Acumen International stands with Ukraine and the country's people. Join us

Employ Candidates Compliantly in Bahamas

Get Express Quote
  1. Overview: Bahamas
  2. Contractor vs. employee: which is better?
  3. Work permit for hiring expats via PEO
  4. Global HR Compliance
  5. Global PEO and payroll
  6. Expand without a company set up
  7. Global Payroll Calculator
Other counrtries

Global HR Compliance in Bahamas

The war for global talent has never been tougher. Attracting and keeping sought-after international employees requires knowledge. Whether your company is already engaging or planning to engage global workforce in Bahamas, you need to trust that your operations are executed without flaw and without any unnecessary risks.

Businesses of all sizes face a devastating lack of information and support on global employment, taxation, and immigration in Bahamas. There’s a common and significant gap between what’s required to be 100% compliant and what most organizations actually have at their disposal.

Acumen International can fill the gap in fragmented Global HR Compliance knowledge

We are experts in global workforce employment in Bahamas, and our goal is to become your single provider. Instead of working with numerous local staffing agencies and legal advisors, Acumen International can solve your global business challenges and save you time, costs, and resources.

We act as an information service for corporate clients, agencies, and independent contractors and freelancers. Our Global HR Compliance service in Bahamas will help you:

  1. Navigate legislation and local nuances of Bahamas. You need to know what is acceptable and what can expose you to employment litigation as well as employee / independent contractor misclassification risk in Bahamas.
  2. Avoid areas of possible risk. Certain areas and activities can create unnecessary risk, such as employer-employee relations. We can help you with worker classification, payroll and tax calculations, and social cost contributions.
  3. Handle currency exchanges and local invoicing in Bahamas. We save you time and effort, freeing you from having to understand complicated regulations and tax calculations written in the local language and subject to frequent changes.
  4. Create employment contracts and handle compliant engagements. Our objective is to assist you with international HR compliance issues and offer you the best payment and taxation options in Bahamas.
  5. Manage expatriate immigration and visa support nuances in Bahamas. Acumen International provides information about the best scenarios of expat immigration and employment.
  6. Handle global recruitment issues. We can help you select the person and then employ him with our help. We advise you on local employment laws and implied compliance risks to determine the most cost-effective, compliant, and risk-free solution for you.
  7. Withdraw from the region in the least risky and most cost-effective way. If you choose to do so, we can help you withdraw from the region as simply as possible.

Our team of English-speaking professionals frees you from working through language nuances. Acumen International works 24/7 and can assist you whenever you need, regardless of time zones. Our goal is to create tailored labor solutions for you that are managed legally and in full compliance with the local employment laws.

With our knowledge and deep understanding of local nuances, you easily satisfy your need for skilled professionals in your global industry. With our qualified local partners, you can trust that your global workforce satisfies all local tax, social security, and immigration requirements in Bahamas.

Hiring and Firing Workforce in Bahamas Guide

# Employment Agreements

Permanent Employment Contract 

Employment Act compels an employer to inform an employee of the following:

  • The name of the employer or group of employers and, where practicable, the undertaking and place of employment
  • The name of the employee, place of engagement and, where practicable, the place of origin of the employee, and any other particulars necessary for his/her identification
  • The nature of the employment
  • Where a person is engaged for a fixed period or in appropriate circumstances, the duration of the employment and the method of calculating the duration
  • The rate of wages and other benefits and method of calculation thereof, the manner and period of payment of wages and other benefits, the advances of wages and other benefits, if any, and the manner of repayment of any such advances
  • Where any work is to be performed not by the piece but by time, the number of hours of daily work, and the hours of the day at which such work is to commence and terminate.

Fixed-term Employment Contract 

Fixed-term contracts are not prohibited for permanent tasks.  There is no maximum length of a single fixed-term contract (months).  There is no maximum length of fixed-term contracts, including renewals (months).

# Employment Termination and Severance Pay (Dismissal)

 The Employment Act allows employers to terminate an employee’s employment upon giving reasonable notice.

An employer may summarily dismiss an employee without pay or notice where the employee has committed a fundamental breach of their contract of employment or has acted in a manner repugnant to the fundamental interests of the employer.

An employer may also terminate the employment of an employee on grounds of redundancy where the redundancy is attributable to:

  • The fact that the employer has ceased, or intends to cease, to carry on the business for the purposes of which the employee was employed or in the place where the employee was so employed or
  • The fact that the requirements of that business have ceased or diminished or are expected to cease or diminish.

# It is prohibited to dismiss

An employee is protected from dismissal for legitimate trade union activities or for any reason connected with pregnancy, race, creed, sex, marital status, political opinion, or HIV status

Notice period

The minimum period of notice required to be given by an employer to terminate the contract of employment of an employee shall be:

  • Where the employee has been employed for at least six but fewer than 12 months: one week’s notice or one week’s basic pay in lieu of notice; and one week’s basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for the said period between six and 12 months
  • Where the employee has been employed for 12 months or longer: two weeks’ notice or two weeks’ basic pay in lieu of notice; and two weeks’ basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for each year up to 24 weeks
  • Where the employee holds a supervisory or managerial position: one month’s notice or one month’s basic pay in lieu of notice; and one month’s basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for each year up to 48 weeks.

An employee shall not terminate his employment until after the expiry of:

  • Two weeks’ notice to the employer if the period of employment is one year or more but less than two years or
  • Four weeks’ notice to the employer if the period of employment is two years or more.

# Severance payments

Generally, if an employee has six months, but less than one year, of continuous service, the employee will be entitled to receive severance pay of one week’s notice or one week’s basic pay in lieu of notice, as well as one week’s basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for the said period between six and 12 months

Where the employee has been employed for 12 months or longer, he/she will be entitled to receive severance pay of two weeks’ notice or two weeks’ basic pay in lieu of notice, and two weeks’ basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for each year up to 24 weeks

Where the employee holds a supervisory or managerial position, he/she will receive one month’s notice or one month’s basic pay in lieu of notice, as well as one month’s basic pay (or a part thereof on a pro-rata basis) for each year up to 48 weeks.

# Employee Benefits and Contributions

Mandatory benefits required by law to be provided by an employer:
Annual leave, sick leave, maternity and paternity leave, public holiday entitlement.

# Probationary period

The maximum probationary period is six months, which may be applied only once during employment.

# Overtime

The Labor Law allows for employees who work overtime (defined as work performed in excess of eight hours per day or 40 hours per week) to be paid at one and one-half times his/her regular rate of wages.
The Labor Law exempts those in managerial or supervisory positions from receiving an overtime entitlement.

Work hours

The Labor Law states that the maximum normal hours of work in The Bahamas for employees shall be eight hours per day or 40 hours per week averaged over a seven-day period. Employers must give employees at least one full day of rest each week.

Annual Leave

Under the Labor Law, an employee is entitled to not less than one week of leave if his or her continuous service is more than six months and less than one year. Employees who have more than one year of continuous service are entitled to at least two weeks of annual leave. Employees who have more than seven years of continuous service are entitled to at least three weeks of annual leave.

Sick Leave

The Labor Law provides that employees are not entitled to receive sick pay until they have completed more than six months of continuous service, after which they are entitled to take one week of sick leave paid by employer, consecutive or non-consecutive, for each year or service.

An employer may terminate the employment of an individual after he or she has exhausted his or her sick leave entitlement if the employee is unable to resume the requirements of the position.

Parental Leave

Maternity Leave

Under the Labor Law and the National Insurance Act and Regulations, female employees have a Maternity Benefit, which is two-thirds of the claimant’s average weekly insurable wage or income. The employer is entitled to receive a minimum sum equivalent to 33½ percent of that portion of wages that does not exceed the National Insurance ceiling on insurable wage.

There is also a Maternity Grant a one-time payment given for each live birth. To qualify for the payment, the woman must have paid at least 50 weeks of contributions throughout her work life. A woman who does not have the required contributions, but whose husband has paid sufficiently to meet the conditions for the Maternity Benefit, will be awarded the Grant.

Paternity Leave 

Under the Labor Law, employees have a one-week entitlement to paternity leave without pay.

Acumen International can help you fast-track your possibilities of entering and expanding your business in Bahamas by providing you with our Employer of Record services. Our unique mix of PEO/EOR solutions will enable you to jumpstart your global operations almost immediately, cost-effectively and compliantly without any need to set up a legal entity first or afterwards.

Ready to Get Started?
Get Express Quote