How to Choose a Staffing Agency: 5 Criteria and Pitfalls to Avoid

To first see which staffing agencies operate in Taiwan and what type each is, read Staffing agencies in Taiwan: multinational, large local, regional and specialist firms compared.

1Do they hold a valid employment services license?

Ask them directly for their Unified Business Number (Taiwan's company registration number) and their "Private Employment Service Agency License" number (in a format like "北市就服字第 XXXX 號"). You can check them through two official channels:

• Whether the company is operating normally and its registration number exists: the Ministry of Economic Affairs' business registration lookup service
• Whether they hold a valid private employment service agency license: the Private Employment Service Agency Search System of the Workforce Development Agency, Taiwan's Ministry of Labor

Under Articles 34 and 35 of Taiwan's Employment Service Act, anyone providing job placement, labor brokerage, or commissioned recruitment must first obtain a license from the competent authority; the license has an expiry date and must be renewed. “Labor dispatch” itself isn't among the listed activities, but most staffing agencies also do permanent recruitment, so they hold a license as well. Reputable companies usually put their business ID number and license number on their website or quotes without being asked. If a company gives you only its name and no license number, stop and check first.

2Staffing agency vs. client company: who is responsible for what?

A dispatched worker's employer is the staffing agency, which handles and pays labor insurance, health insurance, and pension contributions; but your company (the client) has legal liability for unpaid wages and occupational injuries. If something goes wrong, you can't say “that's not our problem.”

For example, if a staffing agency owes wages and still fails to pay after being penalized or ordered to pay by a deadline by the authorities, the dispatched worker can claim payment directly from the client company (Article 22-1 of Taiwan's Labor Standards Act). If a dispatched worker suffers an occupational injury at the client company, the client company is jointly liable with the staffing agency for compensation (Article 63-1 of Taiwan's Labor Standards Act). The full legal framework and an employer self-check are covered in a separate article: Legal Pitfalls of Using Staffing Agencies: Article 17-1 of the Labor Standards Act and Payroll-Transfer Risks.

That's why one thing matters more than the quote when choosing: the staffing agency's financial stability directly affects the risk you bear. Before signing, find out how long they've been in business and the current scale of their services.

3Salary and labor/health insurance: how to confirm they're actually paid on time

Wages, labor/health insurance enrollment and withdrawal, and pension contributions should all be handled by the staffing agency, but a company has no official way to directly look up "another company's insurance records for its workers". That is the worker's personal data, and only the worker can look it up. So the way to confirm it has to be written into the contract:

• Have the contract require the staffing agency to provide insurance enrollment details and payroll calculation details on a regular basis
• If a dispatched worker reports that their labor insurance may not have been paid, immediately ask the staffing agency for proof of payment
• Guidelines from Taiwan's Ministry of Labor also recommend that before the client company pays the staffing agency, it should confirm that the agency has paid workers' wages on schedule (Guidelines on the Rights and Interests of Dispatched Labor)

Be especially careful with quotes below market rate. Common ways to cut costs are under-reporting the insured salary or under-contributing to labor pensions, and both are illegal. How to break down a quote and read the management fee is covered in How are staffing costs calculated?, so we won't repeat it here.

4What clauses should the staffing contract spell out?

Beyond fees and contract term, at minimum spell out how overtime is agreed and billed, how unsuitable workers are replaced, how workplace injuries are handled, and how you'll confirm wages have been paid before you pay.

Taiwan's Ministry of Labor “Guidelines on the Rights and Interests of Dispatched Workers” (last amended September 23, 2025) recommends that the dispatch contract clearly specify:

• Overtime and changes in duties: if the host company needs a dispatched worker to work overtime, work on a rest day or change hours, it should first confirm with the staffing agency that the worker has agreed, and the staffing contract should specify the hours and how overtime pay is calculated and paid
• Confirm wage payment: before the client company pays any fees, confirm the staffing agency has paid workers' wages on time as agreed
• Occupational accidents: if a dispatched worker suffers a work injury, the staffing agency must provide compensation, and the host company is jointly liable under the law

These commercial terms must also be put in writing:

• Replacement commitment: if a candidate doesn't work out, how many days until a replacement? How is the replacement period billed?
• Changes in headcount: how much notice is needed to add or cut people at short notice? Is there a penalty?
• Termination terms: who can terminate early, and how much notice is required
• Conversion to permanent: if you want to hire a dispatched worker as your own employee, is there an additional fee, and what are the conditions?

5Just need temp workers or short-term help? How to negotiate

Because recruiting costs for short-term needs can't be spread out and turnover risk is higher, management fee rates may be higher than for long-term arrangements (there are no official statistics on how much higher; rely on each agency's quote). When negotiating short-term staffing, focus on how quickly people can start, the minimum assignment period, and early termination terms, not just the rate:

• How fast can someone start?
• Is there a minimum assignment length? If we suddenly no longer need someone, how much notice is required?
• Are overtime pay and work on national holidays calculated the same way for short-term staff as for long-term staffing?

For when staffing is and isn't a good fit, see "When does staffing make sense?" in How are staffing costs calculated?.

Common pitfalls

• Quotes that are unreasonably low: the savings very likely come out of workers' statutory entitlements
• Interviewing first, then routing the hire through a staffing agency: when the client company interviews or names a specific person before the staffing agency signs that worker, it violates Article 17-1 of Taiwan's Labor Standards Act and can be fined NT$90,000 to NT$450,000 (Article 78), with the company's name and its responsible person's name made public (Article 80-1)
• The contract has a price but no terms: overtime, replacements and termination are all verbal, and later disputes can't be settled
• Unwilling to provide a license number or basic company information: these can all be verified on the spot, so stalling is a red flag
• Treating staffing as a way to save on full-time employee costs: for core roles you'll definitely need long term, staffing isn't necessarily cheaper overall, and in a competitive talent market, "full-time employment" is itself a recruiting advantage

FAQ

Further reading: Corporate recruiting and staffing plans · How staffing costs are calculated · Legal pitfalls of using staffing agencies · How to choose a headhunting firm in Taiwan