A legitimate recruiting agency gets paid by the employer when it places you, never by you. Before sharing your resume, ID, or bank details with a recruiter offering a remote US role, check three things: who pays the agency, whether its people and the company they claim to represent actually exist and match on LinkedIn, and whether anyone else has reported it as a scam. Reputable agencies placing India candidates work on a success-fee model, typically 8 to 20 percent of first-year pay, billed to the employer on your joining date, not a registration, training, or processing fee charged to you. If a recruiter asks for money before you are hired, skips a real interview, or promises pay far above market rate for the role, those are the clearest signs to walk away, no matter how professional the outreach looks.
India sees a steady stream of fake recruiters promising remote US jobs, because the real version (a genuine, India-focused GTM or sales recruiter) is still a small market and scammers exploit exactly that unfamiliarity. Here is how the legitimate model actually works, the clearest warning signs, and how to verify an agency before you hand over anything.
How do legitimate recruiting agencies actually get paid?
A legitimate agency is paid by the hiring company, not the candidate, usually a percentage of your first-year total pay (commonly 8 to 20 percent depending on seniority) billed to the employer once you join, sometimes structured as a smaller deposit plus a balance on your start date. You should never be asked to pay the agency, the employer, or a third party to be considered, interviewed, or placed.
What are the clearest signs a recruiting agency is not legitimate?
Any request for money from you before you are hired is the single strongest signal, whether it is called a registration, processing, training, or equipment fee. Other common signs: an offer with no real interview, pay far above the market rate for the role, outreach from a free personal email instead of a company domain, pressure to decide or pay within hours, and requests for bank details or ID numbers before an offer exists.
How do you verify a recruiter or agency before sharing your details?
Look up both the recruiter and the agency on LinkedIn and check for a real history, not a profile created days ago with few connections. Separately, contact the company the role is supposedly for, using contact details you find yourself on its official site, and ask whether the role and the recruiter are genuine. Search the agency's name alongside the word "scam" or "review" and check a public registry such as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs if it claims to be a registered company.
| Signal | Legitimate agency | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Who pays | The hiring employer, on your joining date | Asks you for a fee at any stage |
| Interview process | Real screening calls with the agency and the company | Offers the role with no real interview |
| Communication | Company-domain email, verifiable LinkedIn history | Free webmail, brand-new or sparse LinkedIn profile |
| Pay offered | In line with published market ranges for the role | Far above market rate for the stated role and level |
| Data requested | Bank details only after a signed offer, for payroll setup | Bank details, ID numbers, or payment upfront |
What should a real offer or engagement from an agency look like?
A genuine offer letter names the actual hiring company, includes a specific role, compensation, and start date, and carries company branding and a signature you can trace back to a real person at that company. A genuine agency engagement also means the agency can describe, in detail, the kind of candidates it typically places and the companies it has worked with, not vague claims about "many Fortune 500 clients" with no names.
What is different about agencies placing India candidates in remote US roles specifically?
Cross-border placement adds a few legitimate costs that do not apply to a purely domestic hire, background checks, contractor-agreement setup, or payment-rail fees, but per consumer-protection guidance on India work-from-home scams, even these are typically billed to the employer or clearly itemized and receipted, never collected from you upfront with no paperwork. A recruiter who cannot clearly explain who is paying for what, in writing, before you start is not operating like a real cross-border placement firm.
Work with a recruiter you can actually verify
Join the GTMly talent network: every match is with a named, verified US-facing company, you never pay a fee, and you can check our team and placements on LinkedIn before you share a single detail.
Join the talent network →Frequently asked questions
Is it normal for a recruiting agency to ask for my bank details?
Not before you have a signed offer. A legitimate agency or employer will eventually need bank details for payroll setup, but only after you have accepted a real offer, not during initial screening or as a condition of being considered for a role. Being asked for bank account numbers, ID copies, or payment card details early in the process is a standard scam pattern.
Should I pay an agency to be considered for a role?
No. Reputable agencies in India and for cross-border placements are paid by the hiring company, typically a percentage of first-year pay billed on your joining date, not by the candidate. Any request for a registration fee, training fee, deposit, or processing fee from you personally is a red flag, regardless of how the request is framed.
How can I check if a recruiting agency is really working with the company it claims?
Look up the recruiter and the company separately on LinkedIn and confirm the recruiter's profile shows a real history, not an account created days ago with no connections. Then contact the company directly through its own official careers page or a number you found yourself, not a number the recruiter gave you, and ask if the role and the recruiter are genuine.
What should I do if I think I was targeted by a fake recruiter?
Stop all communication and do not send any further information or payment. In India, report the incident at cybercrime.gov.in or to your local police cybercrime cell, and report the profile or listing to the platform it appeared on (LinkedIn, a job board, or WhatsApp) so others are warned.
Related: Red flags: how to vet a remote US job offer · How to land a remote US sales job from India · Contractor vs full-time for a remote US role