This guide covers 10 providers in 2 groups: 5 from the Anywherer database and 5 global platforms, each with its type, scope and my verdict. I flag 2 things first. The national minimum wage rose to K5.00 an hour on 1 January 2026, and plenty of published guidance still quotes the old rate. Only 3 providers name both a Papua New Guinea company and an EOR service on their own sites.
Hiring in Papua New Guinea: What the Rules Demand
A Papua New Guinea employer of record works across 2 kinds of territory. One is the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, the other some 600 offshore islands. It shares a land border with Indonesia. Port Moresby, in the National Capital District, is the capital, and Lae in Morobe Province is the second city and main industrial port. World Bank figures for 2024 show 10.6 million people and an economy of $31.8 billion. Tok Pisin, English and Hiri Motu are the official languages of a famously diverse nation. English carries commerce and employment contracts. The currency is the kina, written K.
Liquefied natural gas, mining, construction and engineering drive much of the formal hiring. Logistics and ports, agriculture, telecommunications, banking and professional services follow, and the donor and NGO sector is large for an economy this size. Formal jobs cluster in Port Moresby, Lae, Mount Hagen, Madang, Kokopo and Goroka, and the workforce is young and growing. That is the gap employer-of-record services in Papua New Guinea fill. A foreign company can employ through a partner’s entity instead of registering its own.
Think of an employer of record as a stand-in local employer: its entity signs the contract and carries the statutory duties for an overseas client. The client directs the work, and the provider handles everything that touches pay. Here that means a contract under the Employment Act 1978, which has no force until both sides sign and certify it under section 19. Pay runs in kina, and the employer pays salary and wages tax (SWT) to the Internal Revenue Commission (IRC) by the 7th of the next month. Superannuation applies once the employer passes the size threshold, and the Workers’ Compensation Act makes the employer liable for work injuries. Any non-citizen also needs a work permit sponsored by an entity holding Investment Promotion Authority (IPA) registration.
Residents pay no SWT on the first K20,000 a year, a threshold made permanent from 2024, and then 30% to 42% in bands. Non-residents pay 22% from the first kina, per PwC’s tax summary. The IRC has said the Income Tax Act 2025, in force since 1 January 2026, brought no rate increase. Older guides that print a K12,500 threshold are out of date.
Half of the 10 come from the Anywherer database; the other half are global platforms that each keep a page for this country. All 5 roster firms show an office in Papua New Guinea. Of those, 3 name a local company and an EOR service together. Scope and strengths follow for each, set against the months an incorporation and a work permit can take.
INSIGHT: What does a Papua New Guinea employer actually pay on top of salary?
Superannuation is the headline number, but it doesn’t reach every employer, and the wage floor beneath it moved this year.
- Superannuation: 8.4% employer and 6% employee. It is compulsory for 15 staff per NASFUND or 15 per Nambawan Super and above (October 2026).
- Minimum wage: K5.00 an hour from 1 January 2026, set by the Minimum Wages Board (Business Advantage PNG, September 2025).
- Work permits: The Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR) issues the permit first. The working resident visa follows and needs IPA Forms 4 and 5 (PNG Immigration and Citizenship Authority).
Sources:
checked October 2026
Which EOR Setup Suits a Papua New Guinea Hire?
No single provider is the best employer of record in Papua New Guinea for every hire, but the test is clear. The employing entity must be IPA-registered before it can sponsor a work permit. Contracts run under the Employment Act, and the superannuation threshold depends on how the employer counts its own headcount. Peopleconnexion states plainly that its Port Moresby team is a registered local company and shows a recruitment license number. HireYu and Pacific Manpower PNG Limited also name local companies and EOR services.
Choosing a global platform means identical contracts, a single login, and one set of rules across countries. That pays off when this country is one hire among several. Published local detail across the 5 runs from thin to very thorough, and depth of content is not depth of capability. One of the 5 still prints a wage figure the Minimum Wages Board replaced in January. A detailed page is not proof that it is current.
Ask every provider 4 questions in writing. Does its own company sign the contract, or does a partner’s? Does it hold IPA registration and sponsor permits? Is superannuation being paid, and on what headcount? How is kina payroll funded from abroad? Foreign exchange has been rationed for years, and the IMF program that helped cut the backlog ends in 2026, per Devpolicy. Only 2 of the 10 providers publish a fee at all.
INSIGHT: Papua New Guinea’s minimum wage changed on 1 January 2026
The national wage floor rose for the first time in nearly a decade. Much published hiring guidance still quotes the old rate as if it were current.
- New rate: K5.00 an hour from 1 January 2026, under the Minimum Wages Board decision (Business Advantage PNG, September 2025).
- Old rate: K3.50 an hour, unchanged since 1 July 2016 (Business Advantage PNG).
- Next steps: K5.25 in January 2027 and K5.50 in January 2028 (ILO, 2025).
- Exemptions: only employers approved for relief, in agriculture or on incapacity to pay, may pay below K5.00 (The National, January 2026).
5 Providers From the Anywherer Database
For this group, I reviewed providers that offer employment, EOR, payroll administration, or workforce services across the country. My tests for any EOR in Papua New Guinea were kina payroll, SWT withholding, superannuation handling, and contracts under the Employment Act. I also checked work permit sponsorship, IPA registration and pricing transparency. All 5 show a local office, 3 name a local company alongside an EOR service, and none publish a rate. The Anywherer team provided these names after rechecking them, not my own search results.
Providers appear in A-to-Z order. The sequence says nothing about quality, preference, or ranking.
Brunel
Provider Type:
Global, with a Port Moresby office
Company Description:
Brunel is a global specialist workforce firm with a dedicated country page and a team in Port Moresby. It cites nearly 20 years of staffing mining, oil and gas, LNG, and construction projects, framed as contract hire rather than EOR.
Key Specialty Area:
Contract hire for resources and LNG projects
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Port Moresby team backed by global delivery experts
- Deployments to remote and hard-to-reach sites
- Visa paperwork for both western and non-western expatriates
Scope of Services:
- Contract hire and permanent recruitment
- Global mobility, relocation and payroll services
- Visa and work permit processing
Our Verdict
What I would reach for when a resources project needs contractors flown to a remote site.
HireYu
Provider Type:
Local (Papua New Guinea), Port Moresby, with a Brisbane arm
Company Description:
HireYu trades as HireYu Nuigini Limited in Port Moresby and HireYu Pty Ltd in Brisbane. It recruits for mining, oil and gas, construction and engineering, and lists an EOR service that acts as a legal employer for payroll, tax and HR.
Key Specialty Area:
Market entry help and EOR under one contact
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Local company name on its contact page
- Incorporation plus IPA and IRC compliance support
- Medical checks, police checks, and FIFO mobilization
Scope of Services:
- Employer of record, payroll and tax
- Work permits, employment visas and renewals
- Labor hire and permanent recruitment
Our Verdict
My Papua New Guinea EOR pick if a later move into your own company is likely.
Pacific Manpower PNG Limited
Provider Type:
Local (Papua New Guinea), Port Moresby head office
Company Description:
Pacific Manpower PNG Limited says it is 100% locally owned and was formed in 2008, with a head office on Waigani Drive in Port Moresby. It lists offices at Lihir, Porgera and Lae and names payroll services and an employer of record service.
Key Specialty Area:
Labor hire around major mine sites
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Offices close to Lihir and Porgera operations
- Sister company supplying Ok Tedi since 1989
- Fully computerized payroll with written reports
Scope of Services:
- Contract hire and labor hire crews
- Payroll services and employer of record
- Recruitment, work permits and visas
Our Verdict
The roster entry I would test for an EOR Papua New Guinea hire on a mine lease.
Peopleconnexion
Provider Type:
Local (Papua New Guinea), Port Moresby, plus Brisbane and Gold Coast
Company Description:
Peopleconnexion began in Brisbane in 2007 and says it has worked in-country since 2014. Its site describes the Port Moresby team as a registered local company with a licensed recruitment operation and names EOR and payroll as services.
Key Specialty Area:
Registered local company with a recruitment license
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Recruitment License No. 3033 shown on its site
- USD payroll for Papua LNG contractors
- SAM.gov registration for donor-funded work
Scope of Services:
- EOR with local-currency or USD payroll runs
- Contractor on-hire and permanent recruitment
- Immigration and work permit assistance
Our Verdict
What I would shortlist first for employer of record in Papua New Guinea with a license behind it.
Sisima Group
Provider Type:
Regional, Singapore headquarters with a Port Moresby office
Company Description:
Sisima Group is headquartered in Singapore, with offices in Australia, Thailand, and Papua New Guinea, including a Hohola, Port Moresby office. It lists payroll, contractor administration, immigration, and recruitment, but does not use the term employer of record.
Key Specialty Area:
Payroll and contractor administration for project firms
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Statutory deductions and year-end tax forms handled
- Contractor onboarding, timesheets and payments
- Projectworks and Xero setup for project firms
Scope of Services:
- Monthly payroll processing and payslips
- Work permit and visa applications
- Recruitment and operational process consulting
Our Verdict
Useful for a consultancy that already has a local entity and wants payroll handed off.
5 Global Platforms Offering Employer of Record in Papua New Guinea
For these 5, this country is one page among more than a hundred. In return you get a contract template, a login and a rulebook that stay the same in each country. Published local detail varies enormously, from a page with no wage or contribution figures to the fullest country write-up I have seen in this series. Neither extreme proves anything about on-the-ground capability. Ask each one which entity employs the worker and whether it can sponsor a work permit.
Providers appear in A-to-Z order. The sequence says nothing about quality, preference, or ranking.
G-P
Provider Type:
Global
Company Description:
G-P covers the country in its Globalpedia library and says it hires through its own subsidiary, taking on the related legal risk. It claims reach in more than 180 countries, and its leave summary tracks the Act closely, unpaid maternity leave included.
Key Specialty Area:
Own-subsidiary hiring with leave detail close to the Act
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Hiring through a G-P subsidiary, per the company
- 44-hour week and 12-hour daily cap stated
- In-house lawyers ready if disputes arise
Scope of Services:
- Contracts written to local rules, then employee onboarding
- Payroll and tax process setup
- Benefits packages for local staff
Our Verdict
The safer default when this country is 1 of many markets on one contract.
INS Global
Provider Type:
Global
Company Description:
INS Global runs a country EOR page and says it provides the legal entity needed to hire local staff, without naming that entity. It claims reach in more than 160 countries. Its page lists a 42-hour week, a figure the Act does not use.
Key Specialty Area:
Cloud HR platform with expansion planning
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Custom expansion plan before the first hire
- Online platform for a distributed workforce
- Onboarding of 2 to 5 days, a vendor claim
Scope of Services:
- Employment through its local entity
- Payroll and ongoing HR compliance
- Transfers of existing staff from abroad
Our Verdict
I would ask INS which entity signs before treating it as a Papua New Guinea EOR option.
Playroll
Provider Type:
Global
Company Description:
Playroll publishes a detailed country EOR page with fees starting at $399 per employee per month. The same page still lists K3.50 as the 2026 minimum wage and 10 days of sick leave, so use it for service scope only.
Key Specialty Area:
A starting price shown openly on its page
Service Cost:
From $399 per employee per month, per the company
Top Advantages
- 1 of only 2 published fees here
- English contracts drafted under the Employment Act
- Checks for industrial awards and agreements
Scope of Services:
- Monthly kina payroll and tax remittance
- Superannuation fund registration and monthly contributions
- Employment contracts and leave tracking
Our Verdict
A useful benchmark quote to compare against others, as long as you ignore the wage figure.
*As pricing is subject to change, we are listing prices as they stand in October 2026
RemotePeople
Provider Type:
Global
Company Description:
RemotePeople has the deepest country content in this group, published in April 2026 and updated in September. It carries the K5.00 wage floor and the K20,000 tax-free threshold, plus a monthly fee range and a separate permit setup range.
Key Specialty Area:
Monthly fee range plus a separate permit cost
Service Cost:
$500 to $900 per employee per month; work permit and visa sponsorship $2,000 to $4,000 as a one-time fee, per the company
Top Advantages
- Current K5.00 wage floor on its pages
- Separate one-time quote for permit sponsorship
- Monthly SWT filing and Nasfund reporting included
Scope of Services:
- Kina payroll and monthly tax filing
- Work permit and entry visa sponsorship
- Workers’ compensation placement and renewal
Our Verdict
My first stop for a realistic budget, since it splits permit costs from the monthly fee.
*As pricing is subject to change, we are listing prices as they stand in October 2026
Rivermate
Provider Type:
Global
Company Description:
Rivermate keeps a country guide set with pages on leave, rights, salary, and work permits, last updated in February 2026. It lists the K5.00 minimum wage and describes annual leave as 14 consecutive days, the wording the Act turns on.
Key Specialty Area:
Precise leave wording and permit guides
Service Cost:
Quote-based
Top Advantages
- Annual leave stated as consecutive days
- Separate guides for permits, rights and salaries
- Updated for the 2026 wage floor
Scope of Services:
- Employment contracts and new hire onboarding
- Payroll processing, taxes and employee benefits
- Work permit and visa support
Our Verdict
Handy for an HR lead who wants the reading done before the first sales call.
INSIGHT: What does an EOR in Papua New Guinea cost?
Only 2 providers publish monthly fees for this market, which is rare. The fee is still the smaller half of the bill because superannuation, the wage floor, and permit sponsorship determine the real cost.
- Published fees: Playroll from $399 and RemotePeople from $500 to $900 per employee per month. Each is that company’s own figure, not a market rate (October 2026).
- Permit sponsorship: RemotePeople quotes a one-time $2,000 to $4,000 on top of the monthly charge. ICA adds a $50 online fee per visa (ICA).
- Statutory load: 8.4% employer superannuation, owed only once the employer reaches 15 staff (Nasfund).
- Ask for separate lines: management fee, SWT pass-through, superannuation, workers’ compensation premium, permit costs and any kina funding charge.
Sources:
checked October 2026
*As pricing is subject to change, we are listing prices as they stand in October 2026
Is the hire part of a wider regional build? My Australia EOR guide covers the market most of these employers already work from.
A Pacific plan can start with my notes on employer of record in Fiji. It is the closest peer on the site, with its own recent wage change.
Teams reaching across the land border can compare Indonesia EOR services. Proximity does not mean shared law, though. An EOR in Papua New Guinea still follows its own superannuation threshold, wage determination, and permit sequence.
What to Know About EOR Papua New Guinea: FAQs
Which labor rules matter most when hiring in Papua New Guinea?
The Employment Act 1978 (Chapter 373) sets the floor. Section 49 caps work at 12 hours a day, and section 52 calculates overtime on a 44-hour week. Section 61 provides 14 consecutive days of annual leave after every 12 months of service. Those days include weekends, so the break is shorter than 14 working days. Sick leave is 6 paid days a year after 6 months (section 65). Without a contract term, notice runs from 1 day to 4 weeks by service (section 34).
What is the minimum wage in Papua New Guinea?
It is K5.00 an hour from 1 January 2026, set by the Minimum Wages Board and welcomed by the International Labor Organization. The previous K3.50 rate had applied since July 2016. Further steps take it to K5.25 in January 2027 and K5.50 in January 2028. Employers approved for an exemption, mainly in agriculture or due to incapacity to pay, may pay less, so check whether a client’s sector holds one.
Does an employer have to pay superannuation?
Not always. Contributions of 8.4% from the employer and 6% from the employee become compulsory once an employer reaches a size threshold. The 2 largest funds word it differently: 15 or more employees for one, more than 15 for the other. Both also describe a 3-month service test. Contributions are due within 14 days after month-end, and joining is voluntary below the threshold.
Do foreign hires need a work permit?
Yes. A non-citizen first needs a work permit from the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, sponsored by the employer. The working resident visa comes second and requires the sponsor’s Investment Promotion Authority forms. Because the permit is tied to the sponsoring entity, a provider that already holds those registrations is often the quickest route. Immigration quotes about 10 working days for a complete visa file.
How do I choose between these providers?
Start with the entity: does the provider hold its own local company or work through a partner, and can that company sponsor permits? Then ask how superannuation is handled, whether permit costs sit inside the quote, and how kina payroll is funded from abroad. Get the quote in writing with 3 lines kept apart: the fee, statutory costs passed through, and anything charged once. Only 2 of the 10 publish a fee at all, so expect to ask.
Helen is Anywherer’s Market Analyst & Content Researcher, with extensive experience in analyzing global employment markets and HR technology trends. She is skilled at turning complex market data into clear, well-researched insights that inform every piece of content. With a strong grasp of the EOR, PEO, and international hiring space, Helen plays a key role in keeping Anywherer’s research accurate, up to date, and genuinely useful for readers.
