> "No. We cannot hire freelancers directly. You must go through a third company (consulting firm/body shop) which we work with." But why the heck would I even

> "No. We cannot hire freelancers directly. You must go through a third company (consulting firm/body shop) which we work with." But why the heck would I even consider doing that? The whole point of freelancing (at least IMO) is being _free_ from the middlemen. So(at least in Ireland, where I'm based) this is an issue with the taxation authority. I'm currently fake contracting (company has no EU based entity), but the reason that they generally want a legal entity is to ensure that all your tax gets paid, as otherwise the company can be held liable for the unpaid tax. I currently work with fenero.ie, and pay them 130 per month (which comes off pre-tax income) to use an umbrella company which deals with accounts, registration and taxation for me. I _think_ that you could set up a company yourself, but if you're just getting started I'd recommend using a middleman for now. I think the body-shop approach through a middleman is where most people start, but figuring out how and when to move on from that is trickier.