PEO Services in the UK

A co-employment model for companies that want to share the employer relationship in the UK rather than hand it over entirely. We help you work out whether PEO or EOR genuinely fits, and place you with the right vetted partner.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners
  • Honest positioning

What a PEO does in the UK

A Professional Employer Organisation works on a co-employment model. You and the PEO partner share the legal employer responsibilities for your UK staff: you keep direction and day-to-day control, while the partner administers payroll, PAYE, National Insurance, and HR compliance under a shared arrangement.

01

Shared employer role

You and the PEO partner share the legal employer responsibilities. You keep direction and control; they handle payroll, PAYE, National Insurance, and HR administration.

02

More direct control

PEO suits companies that want to retain more direct control of the employment relationship than a full EOR arrangement allows. In the UK, EOR is the more common route.

03

Honest recommendation

For most companies hiring in the UK, EOR is simpler. We will tell you honestly whether PEO genuinely fits your structure, or whether EOR serves you better.

How PEO works in the UK, step by step

From assessing the fit to a compliant co-employment arrangement.

01 — Assess the fit

We map your structure, headcount, and how much control you want to keep, and tell you honestly whether PEO or EOR serves you better. No product push.

02 — Set up co-employment

If PEO fits, we place you with a vetted UK partner and structure the shared employer arrangement correctly.

03 — Onboard your people

Compliant UK employment terms under the Employment Rights Act, with the administrative employer functions handled by the partner.

04 — Payroll & compliance

PAYE, National Insurance, and HMRC filings handled monthly, while you keep day-to-day direction.

What PEO in the UK costs

As with EOR, two parts: the statutory cost of employment (15% employer National Insurance plus auto-enrolment in the UK) and the partner service fee.

Employer NI

Employer National Insurance is 15% on earnings above GBP 5,000 a year, plus the minimum 3% pension auto-enrolment contribution.

Minimum wage (2026)

National Living Wage is GBP 12.71 an hour for 21 and over from April 2026, with lower bands for under-21s and apprentices.

Income tax (employee)

0%, 20%, 40% and 45% across the 2026/27 bands, withheld through PAYE as part of the shared payroll administration.

PEO partner fee

A service fee for the co-employment administration. We benchmark across our vetted network, typically 15 to 25% below going direct.

Why arrange it through Bradford Jacobs

Why companies arrange UK PEO through us rather than going direct to a single provider.

We tell you if PEO fits your needs

We are independent: we assess what you actually need, place you with the right vetted partner, secure pricing you will not get going direct, and stay on your side to escalate or renegotiate. You get advice, not a product pitch.

  • Independent advice
  • Vetted partners only
  • On your side at renewal

Pricing you can’t get direct

UK employer National Insurance and pension auto-enrolment duties are fixed by law and apply the same way under any provider’s co-employment structure. What varies is the partner’s own service fee, and that is what we benchmark across our vetted network, typically 15 to 25% below going direct, and renegotiate for you at renewal.

  • 15-25% below direct
  • Network benchmarking
  • Renegotiated for you

Straight to the top when it matters

When something needs resolving, and in global employment it sometimes does, you come to us. We escalate directly, past the helpdesk, to people who can actually move it.

  • Direct escalation
  • No support queues
  • Named account contact

Two decades of placements

Two decades placing and managing employment arrangements across Europe. From 1 January 2027, UK employees need only six months’ service, not two years, to bring an unfair dismissal claim, a shift that raises the stakes on getting co-employment terms right from day one. We build placements that anticipate it, not react to it.

  • Co-employment expertise
  • Honest fit advice
  • Right structure

We flex as your structure changes

PEO, EOR, and your own entity sit on a spectrum, and the right point shifts as you grow. We advise on the path and manage the moves, EOR to PEO, or either to your own UK entity, as your UK presence develops.

  • EOR, PEO or entity
  • Transitions managed
  • Right fit as you grow

UK employer duties a PEO helps carry

Whichever model you use, the underlying UK rules are the same. Under a PEO arrangement, the administrative employer functions are handled for you.

Working time, leave & contracts

Compliant Employment Rights Act contracts and working-time rules (48-hour average cap, 5.6 weeks’ leave). PAYE and National Insurance withheld and filed correctly. Statutory benefits, notice, and redundancy applied properly.

Statutory protections & exits

Statutory notice, the unfair-dismissal qualifying period (two years, dropping to six months from 1 January 2027), and the protections UK employees carry under the Employment Rights Act, all handled under the shared arrangement. The value is the same as with EOR: the compliance is handled by people who do it daily. The difference is simply how much of the employer role you keep.

What a PEO arrangement covers

The co-employment administration covers all of this, under one transparent fee.

Compliant contract

A compliant UK employment contract under the Employment Rights Act, issued and maintained for you.

Payroll & filings

Monthly payroll run, with income tax and National Insurance calculated, withheld, and filed to HMRC each month.

Statutory benefits

All statutory benefits administered: 5.6 weeks’ leave, statutory sick pay, pension auto-enrolment, parental leave, notice and redundancy.

Compliance & support

Ongoing HR compliance and a single point of contact, for the life of the engagement.

Your questions answered

Straight answers on how PEO co-employment works in the UK.

What is the difference between PEO and EOR in the UK?

With an EOR, the partner is the sole legal employer of your UK staff. With a PEO, you and the partner share the employer relationship, you keep more direct control, they handle the administration. In the UK, EOR is the more common route; PEO suits specific co-employment structures.

For most companies, EOR is simpler and faster, especially with no UK entity. PEO fits when you want to share rather than outsource the employer role, or have a structure that calls for it. We assess your situation and recommend honestly.

It depends on the structure. Some co-employment arrangements assume or work alongside a UK entity. If you have no entity and want none, EOR is usually the cleaner route. We will confirm which applies to you.

The administrative employer functions, payroll, PAYE, National Insurance, pension auto-enrolment, and HMRC filings, are handled by the partner. We make sure the arrangement is structured so responsibilities are clear and UK law is met.

The statutory employer cost (15% employer National Insurance plus auto-enrolment) plus a partner service fee for the co-employment administration; the smaller 8% employee NI rate is withheld from their own pay between GBP 242 and GBP 967 a week, 2% above that. We benchmark across our network for pricing typically 15 to 25% below going direct.

Yes. These models sit on a spectrum and the right one changes as you grow. We advise on the path and manage transitions, EOR to PEO, or either to your own UK entity, as your UK presence develops.

Not sure whether PEO or EOR is right for the UK?

Tell us your structure and headcount and we will give you an honest recommendation, usually within a day, plus pricing you will not get direct. No product push, just the right fit.

Tax and labour data verified June 2026 (HMRC, ACAS, OECD). Figures change; we confirm the current position when we scope your hire.