Every country has a classification test and no two of them match. All of them examine the working relationship in practice, so a contractor agreement carries little weight when you control the hours, the method and the tools.
United States
The IRS weighs behavioural control, financial control and the type of relationship. The Department of Labor applies an economic reality test under the FLSA. Its 2024 six-factor rule remains in force while a February 2026 proposal to replace it with a two-core-factor test goes through rulemaking. California and several other states use the stricter ABC test.
United Kingdom and Australia
UK status turns on control, the right to send a substitute and mutuality of obligation. HMRC's CEST tool applies those factors, and the same factors decide IR35 status. Australia's Fair Work Act uses a multi-factor test and prohibits sham contracting.
Applying a test
You use the test for the country where the work is performed, record the evidence at the start and repeat the test when scope or hours change. A result of employment means you hire the person directly or through an Employer of Record.