Building Your First Latin America Remote Team

You’re thinking about hiring in Latin America.

Maybe you’ve heard about the timezone advantages. Or the cost savings. Or someone told you about their Colombian developer who changed their business.

But here’s what most articles won’t tell you:

Building a remote team in Latin America isn’t just about posting a job and picking the cheapest candidate.

It’s about understanding how to actually source, vet, and onboard professionals in a completely different market. 

It’s about knowing which legal landmines to avoid. And it’s about treating talented people with respect, not as discount labor.

This guide walks you through the actual process. Step by step.

Choosing Your Hiring Structure

Before you post a single job, decide how you’re actually going to employ people.

Direct Contractor Approach

You hire someone as an independent contractor. They invoice you. Handle their own taxes. You pay them like any vendor.

Sounds simple. But the risk is misclassification.

Most Latin American countries have strict rules about contractor versus employee status. 

If you set their schedule, provide equipment, require company tools, and treat them like staff, even if your contract says “contractor,” local authorities can reclassify them.

When that happens you’re liable for back taxes, mandatory benefits, social security contributions, and fines.

Colombia’s misclassification penalties reach $1.58 million USD. Mexico requires retroactive social security payments. Peru and Brazil impose substantial fines plus back pay.

For contractors to stay compliant, they need real autonomy. They control their schedule within agreed overlap hours. Use their own tools. Invoice for completed work, not logged hours.

Employer of Record Route

An EOR employs the person legally in their country, handles compliance, payroll, and benefits, then leases their services to you for a monthly fee.

It significantly costs more than direct hiring. But for your first 1-3 hires it eliminates legal risk while you’re learning.

Once you have 5-10 people in a country, you can set up your own entity or stick with EOR.

What About Employees?

If you need someone working fixed hours, fully integrated into your team, using company resources, hire them as proper employees either through your own entity or an EOR.

Don’t try to label them contractors. It won’t hold up.

Finding Latin American Talent

Different roles need different sourcing strategies.

Where to Post Jobs

For tech roles, engineers, designers, and product managers, LinkedIn works in major cities. But you’ll also find talent on platforms built specifically for Latin American remote work.

HireTalent.LAT focuses exclusively on connecting companies with pre-vetted Latin American professionals. The platform uses AI to analyze applicants and rank candidates with detailed scoring across job match, retention risk, and experience level. 

For general remote roles like customer support, operations, and marketing, Workana dominates across the region. 

Local job boards like Bumeran and Computrabajo are huge in Argentina, Colombia, and Mexico.

Making Your Job Post Stand Out

Latin American professionals see countless vague, low-pay posts from international companies.

Include transparent salary range in USD. I know it feels uncomfortable. Do it anyway.

Workers ignore posts saying “competitive salary” without numbers. They assume it’s low.

Highlight what makes the role attractive beyond money. Long-term stability. Growth opportunities. Learning budgets. Flexibility.

Many Latin American professionals have been burned by short-term gig work. Show them this is different.

Write in clear, simple English. No corporate buzzwords. “Rockstar ninja” makes people roll their eyes.

Screening What Actually Matters

Test written communication first. Give candidates a real scenario from your business and ask for a written response. Judge clarity and ability to ask good questions.

Include asynchronous components. Written questions, video responses, take-home projects. See how they operate without real-time hand-holding.

Check tech setup and backup plans. Internet stability varies. Ask about their connection, backup options, and access to co-working spaces.

Don’t test for perfect English. Test for clear English.

You need someone who can write coherent status updates and explain blockers. Not a native speaker.

Actually Working with Latin American Teams

Communication Differences

Many Latin American cultures rely on tone, relationship, and reading between the lines. Direct confrontation can seem rude.

The US tends toward explicit, direct communication.

This creates friction.

Build Relationships First

In many Latin American work cultures, there’s natural deference to managers.

People wait to see if you care about them as people or just resources.

Take five minutes at meeting starts for small talk. Ask about family, local holidays, the football match everyone’s talking about.

This isn’t wasted time. It’s relationship building. Strong relationships unlock better work.

Once your team feels valued and connected, they’ll become more proactive and more willing to speak up.

Respect Local Customs

Even for contractors, plan around major holidays.

Semana Santa is huge across Latin America. Many people travel or spend time with family. Expect reduced availability.

Year-end holidays stretch longer than in the US. Don’t schedule major launches for late December.

Some companies offer flexibility to swap US holidays like Thanksgiving for local holidays that matter more to their team.

It costs nothing. But shows respect and builds loyalty.

Setting Up Operations

Onboarding Process

Send clear documentation before day one.

What are core working hours for overlap? Expected Slack response time? Camera on or off for meetings? How to request time off?

Put it in writing. Clear English.

Pair new hires with a buddy for their first 60-90 days. Someone they can ask questions without feeling judged.

Hold weekly 1-1s during onboarding to surface friction early.

Tools and Systems

Most Latin American professionals already know mainstream tools. Google Workspace, Slack, Zoom, Notion, Jira.

Prioritize asynchronous communication. Loom videos instead of live calls when possible. Well-structured Slack threads. Notion docs that capture decisions.

This respects that even with good timezone overlap, some meetings will be early morning or late evening for someone.

Platforms like HireTalent.LAT include built-in time tracking where team members can clock in and out, with managers able to review and approve time adjustments. 

Manage Outcomes, Not Hours

Experienced Latin American professionals working with international clients expect to be trusted.

Invasive time-tracking feels insulting.

Set clear quarterly goals. Define weekly deliverables. Give autonomy over how and when work gets done, as long as they’re available during agreed overlap hours.

Judge results, not activity.

Get Compensation Right

Many US companies pay Latin American team members in USD.

Attractive in countries with volatile currencies. But workers still declare income and pay taxes locally.

Include annual cost-of-living adjustments. Inflation in Latin America can be significantly higher than the US.

Review compensation every 12 months based on local inflation and market rates.

For Latin American Professionals

Finding Legitimate Opportunities

Focus on platforms that regularly work with Latin American talent, specialized platforms like HireTalent.LAT, nearshore agencies.

These filter out scams and ultra-low-pay gigs.

Participate in communities where serious opportunities appear. LinkedIn groups focused on remote work, industry-specific Slack and Discord communities.

Set Up Properly as a Freelancer

Register as self-employed or create a small legal entity per your country’s rules. Invoice clients properly and pay taxes.

Keep detailed records. Invoices, bank transfers, contracts.

Make sure contracts cover intellectual property and confidentiality. Critical for software, design, and content work.

Be the Teammate Everyone Wants

Over-communicate. Give proactive updates without being asked. Flag blockers early.

Invest in strong written English. Not perfect. Just clear, professional communication.

Have backup plans for internet and power. Stable home setup, co-working access, secondary internet.

Negotiate availability upfront and honor it. Don’t disappear during local holidays without warning.

The best remote workers treat the job like a real partnership, not just a paycheck.

Start Small and Learn

Building a remote team in Latin America requires intention.

You can’t copy-paste your US hiring process. You need to understand cultural nuances, respect legal boundaries, and treat professionals with dignity.

Start with one or two people. 

Focus on communication, relationships, and outcomes.

The people you hire aren’t discount alternatives. They’re skilled professionals with the same drive to do meaningful work and build careers.

Treat them that way. Pay them fairly. Give them growth opportunities.

You’ll build a team that’s not just cheaper, but genuinely better.

That’s the real opportunity.