Employer of Record in Cuba

Hiring independent contractors has boomed in popularity because of the cost savings and flexibility they offer. It can be a great option if you require niche skills or short-term project support. Contractors allow businesses to access specialized skills quickly, without the time and cost of setting up a local entity.

However, it’s important to know the limits of this model: contractors are not a substitute for full-time employees. Relying on them for ongoing, long-term roles can create serious compliance risks, including employee misclassification, which can lead to fines, back taxes, and reputational damage.

Playroll’s contractor management solutions make it simple to compliantly engage, onboard, and pay contractors around the world. We provide clear visibility into agreements, streamline payments, and reduce compliance risks – so you can focus on getting the work done. And when you’re ready to take the next step, we can help seamlessly convert contractors into full-time employees through our global Employer of Record service.

Businesses can only operate smoothly in Cuba if they comply with local labor laws including drafting compliant employment contract agreements and meeting taxation and payroll obligations. Learn more about the employment laws and regulations in Cuba below, to avoid any compliance issues.

Onboarding Process

We can help you get a new employee started in Cuba quickly, with a minimum onboarding time of just 1-2 working days. The timeline starts once the employee submits all required information onto the Playroll platform and completes any necessary local authority registrations. For non-nationals, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) may add up to three extra days. Additional time may be needed for follow-ups on this assessment.

In Cuba, you should keep overtime strictly pre approved and recorded because enforcement risk increases quickly when extra hours are informal or undocumented. Heading into 2026, scrutiny is likely to focus on whether overtime limits are respected and whether the correct overtime multiplier is applied consistently.

• Standard Working Hours: 44 hours per week.
• Overtime Thresholds: Overtime is defined as work beyond 8 hours per day or 44 hours per week, with limits commonly referenced at 12 overtime hours per week and 200 overtime hours per year.
• Overtime Pay Rates: Overtime is commonly paid at 1.5 times the regular hourly wage.
• Daily And Weekly Rest Requirements: Preserve a weekly rest day and ensure time records show when it was taken.
• Night Work Restrictions: Minors under 18 are prohibited from working overtime.
• Penalties For Non Compliance: Exposure typically includes enforcement action and back pay for underpaid overtime.

Global expansion shouldn't mean losing time to paperwork or dealing with complicated, country-specific HR systems. An Employer of Record helps you keep your focus on talent by handling the operational side of employment in Cuba. That includes onboarding, contract management, payroll processing, and statutory compliance, all aligned with local laws and best practices. The EOR guarantees that employees are legally employed and properly supported from day one.

This streamlined setup allows you to prioritize recruiting the best people and integrating them into your company culture. Your team stays lean, and you avoid getting caught up in the details of local processes or shifting regulations. For founders, global hiring managers, or HR teams working across borders, an EOR multiplies your impact, reducing admin time, preventing errors, and helping ensure that new hires have a smooth experience from the get-go.

Payroll Cycle in Cuba

The payroll cycle in Cuba is usually Monthly, with employees being paid as stipulated in employment contract.

Hiring in Cuba means taking on local payroll obligations, which often include unique tax rates, contribution rules, and strict documentation. If you're not familiar with the system, or don't have a local entity, it’s easy to make mistakes. That’s where an Employer of Record ccomes in. The EOR manages payroll for your team on your behalf, ensuring every process is accurate, timely, and legally compliant.

Key Ways an EOR Supports Payroll in Cuba:

• Full Legal Compliance: Ensures all payments, deductions, and filings meet country-specific requirements.
• Payroll Setup & Processing: Handles salary calculations, tax withholdings, and local reporting obligations.
• Statutory Benefit Contributions: Pays into required social programs and manages country-mandated benefits.
• Employee Documentation: Generates compliant contracts and manages hiring and termination paperwork.
• Local Currency Payouts: Delivers salaries in local currency, avoiding delays or exchange rate issues for employees.

In Cuba, foreign nationals who wish to work legally typically need a combination of an appropriate entry visa (such as a D-1 or D-2 work-related visa) and authorization from the Cuban immigration and labor authorities, often referred to as a work authorization or permiso de trabajo linked to a specific employer or project. Most foreign workers are engaged through state entities, joint ventures, or approved foreign-investment projects, and the Cuban counterpart usually leads the sponsorship and application process.

Employers must secure approval from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security and the Dirección de Inmigración y Extranjería before a foreign employee can start work, while the individual must provide personal documentation, qualifications, and, in some cases, police and medical certificates. Rules and practice can change, so companies should always confirm current requirements with Cuban authorities or a qualified local advisor before proceeding.

Mandatory Leave Entitlement in Cuba

The annual leave entitlement in Cuba is 30 calendar days for a full time worker after completing one year of service. These can include public holidays on top of that or within those days, which would otherwise be unpaid.

An Employer of Record (EOR) helps businesses manage annual leave, paid time off (PTO), and local holidays across the globe, including in Cuba. By partnering with an EOR, companies ensure full compliance with local labor laws in Cuba when it comes to annual leave and time-off management. EOR providers like Playroll offer platforms that simplify tracking and managing employee time off in Cuba. By outsourcing this responsibility to Playroll, you can streamline leave management, ensure compliance, and free up time to focus on other business priorities.

Employee benefits in Cuba are heavily shaped by the country’s socialist system, with many core protections delivered through the state. As a foreign or private employer, you still need to understand how statutory social security, leave, and workplace protections work, and how your own benefits package fits on top of those guarantees.

Your company’s value proposition in Cuba will usually come from improving on state-provided standards through additional paid time off, health support, and allowances rather than replicating basic protections. Knowing where the legal floor sits will help you design sustainable, attractive benefits that comply with Cuban law and align with employee expectations.

• Top mandatory benefits include: enrollment in the national social security system, paid annual leave and public holidays, statutory maternity and paternity protections, paid sick leave, and occupational health and safety protections.
• Top supplemental benefits include: private or supplemental medical coverage, meal or food allowances, and performance or retention bonuses.
• Key legal and tax considerations include: mandatory registration and contributions to social security, proper payroll records for all benefits in Cuba, and correct distinction between taxable cash benefits and non-taxable or partially exempt in-kind benefits where applicable.

When hiring across multiple countries, maintaining consistency in how you deliver employee benefits quickly gets tricky. Each country, including Cuba, has its own legal rules, cultural norms, and contribution systems. An Employer of Record helps you strike the right balance between global structure and local compliance. They take over the complexity of delivering benefits that are aligned with Cuba’s legal requirements and competitive with local market expectations.

From ensuring statutory benefits are in place to managing local onboarding timelines and enrollment systems, the EOR provides a seamless experience for both employer and employee. This makes it easier to grow your team across borders without reinventing your benefits process in each new location. You stay in control of your overall benefits strategy, while the EOR takes care of executing it in a way that works legally and culturally in Cuba. It’s a smarter way to scale benefits globally without losing local relevance.