Hiring in South Africa through an Employer of Record
A South African employer pays into the Unemployment Insurance Fund and the Skills Development Levy, both collected by SARS.
Employing someone in South Africa through an Employer of Record costs their salary, plus 1 percent unemployment insurance fund, employer, 1 percent skills development levy, plus the vendor's own monthly fee, the lowest published being from $199 from RemoFirst. The charges were read from sars.gov.za and the other government pages listed below, last on .
What does an employer pay on top of salary in South Africa?
- 1% Unemployment Insurance Fund, employer
- 1% Skills Development Levy
Each charge, and what it is for
- Unemployment Insurance Fund, employer: 1 percent of pay, matched by the employee.
- Skills Development Levy: 1 percent of total pay, paid by the employer alone.
- Minimum wage: R30.23 for each ordinary hour worked.
This figure is in ZAR, and the calculator below works in US dollars, so it does not apply it. Converting would need an exchange rate this site has not sourced.
UIF stops at a monthly earnings ceiling, so this runs high for well paid staff. Employers with a small total payroll are exempt from the levy. Workers compensation (COIDA), which varies by industry, is left out.
What does one employee in South Africa cost a year?
Salary plus the charges above plus the vendor's published monthly fee, for twelve months. "At least" marks a vendor whose published fee is a starting price. Not included: benefits and currency conversion fees.
Vendor fees used
Atlas HXM from $599, Deel from $599, G-P from $599, Multiplier from $459, Oyster $699, Pebl (Velocity Global) $399, RemoFirst from $199, Remote from $599, Remundo from $498, Rivermate from $349, Skuad from $199, Slasify from $250, Teamed from $599. Not published: Rippling.
Where these numbers come from
- Unemployment Insurance Fund, employer on sars.gov.za read
- Skills Development Levy on sars.gov.za read
- Each vendor's own pricing page, linked from its name above.