How do you choose a staffing agency in India?

This is the first question, and it determines almost everything else. Confirm whether the agency employs the worker through its own registered entity, whether it uses a third party, and which entity actually issues payslips and remits statutory contributions. If you have no entity in India, this arrangement is what makes hiring workable, so it needs to be explicit in the contract rather than assumed from a sales conversation.

India's statutory framework covers provident fund, employees' state insurance where applicable, professional tax in certain states, gratuity, and state-specific shops and establishments registration. Obligations differ by state and by headcount thresholds. Ask how each is handled, who files, and how you would evidence compliance if asked. A provider who cannot answer precisely, or who treats it as routine detail, is the risk you are trying to avoid.

Many agencies compete on the size of their candidate database, which tells you little about quality. Ask what assessment actually happens before a shortlist reaches you: is there a structured technical evaluation, who conducts it, and can you see a sample scorecard? For engineering roles, ask whether a practical exercise or live technical conversation is part of the process, or whether screening stops at a keyword match on the CV.

Ask for the bill rate split into pay rate, statutory burden, and margin. Without that split you cannot compare providers, because a lower headline rate may simply be shifting statutory costs into a separate line or under-providing for them. Then check replacement terms: what happens if someone leaves in the first weeks, how quickly a replacement is sourced, and whether any fee is credited. These terms vary widely.

If your team is in another time zone, confirm working-hours overlap explicitly and in writing rather than relying on a general assurance. Check which cities the agency genuinely recruits in, since talent depth and salary levels differ considerably across Indian markets. Ask for references from clients hiring similar roles at a similar scale, and speak to them about responsiveness when something went wrong.