How to Vet a Moldovan IT Company Before Hiring

Why Vetting Matters

Moldova's IT sector has over 2,300 companies - ranging from excellent 200-person agencies with decade-long track records, to 3-person shops with a polished website and no verifiable work.

The good news: vetting a Moldovan IT company is straightforward if you know what to check. This guide gives you a systematic process to separate reliable partners from high-risk vendors.

Step 1: Legal Verification

Check IT Park Moldova Registration

All legitimate companies taking advantage of Moldova's 7% tax regime are registered with IT Park Moldova. You can search the public registry at mitp.md.

What to confirm:

• Company is listed as active (not suspended)
• Name matches what they provided
• Registration date (check if they're newly registered vs. established)

Verify Company Registration

Ask for the company's IDNO (company registration number). You can verify it through e-governance.md - Moldova's public company registry.

Confirm:

• Company is in good standing
• Registered address exists and isn't just a mailbox
• Founding date matches what they claim

Check for Legal Issues

Search the company name in Moldovan court databases (Portal Instanțelor Judecătorești - justice.md) for any active litigation or judgments. Most legitimate companies will have a clean record.

Step 2: Portfolio Verification

Ask for Live URLs

Any project in their portfolio should be accessible. A company that can only show screenshots but not live projects is a yellow flag - ask for an explanation.

Verify Client Claims

If they list specific companies as clients, ask for the client's name and a contact you can speak with. Legitimate companies can provide this (with permission). Inability to provide any verifiable reference is a serious warning sign.

GitHub / Code Presence

Ask for the company's GitHub organization. Look for:

• Active commits (regular activity, not just one-time uploads)
• Code quality in public repositories (check for clean structure, comments, tests)
• Open source contributions or published packages

Clutch.co and GoodFirms

These platforms have verified reviews (they contact the referenced client directly). Search the company name - a company with 5+ verified reviews is much lower risk than one with none.

Step 3: Team Verification

Ask for Individual CVs

Request CVs for the specific developers who would work on your project. Verify:

• LinkedIn profiles exist and match the CVs
• Work history makes sense (company names, dates)
• Skills claimed match their listed experience

LinkedIn Verification

Check the company's LinkedIn page:

• How many employees are listed?
• Are they the same people listed in the company's team page?
• Do employees' employment history match?

A company that claims 50 employees but has 8 people on LinkedIn needs explaining.

Technical Interview

Always interview the actual developers who will work with you - not just the sales/account person. Conduct a technical assessment:

• 30-minute live coding session or take-home task
• Architecture discussion relevant to your project
• English communication assessment on a video call

Step 4: Process and Communication Assessment

Send a Complex Requirements Document

Before signing anything, send them a detailed (but realistic) requirements document and ask for their questions, concerns, and technical approach.

Evaluate: Do they identify potential issues? Do they propose alternatives? Or do they just say "yes, we can do all of this" without any pushback?

A company that asks smart questions before committing is almost always better than one that promises everything.

Response Time Test

Note how quickly they respond at each stage of your evaluation:

• Initial inquiry: Under 24 hours is good
• Proposal: Under 5 business days is reasonable
• Follow-up questions: Same or next business day

Slow pre-sales communication predicts slow project communication.

Communication Quality Evaluation

Step 5: Financial and Legal Due Diligence

Request a Sample Contract

Ask for their standard service agreement before negotiations. Review for:

• IP ownership clause (all work product must transfer to you upon payment)
• NDA provisions
• Non-solicitation (prevents them from hiring your team directly)
• Payment terms (net-15 or net-30 is standard)
• Termination clause (30-day notice is fair)
• Governing law (moldovan law is fine, but international arbitration clause is better for dispute resolution)

Payment Method Verification

Verify their banking details carefully:

• Confirm bank name and SWIFT code independently
• Ask for confirmation of their account name vs. company name
• For first payments, consider a small test payment to verify the account before large transfers

Insurance

For larger projects ($50k+), ask if the company carries professional liability insurance (errors & omissions). Established companies often do.

Step 6: Reference Checks

This is the most valuable and most skipped step. Always do reference checks.

How to Conduct Reference Checks

Ask the company for 3 client references who:

• Had similar project scope to yours
• Completed the project within the last 2 years

Questions to ask references:

1. "Did the project ship on time and on budget?"
2. "How did the team handle problems or scope changes?"
3. "How was communication - proactive or reactive?"
4. "Would you hire them again? Are you still working with them?"
5. "What would you do differently if you started over with this company?"

The last question often reveals the most important information.

Due Diligence Checklist

Use this before signing any contract:

Legal

• IT Park Moldova registration verified
• Company IDNO verified in e-governance.md
• No active court proceedings found
• Sample contract reviewed (IP, NDA, termination, payment)

Portfolio & Track Record

• 3+ verifiable portfolio projects (live URLs or client-confirmed)
• 2+ client references contacted and positive
• Clutch/GoodFirms profile with verified reviews

Team

• CVs of specific developers received
• LinkedIn profiles verified
• Technical interviews completed with actual project team members

Process

• Response time satisfactory throughout evaluation
• They asked clarifying questions (not just "yes we can do everything")
• Communication quality high in all written and verbal interactions

Financial

• Bank account details independently verified
• Payment terms agreed in contract
• Optional: professional liability insurance confirmed

Accelerating Due Diligence with HireMD

HireMD's directory lists companies that have been sourced from the official IT Park Moldova registry - meaning legal registration is pre-verified. Each company listing shows:

• IT Park registration status
• Verified services and tech stacks
• Company size and founding date

This doesn't replace full due diligence, but it eliminates the first layer of risk - you're starting from a base of legally registered, active companies.

Conclusion

Thorough vetting takes 1-2 weeks but is worth every hour. The companies that survive this process are almost always the ones worth working with - and you'll start the engagement with the confidence that comes from knowing exactly who you're working with.

Browse verified Moldovan IT companies in the HireMD directory as your starting point - or, if you're short on time, begin with our ranked list of the best IT companies in Moldova.