Deel → OpenAccountants: contractor-tax demo

The pitch in one line: Deel pays your global contractors. OpenAccountants flags the tax obligations and risks behind each payment — misclassification, permanent establishment, 1099s, W-8BENs, withholding — signed off by a named licensed accountant.

Deel contractors
  └─ { name, country, us_person, ytd_paid, form_on_file, full_time_exclusive }
        └─ OpenAccountants MCP  →  load the verified contractor-payments skill
              └─ Verdict:  ⚠️ misclassification / permanent-establishment risk   ← the catch
                           ⚠️ 1099-NEC required (US, >$600, no W-9)
                           ⚠️ foreign contractor — no W-8BEN (+ US-source withholding)
                           ✅ documentation in order
                 · the rule that decided it (cited)
                 · the named CPA who signed it off

Regenerate the visual: python make_svg.py (static SVG, no deps) · animated GIF: brew install vhs && vhs demo.tape

Why this one

Paying people across borders is a minefield Deel already navigates operationally — and OpenAccountants is the layer that surfaces the tax exposure on top of it:

• a full-time, exclusive "contractor" abroad looks like an employee — reclassification, back payroll taxes, and a permanent establishment (a taxable presence) for the company in that country. This is exactly the risk Deel's EOR product exists to remove;

• a US contractor paid over $600 needs a W-9 and a 1099-NEC;

• a foreign contractor needs a W-8BEN on file (no 1099), and US-source work can trigger withholding.

• Deel = the global payment + compliance rails.

• OpenAccountants = the tax-risk lens on each relationship, verified and accountant-signed.

What it shows

Five contractors run through the OpenAccountants MCP:

Contractor	Verdict
DE — full-time, exclusive	⚠️ Misclassification / PE risk
US — $30k, no W-9	⚠️ 1099-NEC required
IN — no W-8BEN, works in US	⚠️ W-8BEN + US-source withholding
US — W-9 on file	✅ Documentation in order
JP — W-8BEN, part-time	✅ Documentation in order

The money shot: the German contractor working full-time and exclusively. On paper a contractor, in substance an employee — creating reclassification exposure and a permanent establishment for the company in Germany. OpenAccountants flags it; the fix (an EOR or a local entity) is exactly what Deel sells.

Run it

git clone https://github.com/openaccountants/deel-contractor-demo
cd deel-contractor-demo
python pipeline.py                       # bundled sample (mock mode, no keys)
python pipeline.py samples/contractors.json

Go live

export OA_MCP_TOKEN=...      # OpenAccountants account token (uses the live verified rules)
export DEEL_API_TOKEN=...    # Deel token (free self-serve sandbox at demo.deel.com)
python pipeline.py

Files

File	Role
pipeline.py	Orchestrator + CLI: Deel → OA → verdict report
deel_client.py	Deel contractor extraction (live API or bundled sample)
oa_client.py	OpenAccountants MCP JSON-RPC client (live or mock)
contractor_check.py	Checks each contractor's obligations/risks → verdict
samples/contractors.json	Deel-shaped contractors

Honest notes

• contractor_check.py is a risk/obligation signal — not a formal worker-classification opinion or a full treaty analysis. Production leans on the full OA skill + an agent step; the named-CPA sign-off makes the verdict relianceable.
• Rules ($600 1099 threshold, W-9/W-8BEN, 30% US-source withholding) are US figures; live, every value comes from get_skill. The verifier (Amir Pelinkovic) is the real OpenAccountants US lead.