Without exception, starting from September 1st, any company that provides its own workers for the benefit of the client to carry out activities specified in the contract must be registered with the Registry of Specialized Service Providers or Specialized Works (REPSE).
“In cases where there is a provision of services regardless of the origin of the contractual legal relationship, where there is the provision of workers, registration with REPSE is required,” explained the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (STPS).
REPSE is a public registry of outsourcing companies operated by the STPS, and its registration must be renewed every three years. Operating without this requirement may result in a fine of 4,481,000 pesos. The same penalty applies to companies that subcontract a service that involves receiving personnel from the contractor at their workplace without being registered in the registry.
The subcontracting reform provided a deadline for companies to comply with the new rules, such as registration with REPSE, which expired on September 1st. However, this does not mean that businesses cannot continue the process with the STPS.
REPSE is not the only new rule for companies already operating in the outsourcing sector. It will also be a requirement for new businesses that provide their own workers for the benefit of the client to fulfill the activities specified in the service contract.
Through the Guide to Fulfilling Obligations Regarding Registration in REPSE, the department led by Luisa María Alcalde clarified that providing one’s own workers for the benefit of a third party is when one or more employees of the contractor perform specialized services in a space or workplace owned or under the management of the client, even if it is sporadic.
“In cases where a company’s workers carry out tasks on another company’s premises, it will be considered that personnel is provided or made available when the first company’s workers perform their duties on the premises of the second company permanently, indefinitely, or periodically. In this case, the company providing or making available the workers must be registered with REPSE,” the department noted.
In this regard, services that can operate under the new rules are those that provide personnel, and this does not imply subordination between the client and the contractor’s employees.
