Hire and pay employees in South Africa, hassle-free
With Deel, your business can easily hire employees in South Africa. No more worrying about local laws, complex tax systems, or managing international payroll. Deel takes care of everything in 150+ countries. The average onboarding time frame in the South Africa is 2 days with Deel.
Onboard, pay and manage employees in South Africa with Deel
Usually, to hire in South Africa, your business needs an entity. That means a local office, an address registered as a subsidiary, and an account with a local bank. All of this, plus navigating regional benefits, payroll, tax, and HR laws, can take months.
Now you can hire employees in South Africa quickly, easily, and compliantly. Automate tax document collection, payroll, benefits, and more. For your existing direct employees, we can manage your entire payroll operation from end-to-end.
Currency South African Rand (ZAR)
Capital Pretoria, Bloemfontein and Cape Town
Official language English, Afrikaans & multiple others
Payroll cycle Monthly
All the necessary benefits for South Africa built right in
Deel allows you to provide localized benefits for employees in South Africa within minutes. All in one manageable online dashboard in a single HR platform.
- Skill Development Levy (SDL)
- Unemployment Insurance
- Workers Compensation Insurance
- Optional global health insurance - Allianz
- Local health insurance - Discovery Health
Our quickstart guide to hiring in South Africa
Navigate the tabs below to learn everything you need to know about hiring an employee in South Africa
Minimum Wage Requirements
The standard minimum wage in South Africa is ZAR 28.79 per hour (ZAR 4,991.03 per month for full-time employees).
Individual Income Tax
The individual income tax ranges from 18% to 45%. Income tax is calculated according to progressive rates.
| Tax Rate | Gross Taxable Income | Total maximum amount per threshold |
|---|---|---|
| 18% | ZAR 1 – ZAR 245,100 | ZAR 44,118 |
| 26% | ZAR 245,101 – ZAR 383,100 | ZAR 79,998 |
| 31% | ZAR 383,101 – ZAR 530,200 | ZAR 125,599 |
| 36% | ZAR 530,201 – ZAR 695,800 | ZAR 185,215 |
| 39% | ZAR 695,801 – ZAR 887,000 | ZAR 259,783 |
| 41% | ZAR 887,001 – ZAR 1,878,600 | ZAR 666,339 |
| 45% | Over ZAR 1,878,600 | ZAR 666,339 + 45% of taxable income above ZAR 1,878,600 |
Payroll Cost
The employer cost is generally estimated at 2.2% of the employee salary.
- UIF (Unemployment Insurance) - 1.0%
- SDL (Skill Development Levy) - 1.0%
- Workman's compensation - 0.2%
These costs are provided as estimates and are intended solely for general informational purposes. To fully comprehend all associated costs and fees related to the terms of any employment agreement for this country, please contact our Sales team for a quote.
Overtime Pay & Maximum Hours
Overtime payment is mandatory for employees earning less than ZAR 224,080 per year. Hours outside of standard work hours are considered overtime. Employees can work a maximum of 3 hours overtime a day and 10 hours overtime a week. For overtime hours, employees are paid 150% of their salary on standard days and 200% of the salary on Sundays and holidays.
Should any employee work on a Sunday, they must be remunerated at double their normal wage rate for each hour worked, unless they ordinarily work on a Sunday, in which case they must be remunerated at 1.5 times their normal wage rate for each hour worked.
Some exceptions to overtime may apply for certain roles or salaries. For example, employees who earn more than ZAR 224,080.48 a year are not subject to overtime provisions. Such employees cannot demand to be paid for overtime worked, nor can they demand to be granted paid time off in view of payment.
Hiring in South Africa, hassle-free
With Deel, your business can easily hire employees in South Africa with our EOR solution. If you have an entity, our Global Payroll solution takes care of payroll and compliance for your direct employees. Our 250+ in-house experts handle everything from managing local laws, complex tax systems, or your payroll in South Africa and 150+ countries.
Management fee
Starting at
$599
/month
Estimated Employer Cost
2.2%
of employee salary