Recruitment agency vs EOR in Nepal — which do you need?

You often need both, in order: recruiter finds the person → EOR employs the person. Skipping either doesn't save money; it just moves the work to you.

• You already have a Nepali entity or a preferred EOR.
• You need volume or speed on a specific role and don't have internal sourcing capacity.
• The role is senior/exec and the market is small enough that a retained search is worth the fee.

• You already have a candidate — referral, ex-colleague, or someone who applied directly.
• You're converting a long-term contractor into an employee for retention and IP reasons.
• You have an internal recruiter or hiring manager doing sourcing.

• Sends 20 CVs in 24 hours with no screening notes — they're spraying, not searching.
• Refuses to share candidate current salary or notice period until you interview — hiding failed placements.
• Charges upfront on a contingency deal — contingency means no fee until offer accept, full stop.
• Won't name a single client reference from the last 12 months.
• Pushes the same three candidates to every client — those candidates already have five other processes running.

• Won't show their OCR company registration or SSF employer ID.
• Quotes a fee that looks 40% cheaper than everyone else — they're skipping statutory contributions.
• Wants to classify your full-time hire as a 'contractor' to save you money — that risk sits with you.
• Asks you to pay them in crypto or into a personal account.
• Can't produce a Nepali-language employment contract.

• Decide the role, level and salary band before you talk to any vendor.
• Pick your EOR first — it's the longer commitment and the harder switch.
• Then pick a recruiter (or run in-house) — cheaper to switch, easier to run in parallel with two firms for the same role.
• Never let one vendor sell you the other without independent references.