the workers they provide. This means they handle everything related to paying the workers, including taxes and other financial matters, as well as human resource issues. However, they don’t manage the workers directly or supervise them on the job.

It’s important to reinstate that in this capacity, the recruitment consulting agency cannot play a hand in running the client’s business themselves, nor can they provide temporary workers. 

Third-party Approval: Business activity 7830.00 is exempt from this requirement

Filing of Economic Substance Return: Business activity 7830.00 is exempt from this requirement

Anti-Money Laundering Compliance: Business activity 7830.00 is exempt from this requirement

With SPC Free Zone’s benefits at an entrepreneur’s fingertips, setting up a recruitment company can be a breeze. Along with a guaranteed banking account in 3 working days and unlimited visas, SPC Free Zone empowers clients to make their payments with ease, over time, through selected banks.

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