Employer of Record 

Employers of Record, sometimes called a "pass through agency", are used by consultants as back office resources and a representative corporate entity. An Employer of Record will perform contract advisory, billing department and collections duties for a fee for independant contractors and consultants.

They are often configured to have many consultants who co-particpate in benefit programs such as 401K, Profit sharing and health insurance plans thus supplying cost advantages to all in the group. They also provide an implicit benfit in that the Employer of Record knows the IRS statutes and have the responsibility to comply with filing requirements to mediate risk to both the consultant and the client companys who engage the consultant.