Payroll Social in Ghana

General reference only. This skill is general tax/accounting reference material for AI-assisted workflows. It has not been reviewed for any specific person's facts, documents, elections, deadlines, residency, filing status, or local procedures. Do not rely on it to file, pay, amend, or take a tax position without review by a qualified professional in the relevant jurisdiction.

Tax year: 2026. Law: National Pensions Act, 2008 (Act 766); Income Tax Act, 2015 (Act 896) as amended. The income tax bands are in ghana-pit.

Who this applies to

Every employer with at least one worker; registration of workers with SSNIT is mandatory (SSNIT). The self-employed may join voluntarily. The PAYE duty covers all employment income in cash or kind (GRA).

Rates, bands and thresholds

Item	Figure	Conditions	Tax year	Official URL
Employee	5.5% of basic salary	Deducted before PAYE	2026	https://www.ssnit.org.gh/faqs/
Employer	13% of basic salary	On top of pay	2026	same
Total	18.5%	Tier 1 plus Tier 2	2026	same
Tier 1 to SSNIT	13.5%	2.5 points of it go to the NHIA	2026	same
Tier 2 to approved trustee	5%	Occupational scheme	2026	same
Tier 3	Voluntary	Deductible up to 16.5% of basic, employer and employee together	2026	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/paye/
Maximum insurable earnings	GHS 69,000 a month	From 1 January 2026 (2025: 61,000)	2026	https://www.ssnit.org.gh/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Public-Notice-Min-Max-Insurable.pdf
Minimum insurable earnings	GHS 587.80 a month	From 1 January 2026 (was 539.19)	2026	same
Maximum SSNIT contribution	GHS 9,315.00	Notice figure	2026	same
Minimum SSNIT contribution	GHS 79.40	Notice figure	2026	same
Bonus	5% up to 15% of annual basic	Excess goes in employment income at graduated rates	2026	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/paye/
Overtime, junior staff	5% up to 50% of monthly basic; 10% on the excess	Qualifying income up to GHS 18,000	2026	same
Non-resident employee bonus or overtime	20%	Flat	2026	same
Casual worker	5%	Seasonal or intermittent, not over six continuous months, paid daily	2026	same
Non-resident employee	25% flat	Chargeable income	2026	same
Vehicle with driver and fuel	12.5% of cash emoluments, cap GHS 1,500 a month	Benefit value	2026	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/INCOME-TAX-AMENDMENT-ACT-2023-ACT-1094.pdf
Vehicle with fuel	10%, cap GHS 1,250 a month	Benefit value	2026	same
Vehicle only	5%, cap GHS 625 a month	Benefit value	2026	same
Fuel only	5%, cap GHS 625 a month	Benefit value	2026	same

The base

1. Gross up cash pay: basic plus allowances such as transport, rent, risk, night duty, responsibility, child education, house help, cook and garden boy.
2. Add benefits in kind at their value. Accommodation and loan benefits follow the Fourth Schedule of Act 896.
3. Deduct employee SSNIT of 5.5% of basic, up to the ceiling; Tier 3 up to the 16.5% limit; mortgage interest on one home; worthwhile-cause donations.
4. Deduct reliefs shown on a current relief card.
5. Apply monthly bands. Use the old bands for pay to August 2026 and the new ones from September.
6. Apply flat rates to bonus and overtime separately. Unlike a bonus, overtime is not added to basic.

Temporary workers, employed for at least a month, are taxed as other employees.

Deadlines and filing

Obligation	Date	Official URL
Monthly PAYE return and payment, DT 107 with DT 107A	15th of the next month	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/paye/
Tier 1 to SSNIT	Within 14 days after the month end	https://www.ssnit.org.gh/faqs/
Annual PAYE, DT 108, DT 108A, DT 108B	30 April	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Taxpayer-Checklist.pdf
Engaged and leavers schedules, DT 107B, DT 107C	With the monthly return, as form DT 107 directs	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/paye/

Monthly run:

1. Compute pay; deduct 5.5% employee and PAYE.
2. On ETAX (www.etax.gra.gov.gh), open the PAYE return for the period. Enter staff numbers, cash emoluments and tax for Expatriate/Management and Others. Upload the DT 107A employee schedule, and DT 107B, DT 107C if staff moved. If nothing was paid, tick NIL.
3. Submit, keep the acknowledgement, pay through Ghana.gov by the 15th.
4. In the SSNIT employer portal, submit the contribution report, generate the payment advice and pay 13.5% within 14 days (SSNIT).
5. Send 5% to the Tier 2 trustee, and any Tier 3.

Year end (GRA checklist): every employee has a TIN, Social Security number and Ghana Card; new-hire and disengagement forms filed; relief cards renewed; twelve months of PAYE and Tier 1, 2, 3 returns filed and paid.

Penalties and interest

Failure	Consequence	Official URL
Late PAYE return	GHS 500 plus GHS 10 a day	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Revenue-Administration-Act-2016-.pdf
Late PAYE payment	125% of the Bank of Ghana policy rate, compounded monthly	same
Failing to withhold	The withholding agent is liable for the tax	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/withholding-tax/

Cross-border points

• Non-resident employees pay 25% flat; bonus and overtime 20%.
• Residence tests are in ghana-pit.
• Pay of employees without a TIN or SSNIT number leaves exposure to taxes, pension contributions and penalties (GRA).

Two worked examples that recompute

Example 1: employee, September 2026. Basic GHS 10,000, no allowances. Employee SSNIT 550, employer 1,300, total 1,850: Tier 1 1,350 and Tier 2 500. Chargeable 9,450. PAYE is 521.50 plus 25% of 5,782, or 1,445.50: GHS 1,967.

name: Basic 10,000, September 2026
inputs:
  basic: 10000
steps:
  - employee: basic * 0.055
  - employer: basic * 0.13
  - tier1: basic * 0.135
  - tier2: basic * 0.05
  - chargeable: basic - employee
  - paye: 80 * 0.05 + 100 * 0.10 + 2900 * 0.175 + (chargeable - 3668) * 0.25
expected:
  tier1: 1350.00
  tier2: 500.00
  paye: 1967.00

Example 2: should a GHS 150,000 bonus be split? Annual basic GHS 800,000. The 15% limit is 120,000, taxed at 5%: GHS 6,000. The excess of 30,000 joins employment income, here at 30%: GHS 9,000. Total GHS 15,000. Keeping the bonus within 120,000 costs GHS 6,000, so each cedi over the limit costs the marginal rate rather than 5%.

name: Bonus above the 15% limit
inputs:
  basic: 800000
  bonus: 150000
steps:
  - limit: basic * 0.15
  - low: min(bonus, limit) * 0.05
  - excess: max(bonus - limit, 0) * 0.30
  - total: low + excess
expected:
  limit: 120000.00
  total: 15000.00

Ask the client first

1. Resident or not, and citizen or not, for each worker.
2. Basic salary against allowances.
3. Junior or senior staff, permanent, temporary or casual.
4. Benefits in kind.
5. Relief cards.
6. Tier 2 trustee and any Tier 3 scheme.

Sources

Source	URL	Read on
SSNIT FAQs (contribution rates and remittance), page read in full	https://www.ssnit.org.gh/faqs/	2026-11-01
SSNIT Public Notice, 13 Jan 2026, whole notice	https://www.ssnit.org.gh/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Public-Notice-Min-Max-Insurable.pdf	2026-11-01
GRA, PAYE page (2026 bands, bonus, overtime, casual rules read)	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/paye/	2026-11-01
Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2023 (Act 1094), whole act	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/INCOME-TAX-AMENDMENT-ACT-2023-ACT-1094.pdf	2026-11-01
Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915); ss 27 to 30, 46, 47, 70 to 73 read	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Revenue-Administration-Act-2016-.pdf	2026-11-01
GRA, Employee Taxes and Pensions Year End Checklist, whole document	https://gra.gov.gh/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Taxpayer-Checklist.pdf	2026-11-01
GRA, Withholding Tax page (rates table, last edited 2022), page read in full	https://gra.gov.gh/domestic-tax/tax-types/withholding-tax/	2026-11-01

Not yet confirmed: (1) Section 63(3) of Act 766 and the Act 766 penalties for late contributions were not opened; no SSNIT penalty is stated. Act 766 was not on a site opened. (2) Notice minimum of GHS 79.40 is above 13.5% of 587.80, which is 79.35; the notice is quoted. (3) Whether the 5.5% tax deduction stops at the ceiling is inferred from the contribution cap, not read in the law. (4) Tier 2 due date: not on any official page read. The old version had the 14th as approximate for SSNIT; SSNIT confirms 14 days. (5) Bonus and overtime rates come from the GRA page, not Act 896 as amended. (6) Whether the GHS 18,000 overtime qualifying limit changed under Act 1178.