FAQ
IT staffing FAQ: fees, models, timelines and compliance.
Straight answers to the questions clients, candidates and franchise prospects ask ApTask most: what IT staffing costs and how markups work, which engagement model fits, how ApTask operates inside VMS and MSP programs, how to verify a recruiter and stay compliant, where ApTask staffs, and how the franchise works. Each answer links to the page that holds the detail.
Last updated · By ApTask Editorial Team
What does ApTask charge?
ApTask is paid by the client, never the candidate: an hourly bill rate for contract talent, a one-time fee for a direct hire, or a flat margin for payrolling a worker you found. The floors it publishes are a 32% (W-2) or 18% (C2C/IC) gross margin and a 10–20% pass-through margin.
How is IT staffing priced?
Three ways. Contract and contract-to-hire talent is billed by the hour at a bill rate that is the contractor’s pay plus the agency’s markup. A direct hire costs a one-time fee, a percentage of first-year salary. Payrolling a worker you already found costs a flat margin. ApTask publishes its margin floors and state bill-rate bands in the cost guide.
What margin floors does ApTask publish?
Its franchise disclosure document sets minimum gross margins of 32% on W-2 placements and 18% on C2C or independent-contractor placements, and pass-through payrolling runs a flat 10–20% of the bill rate with no recruitment fee. The direct-hire percentage is quoted in the master service agreement.
Why do an agency’s markup and margin look so different?
They measure the same spread two ways: markup divides it by the pay rate, gross margin by the bill rate. A pay rate of 70 and a bill rate of 100 is a 42.9% markup but a 30% margin. Compare offers on what the gross margin must cover — a W-2 margin carries employer burden that a C2C margin does not — rather than on headline markup.
What is the cheapest way to put a contractor I already found on payroll?
Pass-Through Services: ApTask becomes the employer of record for a flat 10–20% of the bill rate, charges no recruitment fee, publishes the full bill-rate-to-take-home waterfall before signing, and has most US workers on payroll within 3 business days.
Which engagement model fits my need?
Contract for a need that ends on a date, contract-to-hire when the need is probably permanent but fit is unproven, direct hire for a clearly permanent seat, and a Statement of Work when you want ApTask to own an outcome. One master service agreement covers all of them.
When should I choose contract-to-hire instead of direct hire?
When the need is probably permanent but you want to see the person work first. You pay the hourly bill rate during the trial and can release at any point; converting carries a fee that steps down with tenure and reaches zero after six months with ApTask. Choose direct hire when the seat is clearly permanent.
Should I buy an outcome (SOW) or hours (staff augmentation)?
Buy an outcome when you can specify it and want the vendor to own delivery: ApTask’s Managed Solutions is a fixed-price Statement of Work with named team, milestone acceptance and full IP transfer. Buy hours through Strategic Workforce Staffing when you need capacity under your own management.
When do I need an employer of record rather than a staffing agency?
When you have already found the person and only need a compliant legal employer — especially in a country where you have no entity. ApTask’s Payroll Solutions is that EOR service, with onboarding usually under 5 business days; a staffing agency also recruits the worker.
Which contractor structures does ApTask support?
W-2 on ApTask’s payroll with full benefits, which most senior contractors prefer, plus 1099 and corp-to-corp where the role and worker structure support them. Which applies is decided by the IRS common-law control test, not by preference.
How fast can ApTask fill a role?
Strategic Workforce Staffing delivers a shortlist of 3–5 candidates within 48 hours for contract roles and 5 business days for direct hire. New Jersey clients see an average time-to-fill of 19 business days; inside VMS programs most requisitions are shortlisted within 24 hours.
How does ApTask work inside VMS and MSP programs?
As a Tier-1 supplier inside the client’s vendor management system and under its managed service provider, never as the MSP itself. Most requisitions are shortlisted inside 24 hours, candidates are pre-cleared against the program rate card, and spend through ApTask counts as Tier-1 MBE diversity spend.
What is a vendor management system in staffing?
Software an enterprise uses to distribute requisitions to approved staffing suppliers, collect submittals and track timesheets, rates, invoices and compliance — SAP Fieldglass, Beeline, Coupa, IQNavigator and Workday VNDLY are examples. ApTask works inside them as a Tier-1 supplier.
What is a managed service provider in staffing?
The firm an enterprise hires to run its contingent-workforce program — managing suppliers, rate cards and compliance, usually through a VMS. ApTask is a supplier into MSP programs rather than an MSP operator, and its Managed Solutions (SOW) service is a different thing despite the shared initials.
What program metrics does ApTask report?
A 92% first-submission acceptance rate on program-clean candidates, submissions inside the published rate card 98% of the time, most requisitions shortlisted inside 24 hours, and a quarterly business review covering fill rate, time-to-fill, candidate quality and diversity-spend contribution.
Does ApTask have delivery teams outside the United States?
Yes. ApTask is headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, with offices in Mississauga, Canada and Pune, India, and pairs offshore teams with its Employer of Record practice for compliant payroll.
How does ApTask handle trust and compliance?
A genuine ApTask message comes from an aptask.com address, and any recruiter can be verified by calling +1 (732) 355-8000. ApTask never asks candidates for money or bank logins, documents worker classification at intake, and is an NMSDC-certified Minority Business Enterprise.
How can I tell whether a message from an ApTask recruiter is real?
Read the full sender address: a genuine one ends in aptask.com. Then call +1 (732) 355-8000, taken from this site rather than from the message, and ask ApTask to confirm the recruiter and the role. A real recruiter will wait while you verify; pressure and urgency are the tell.
Will ApTask ever ask me for money, a bank login or an ID number?
Never for money, equipment purchases, deposits or cryptocurrency, and never for an online-banking login, password or one-time passcode. Bank details are collected only after you accept an offer, so ApTask can pay you; government ID numbers only at offer stage or for a client-mandated background check — both through the secure onboarding system, never by email reply, chat message or a link in an unexpected message.
How does ApTask decide whether a contractor is 1099 or W-2?
Every pass-through intake runs a multi-factor classification test — behavioral control, financial control and the relationship — and documents the rationale before work begins; roles that do not cleanly support 1099 status are escalated. The test mirrors the IRS common-law rules, and either party can request an IRS determination on Form SS-8.
Does ApTask spend count toward my supplier-diversity targets?
Yes. ApTask is an NMSDC-certified Minority Business Enterprise (regional council NY/NJ-MSDC). Contracting with ApTask directly counts as Tier 1 MBE spend; hours ApTask delivers under a prime staffing firm can be reported as Tier 2, with monthly attestation letters supplied to primes on request.
Where does ApTask staff?
From its Iselin, New Jersey headquarters ApTask staffs nationwide, with dedicated pages for New Jersey, New York, Texas, California and Florida and offices in Mississauga, Canada and Pune, India. Typical senior contractor bill-rate bands are published for Texas, California and Florida.
Where are ApTask’s offices?
At 120 Wood Avenue South, Suite #300, Iselin, NJ 08830, with additional offices in Mississauga, Canada and Pune, India. ApTask was founded in 2010.
Which states does ApTask have IT staffing pages for?
New Jersey, New York, Texas, California and Florida each have a page covering the local market, engagement models, industries and the roles ApTask fills most. ApTask staffs nationwide from Iselin, NJ, so a state without a page is still served.
Which parts of New York does ApTask cover?
Manhattan, Brooklyn, Long Island and Westchester, plus upstate hubs such as Albany, Buffalo and Rochester. Roughly 40% of current New York placements are remote or hybrid; trading-floor and heavily regulated roles usually require onsite work.
What do senior IT contractors bill in Texas, California and Florida?
ApTask’s state pages give typical bands of 110–160 an hour for senior developers in Texas (cloud architects 135–180), 175–220 for Bay Area senior engineers and 130–180 in Los Angeles or San Diego, and 95–140 in Florida (cloud architects 120–165).
How do candidates work with ApTask?
Apply on an open role and your résumé goes to the recruiter who owns that requisition, who reviews it and calls within one business day either way. There is never a fee, and any message asking a candidate for money is fraudulent.
What happens after I apply for an ApTask role?
Your résumé routes to the vertical recruiter who owns the requisition. Within one business day that recruiter reviews your profile against the client’s stack and start date and calls you either way. If it fits, ApTask presents you to the client, preps you for each interview stage, and onboards you W-2 with ApTask or directly with the client, depending on the role type.
Do candidates pay ApTask anything?
No. ApTask is paid by the client, never by the candidate — no application, training, visa or processing fees, and no equipment purchases. Any message asking a candidate for money is fraudulent and should be reported.
Where do I report a fake ApTask recruiter?
Forward the message, with full headers if you can, to support@aptask.com or call +1 (732) 355-8000, and include the sender address, any phone number or chat handle used and what you were asked to do. If you have already sent money or bank details, contact your bank immediately.
How does the ApTask Franchise work?
The ApTask Franchise asks for five years of staffing, software or consulting sales experience rather than startup capital: ApTask funds contractor payroll and runs the back office. Franchisees earn a share of gross profit after the FDD fees, paid around the 25th of the month after the client pays.
What does it take to start an ApTask Franchise?
Experience rather than capital: a minimum of five years of sales or business-development experience at a staffing, software or consulting company. There is no startup capital or office requirement because ApTask funds contractor payroll and provides the recruiters, back office and technology. Fees are set out in the Franchise Disclosure Document.
How is a franchisee’s share calculated and when is it paid?
The franchisee receives a share of the gross profit on each placement after the fees in the FDD. The FDD sets minimum gross margins of 18% for C2C/IC and 32% for W-2, and the share is distributed around the 25th of the month after the client pays ApTask’s invoice.
Is the franchise territory geographic?
No. A franchisee selects five Fortune 2000 companies anywhere in the country as a dedicated-client list, and after securing MSAs with three of them five more exclusive clients become available. Small and mid-size clients in any geography are open to everyone.
Who do I contact for what?
| Purpose | Contact | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hire talent or scope an engagement | Tell us what you need | A recruiter responds with a calibration slate and a written staffing thesis |
| Apply for a role or join the talent network | Open roles · Submit a résumé | Your résumé routes to the recruiter who owns the requisition |
| Verify a recruiter or ask a general question | +1 (732) 355-8000 · help@aptask.com | Call the number from this site, never one supplied in a message |
| Report recruitment fraud | support@aptask.com | Forward the message with full headers; see the Trust Center |
| Privacy and data requests | businessexcellence@aptask.com | Access, correction and deletion requests under the Privacy Policy |
| Own a staffing franchise | ApTask Franchise | For sellers with 5+ years in staffing, software or consulting |
Did we miss your question?
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