An Express Employment Professionals office places workers with client businesses as a temporary-help agency, which puts a regulatory layer on the resale that most service franchises don't carry: the office's Employment Standards Act temporary-help agency registration doesn't transfer automatically to a new owner, and neither does the WSIB employer-of-record status that comes with actually employing the placed workers. Getting both re-established before closing — not after — is the difference between a smooth handover and a coverage gap for workers already on assignment.
Express Employment Professionals resales follow the franchisor's own approval process on top of the usual purchase mechanics — here's how the two run together.
Getting approved
The offer sets price and terms, conditioned on franchisor consent and a review of which client placement contracts and candidate relationships are actually included in the sale.
1–2 weeks†The franchisor reviews the buyer's background, staffing-industry experience, and financial capacity before consenting to the transfer.
4–8 weeks, typically†A franchise disclosure document may still be required for this resale — Ontario courts read the resale-disclosure exemption narrowly, so franchisor involvement can trigger it even where it's called a private deal.
assessed early, in parallel†Getting to closing
The buyer applies for its own Employment Standards Act temporary-help agency registration — it isn't assumed from the seller — alongside the landlord's consent to assign the office lease.
2–6 weeks†WSIB coverage for placed workers is re-established under the buyer as employer of record, and the candidate database transfers under PIPEDA-compliant privacy safeguards.
2–4 weeks, often overlapping†Funds and the franchise agreement change hands, with ESA registration and WSIB employer-of-record status both confirmed active for the buyer.
1 day, once conditions are met†CFA Look For A Franchise listing confirms an established Canadian staffing/personnel-services franchise network, in business since 1983, CFA member since 2005
Ontario offices within its established Canadian staffing franchise network
This is the first real decision in a Express Employment Professionals resale — and it changes what you're buying, what you're taking on, and how the franchise agreement moves.
| Question | Asset purchase | Share purchase |
|---|---|---|
| What you buy | The office's assets — client placement contracts, candidate relationships and database, leasehold improvements, and the existing franchise agreement, subject to consent. | The shares of the corporation operating the office — everything it owns, and everything it owes, including its existing ESA registration and WSIB history. |
| Franchisor consent & ROFR | Required for the specific office changing hands — often the pacing condition on the whole deal. | Required for the change of control itself, with the franchisor reviewing who is actually taking over. |
| ESA temporary-help agency registration | The buyer must obtain its own registration under the Employment Standards Act before operating as a temporary-help agency — it does not transfer with the assets. | The corporation's existing registration can potentially continue, since the entity itself hasn't changed, though a change of officers may still require notice. |
| WSIB employer-of-record status | Coverage for workers placed by the agency needs to be actively re-established under the buyer, since the buyer becomes the employer of record for those workers going forward. | WSIB coverage generally continues under the existing corporate account, since the employing entity doesn't change. |
| Client contracts & non-solicits | Client staffing agreements are reviewed for assignability, and non-solicit protection for the transferred client and candidate relationships is a standard negotiated term. | Client agreements generally continue with the corporation, though key-account relationships still depend on continuity of service quality. |
| Typical use | The default for a single office changing hands. | Less common — sometimes used where an operator holds multiple offices under one company. |
The office's assets — client placement contracts, candidate relationships and database, leasehold improvements, and the existing franchise agreement, subject to consent.
The shares of the corporation operating the office — everything it owns, and everything it owes, including its existing ESA registration and WSIB history.
Required for the specific office changing hands — often the pacing condition on the whole deal.
Required for the change of control itself, with the franchisor reviewing who is actually taking over.
The buyer must obtain its own registration under the Employment Standards Act before operating as a temporary-help agency — it does not transfer with the assets.
The corporation's existing registration can potentially continue, since the entity itself hasn't changed, though a change of officers may still require notice.
Coverage for workers placed by the agency needs to be actively re-established under the buyer, since the buyer becomes the employer of record for those workers going forward.
WSIB coverage generally continues under the existing corporate account, since the employing entity doesn't change.
Client staffing agreements are reviewed for assignability, and non-solicit protection for the transferred client and candidate relationships is a standard negotiated term.
Client agreements generally continue with the corporation, though key-account relationships still depend on continuity of service quality.
The default for a single office changing hands.
Less common — sometimes used where an operator holds multiple offices under one company.
We tell you which structure fits — before you sign anything.
No open-ended hourly surprises — the cost is confirmed in writing before any work begins.
| Type of work | Fee | How it's confirmed |
|---|---|---|
| Straightforward purchase or sale | Starting from $3,388.87 Our charges · taxes included | Confirmed in writing once we see the agreement. |
| Larger or more complex deal | Quoted to scope | Short call → fixed written quote before any work begins. |
| Searches, filings & third-party fees | At cost | Itemized on your invoice, not marked up. |
A single Express Employment Professionals office changing hands between one buyer and one seller, with ESA registration and WSIB employer-of-record status both re-established before closing.
Start my file →An operator selling several offices as one operating company, or a resale where a key client account's consent to assign, or an active WSIB claim for a placed worker, needs to be resolved first.
Book a consultation →Not sure which you are? That's our job to figure out, not yours. As a rough guide, most deals under a couple of million dollars are the first kind — above that, you're usually in Mergers & Acquisitions territory.
No — a temporary-help agency's ESA registration is tied to the operating entity, and a buyer generally needs to confirm or obtain its own registration before placing workers under new ownership. This is one of the first things we confirm in diligence, since operating without it isn't a minor paperwork gap.
This is a negotiated allocation, not an automatic outcome — the purchase agreement needs to address WSIB employer-of-record responsibility and any outstanding claims for workers placed before closing versus after, so liability doesn't fall on whichever party happens to be named at the wrong moment.
The franchisor consent and Arthur Wishart Act disclosure considerations are similar, but a staffing office carries added regulatory layers that most restaurant or retail franchises don't — the ESA temporary-help agency registration and WSIB employer-of-record status both need active attention before closing, not just the lease and the franchise agreement.
It transfers as part of the asset sale, but under PIPEDA-compliant privacy safeguards, since it typically holds sensitive personal and employment information about candidates who didn't necessarily consent to a change of ownership when they applied — how they're notified and given an opt-out is part of the transition planning.
Not always. Client agreements are reviewed for assignability and change-of-control clauses like any commercial contract, and negotiating non-solicit protection so the outgoing owner can't simply take those same clients to a new venture is a standard part of the deal.
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Where we close franchise resale deals
Treadstone Law is an independent law firm. We act for buyers and sellers of franchise businesses. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or retained by Express Employment Professionals or its franchisor.
Tell us about your Express Employment Professionals resale — we'll point you the right way and confirm the cost in writing before any work begins.