Hire in Canada

Employer of Record (EOR) in Canada opens the door for global employers to hire Canadian-based talent without the time, cost and risk of setting up a local entity. Canada offers a world-class workforce, robust infrastructure and favorable business environment — but managing employment here means navigating both federal and provincial standards. With Toku’s dedicated Canada entity, expert local HR team and global platform, you can onboard Canadian employees quickly, stay fully compliant and shift your focus back to growth. Let’s explore how our EOR solution makes your expansion into Canada seamless, controlled and future-ready.

What Is an Employer of Record (EOR) and How Does It Work in Canada?

An Employer of Record (EOR) is a service provider that legally employs workers on your behalf in a specific country, managing the administrative, compliance and payroll responsibilities — while you direct the day-to-day work. In Canada, the EOR model means Toku becomes the official employer of your Canadian hires, handling employment contracts, payroll deductions, benefits administration, taxes and terminations. Meanwhile you remain the manager of performance, team structure and business strategy.

In practical terms: you identify the role you want to fill in Canada, approve the candidate, and Toku issues a compliant employment contract under Canadian law (federal and the relevant province). Toku processes payroll, remits statutory deductions (such as Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Employment Insurance (EI) and provincial taxes), and handles statutory leave and termination obligations. 

You simply integrate the new hire into your business as you would with any other direct employee — but without the need to incorporate a Canadian subsidiary or navigate every regional legal nuance yourself.

The result? Faster market entry, lower overhead and mitigated risk. With Toku’s Canada EOR service, you gain the speed of hiring globally with the local compliance and support you need.

How to Use Toku to Hire in Canada Without a Local Entity

What 5 Steps Help You Onboard Faster With Toku?

1. Define your role and compensation package tailored for Canada: Your HR or hiring team collaborates with Toku’s Canada experts to design a remuneration package that aligns with Canadian market expectations (salary, benefits, leave entitlements).
2. Select and approve the candidate: Once you identify your Canadian hire, Toku conducts onboarding compliance checks, issues the employment contract, and ensures the employment relationship aligns with Canadian labour laws.
3. Issue the employment contract: Toku issues and executes an employment contract compliant with Canadian standards (including provincial labour legislation, mandatory clauses, termination terms, etc.).
4. Set up payroll, taxes and benefits: Toku administers payroll, withholds CPP, EI and applicable provincial contributions, remits taxes to Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and the relevant provincial agencies, and manages benefits administration.
5. Ongoing HR administration and reporting: You manage performance, objectives and day-to-day activity; Toku handles HR administration, statutory reporting, local compliance updates and provides you with dashboards and documentation.

How Does Toku Handle Local Compliance in Canada?

Toku’s Canada entity (or network) provides the legal infrastructure and in-country expertise required to navigate Canada’s layered employment regulatory environment. Canada imposes employment standards at both the federal and provincial levels. Toku’s compliance model includes:

• Employee classification: Ensuring hires are correctly classified as employees (rather than contractors) under Canadian law — misclassification can result in fines, back-payments and reputational risk.
• Provincial labour law alignment: Because employment rules vary by province (for example, Ontario’s Employment Standards Act vs British Columbia’s Employment Standards Act), Toku maintains local-expert teams to ensure contracts and practices reflect the correct provincial law.
• Payroll and tax remittance: Toku processes source deductions (CPP, EI, provincial tax), remits them correctly, and ensures pay-frequency aligns with Canadian standards (monthly or semi-monthly is common).
• Statutory leave and termination management: Toku forms contracts that align with statutory leave entitlements (parental leave, sick leave, bereavement) as well as termination notice/new rules across provinces.
• Compliance monitoring: Toku’s legal team tracks changes in Canadian employment legislation and updates processes to keep you safe.

6 Benefits of Using an EOR in Canada With Toku

Enter the Canadian Market in Days, Not Months

With Toku’s Canada EOR solution, you can begin hiring Canadian employees rapidly — bypassing the time- and cost-intensive process of setting up a local entity, registering for payroll tax accounts and building an in-house HR team.

Avoid the Cost and Complexity of Setting Up a Canadian Entity

Incorporating a local subsidiary in Canada can involve legal fees, tax registrations, bank account setup and ongoing compliance burdens — Toku allows you to skip all of this and still engage Canadian talent fully and compliantly.

Ensure Full Compliance With Canadian Labour and Tax Laws

Canada’s regulatory environment is multilayered, with federal and provincial rules, payroll obligations and employment standards. Toku’s local specialists ensure you stay compliant, reducing risk of penalties and reputational damage.

Offer Competitive Benefits and Local HR Support in Canada

Your Canadian hires expect a benefits package and HR support tailored to local norms. Toku offers local-benefit administration and employee-facing HR support, enhancing the employee experience and helping you attract top Canadian talent.

Focus on Managing Your Team — We Handle HR Admin and Payroll

You focus on team performance, culture and outcomes; Toku handles contracts, onboarding, payroll, benefits, compliance and termination logistics — freeing your team to focus on growth rather than admin.

Gain One Global Platform and Local Experts for Canadian Employees

Toku gives you a unified global workforce platform, with local Canadian expertise built in, enabling you to scale across multiple countries with one provider and consistent experience.

What 7 Employment Law Highlights Should Global Teams Know About Canada?

1. Provincial Variation: Employment standards vary by province (e.g., Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia) in areas such as minimum wage, statutory leave and termination notice.
2. Minimum Notice and Severance: In many provinces, after a certain length of service employers must provide notice or pay in lieu; at-will employment is not permitted.
3. Termination / At-Will Employment: Canada does not allow “at-will” termination as in some other jurisdictions; employers must provide reasonable notice or pay in lieu unless termination is for just cause.
4. Payroll Taxes & Withholdings: Employers must deduct and remit CPP, EI, and provincial income tax; pay frequency is commonly monthly or semi-monthly.
5. Statutory Leave: Canadian law mandates parental, maternity, sick, bereavement leave, and the rules differ by province. Your EOR must ensure contract and practice comply.
6. Employee Classification: Mistakenly classifying an employee as a contractor can expose your company to back-pay, benefits, taxes and penalties.
7. Payroll Location Rule: Where the employee is based (home province) determines payroll and tax obligations — picking the wrong province can lead to compliance risk.

How Does Payroll, Taxes, and Compliance Work in Canada With Toku?

When you engage a Canadian employee via Toku, here’s how payroll, taxes and compliance are handled:

• Payroll setup: Toku opens or leverages its Canadian payroll payroll system. Your employee is enrolled under Toku’s entity; salary is processed on the agreed pay cycle (commonly monthly or semi-monthly).
• Tax deductions and remittances: Toku deducts CPP contributions, EI premiums, and provincial/federal income tax from employee wages; employer contributions are also handled. Payments are remitted to Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and the applicable provincial tax authority.
• Benefits administration: Toku manages local-norm benefits such as health/medical plans, retirement savings plans, and statutory leave entitlements.
• Compliance monitoring: Toku’s Canada team monitors legislative changes — for example changes to employment standards, minimum wage, overtime rules — and updates contracts, payroll logic and reporting accordingly.
• Reporting & visibility: You receive dashboards and regular reports showing payroll summaries, deductions, taxes paid, benefits cost, and documented compliance. Documentation is retained by Toku in compliance with Canadian records-keeping standards.
• Termination & off-boarding: If the employment ends, Toku handles termination notice or pay in lieu, final pay, record of employment (ROE) filing (if applicable), and any continuing benefits obligations. This ensures you remain compliant with Canadian rules.

Why Choose Toku vs Other EOR Providers in Canada?

When selecting an EOR in Canada, not all providers are equal — here’s why Toku stands out:

• Licensed Canadian entity or robust in-country partner: Many providers rely on third-party networks; Toku operates a direct model (or fully licensed partner model) ensuring faster onboarding, better control and lower risk.
• Transparent pricing and rapid onboarding: Toku provides clear cost estimates, no hidden fees, and enables onboarding in as little as 1-2 weeks when all documents are ready.
• Deep Canada-specific compliance expertise: Our Canada HR team includes employment-law specialists, provincial experts and payroll professionals.
• Global platform with local execution: You get one dashboard for all your global hires plus Canadian-specific workflows — ideal for companies scaling across regions.
• Client trust and security: Toku embeds data-security, IP-protection, and local-records-retention into its platform, giving you full peace of mind.
• Focus on you, not the admin: Your team focuses on performance, culture and outcomes; we handle the rest.

How Fast Can You Hire in Canada With Toku?

Speed matters when you’re scaling. With Toku’s Canada EOR solution, you can often begin onboarding a Canadian employee within 1-2 weeks, depending on candidate readiness and role complexity. This is competitive with the market benchmark (some providers state “as little as two weeks”) for Canadian hiring.

Key factors that influence time to hire:

• How quickly you identify and approve the candidate.
• Availability of required documents (right to work, identity proof, bank info, etc.).
• Whether the employee is located in a province with simpler onboarding or involves cross-province movement.
• Complexity of role (senior vs junior), background checks, benefits package design.
• Calendar timing (holiday periods, bank setup delays).

In short: if you’re ready to hire in Canada, submit your role to Toku today and we’ll get you a custom quote and timeline.

Ready to Hire in Canada With Toku? Book a Demo or Get a Quote

Are you ready to unlock Canadian talent and scale without the hassle of entity formation, complex compliance or running payroll yourself? With Toku’s Employer of Record (EOR) in Canada, you gain rapid market access, local expertise, full compliance and a global workforce platform — all while you stay focused on growth.

Book a demo now or get a custom quote and we’ll connect you with our Canada team who’ll walk you through your options, timelines, cost estimates and next steps. Let’s get your Canadian hires onboarded, productive and thriving.

What’s the Smartest Next Step to Scale in Canada With EOR?

Expanding your team into Canada is a high-opportunity move. Canada’s dynamic labour market, strong legal protections and deep talent pools make it a smart choice for global organisations. But without the right partner, expansion can become a burden: entity setup costs, provincial compliance risk, payroll registration delays and HR admin overhead all add up. That’s where Toku’s Canada EOR model sets you apart.

By engaging Toku, you skip the incorporation headache, gain access to expert local support, and deploy your talent swiftly and compliantly. You shift your time and resources away from administrative logistics and toward what matters: hiring the right people, aligning them to your business goals and setting them up to succeed.

Whether you’re hiring one employee in Canada to test the market or building an entire team, Toku supports your journey with the same global platform, robust compliance, and local presence. Start by talking to our Canada team: we’ll evaluate your needs, map out your hiring timeline, prepare a transparent costing, and schedule your onboarding. This isn’t just about hiring today—it’s about building for tomorrow. Growth, global scale and Canadian excellence start with the right foundation. Let’s build yours together.

Frequently Asked Questions About EOR in Canada

How quickly can I onboard employees in Canada with an EOR?

You can often begin onboarding within 1-2 weeks with Toku’s Canada entity once the candidate documents are complete and your role and compensation package are defined.

Do I need to set up a Canadian entity if I use Toku’s EOR?

No. With Toku’s EOR, we act as the legal employer in Canada — you do not need to incorporate a subsidiary or register for payroll tax accounts yourself.

What happens if the employee works across provinces in Canada?

The employee’s base province (where they physically work or reside) determines payroll tax obligations and employment-standards rules. Toku accounts for these variations and ensures compliance accordingly.

How does Toku handle employee benefits and statutory leave in Canada?

Toku administers local-norm benefits and ensures statutory leaves (parental, maternity, sick, bereavement) are handled in line with the relevant province’s laws.

Are there any hidden costs when hiring in Canada via an EOR?

With Toku we maintain transparent pricing: you’ll receive a clear quote upfront. We do not charge for entity setup or hidden backend fees. All payroll, taxes and HR admin are included in the agreed cost.

Can I convert a Toku-hired employee in Canada into my own entity later?

Yes. If you later decide to incorporate locally in Canada and transfer the employee to your entity, Toku can facilitate a smooth handover. We’ll help with the contractual transition, final payroll and regulatory filings.

What kind of employment contract does Toku use for Canadian hires?

Toku issues employment contracts compliant with Canadian federal and the relevant provincial legislation, covering key terms such as termination notice, probation, benefits, and employment standards.