KE Nhif Nssf

Kenya SHIF (formerly NHIF) and NSSF Contributions -- Self-Employed Skill v2.0

Section 1 -- Quick reference

Quick reference table

Field	Value
Country	Kenya
Health authority	SHA (Social Health Authority, replacing NHIF)
Pension authority	NSSF (National Social Security Fund)
Primary legislation	Social Health Insurance Act 2023 (SHIF); NSSF Act 2013
SHIF rate	2.75% of declared income
SHIF minimum	KES 300/month
SHIF maximum	No cap
NSSF self-employed	12% of declared pensionable earnings (both portions)
NSSF Tier I ceiling	KES 8,000 (Lower Earnings Limit)
NSSF Tier II ceiling	KES 72,000 (Upper Earnings Limit)
NSSF maximum monthly	KES 8,640
NSSF for self-employed	Voluntary
Payment deadline	9th of following month
Currency	KES only
Contributor	Open Accountants
Validated by	Pending -- requires validation by Kenyan CPA
Validation date	Pending

Section 2 -- Required inputs and refusal catalogue

Required inputs

• Required inputs before computing — Before computing, you MUST obtain: 1. Employment status -- self-employed, informal sector, or voluntary? 2. Monthly declared income -- determines SHIF and NSSF 3. Registered with SHA? 4. Registered with NSSF? 5. Any formal employment alongside? -- dual status 6. Sector -- formal vs informal. If monthly income is unknown, request estimate. SHIF uses declared household income.

Refusal catalogue

• R-KE-SOC-1 — There have been multiple court challenges to the Social Health Insurance Act. Escalate -- do not advise on constitutional matters. (Trigger: question about SHIF constitutionality.)

Prohibitions

• Prohibitions list — NEVER use old NHIF brackets from October 2024 onward -- SHIF 2.75% applies. NEVER tell self-employed that NSSF is mandatory -- it is voluntary for self-employed. NEVER ignore KES 300 SHIF minimum. NEVER assume NSSF uncapped -- Upper Earnings Limit KES 72,000 caps the base. NEVER conflate SHIF household income with individual income without clarifying. NEVER present old NSSF rates (pre-February 2025). NEVER assume foreign residents exempt from SHIF -- residency triggers obligation.

Section 3 -- SHIF (replacing NHIF)

• Legislation — Social Health Insurance Act 2023 (effective October 2024) (Social Health Insurance Act 2023)

SHIF Old vs New comparison (Social Health Insurance Act 2023)

Item	Old (NHIF)	New (SHIF, from Oct 2024)
Rate	Fixed brackets (KES 150-1,700)	2.75% of income
Self-employed	Flat KES 500	2.75% of declared household income
Minimum	KES 150	KES 300
Maximum	KES 1,700	No cap

• SHIF monthly formula — shif_monthly = max(declared_monthly_income x 2.75%, KES 300) (Social Health Insurance Act 2023)

Section 4 -- NSSF contributions

• Legislation — NSSF Act 2013 (effective February 2025) (NSSF Act 2013)

Self-employed NSSF

Self-employed NSSF table (NSSF Act 2013)

Item	Detail
Registration	Voluntary
Self-employed pays	Both employee and employer portions (total 12%)
Minimum (Tier I only)	KES 960
Maximum (Tier I + II)	KES 8,640

• NSSF Tier I/II formula — tier_i = min(declared_income, KES 8,000) x 6% x 2 tier_ii = max(0, min(declared_income, KES 72,000) - KES 8,000) x 6% x 2 total_nssf = tier_i + tier_ii (NSSF Act 2013)

Section 5 -- Computation examples

Computation examples table

Declared income	SHIF	NSSF Tier I	NSSF Tier II	Total NSSF	Grand total
KES 5,000	KES 300 (min)	KES 600	KES 0	KES 600	KES 900
KES 50,000	KES 1,375	KES 960	KES 5,040	KES 6,000	KES 7,375
KES 200,000	KES 5,500	KES 960	KES 7,680	KES 8,640	KES 14,140

Section 6 -- Payment, registration, and tax interaction

Payment schedule

Payment schedule table

Contribution	Due date	Frequency
SHIF	9th of following month	Monthly
NSSF	9th of following month	Monthly

Payment via M-Pesa, bank deposit, or online portals.

Registration

• Registration requirements — SHIF mandatory for all residents. NSSF voluntary for self-employed. KRA PIN required.

Tax interaction

Tax interaction table

Question	Answer
SHIF deductible?	YES -- insurance relief (15% of premiums, capped KES 60,000/year)
NSSF deductible?	YES -- pension relief up to KES 30,000/month
Where reported?	iTax annual return

Penalties

Penalties table

	SHIF	NSSF
Late payment	2.5%/month	5%/month
Non-registration	Denial of healthcare	Loss of benefits

Section 7 -- NHIF-to-SHIF transition and household income

Transition

From October 2024, all NHIF members transitioned to SHIF. May involve re-registration with SHA.

Household income declaration

SHIF for self-employed in informal sector is based on "household income." Definition of how spousal income is factored is still being clarified by SHA. Flag for reviewer.

Section 8 -- Edge case registry

EC1 -- Informal sector, irregular income

Situation: Jua kali worker, no fixed income. Resolution: Declare average estimate. Minimum KES 300 SHIF applies. Flag for reviewer.

EC2 -- Self-employed with formal employment

Situation: Employed (employer deducts SHIF/NSSF) and self-employed. Resolution: Employer handles employment contributions. Additional SHIF may be due on self-employed income. NSSF may be maxed through employment.

EC3 -- Income above NSSF Upper Limit

Situation: Income KES 200,000. Resolution: NSSF capped at KES 8,640. SHIF = KES 5,500 (no cap).

EC4 -- Non-citizen resident

Situation: Foreign national, self-employed in Kenya. Resolution: SHIF applies to all residents. NSSF voluntary. Flag for reviewer.

EC5 -- Minimum income

Situation: Declared KES 5,000. Resolution: SHIF = KES 300 (minimum). NSSF voluntary.

Section 9 -- Reviewer escalation protocol

When a situation requires reviewer judgement:

REVIEWER FLAG
Tier: T2
Client: [name]
Situation: [description]
Issue: [what is ambiguous]
Options: [possible treatments]
Recommended: [most likely correct treatment and why]
Action Required: Qualified accountant must confirm before advising client.

When a situation is outside skill scope:

ESCALATION REQUIRED
Tier: T3
Client: [name]
Situation: [description]
Issue: [outside skill scope]
Action Required: Do not advise. Refer to qualified accountant. Document gap.

Section 10 -- Test suite

Test 1 -- Moderate income

Input: Declared KES 50,000. SHIF + NSSF. 2025. Expected output: SHIF KES 1,375. NSSF KES 6,000. Total KES 7,375.

Test 2 -- Minimum income

Input: Declared KES 5,000. SHIF only. Expected output: SHIF KES 300 (minimum).

Test 3 -- High income, NSSF capped

Input: Declared KES 200,000. Both. Expected output: SHIF KES 5,500. NSSF KES 8,640. Total KES 14,140.

Test 4 -- Dual status

Input: Employment KES 80,000, self-employed KES 40,000. Expected output: Employer handles employment. Additional SHIF KES 1,100 on self-employed. NSSF likely maxed.

Test 5 -- Informal sector

Input: Estimated KES 10,000. SHIF only. Expected output: SHIF KES 300 (minimum; 2.75% = KES 275, below minimum).

Test 6 -- NSSF at Lower Earnings Limit

Input: Declared KES 8,000. NSSF only. Expected output: Tier I only. KES 960.

Test 7 -- NSSF only, no SHIF

Input: KES 30,000, voluntary NSSF, no SHIF registration. Expected output: NSSF KES 3,600. Advise to register for SHIF (mandatory).

Disclaimer

This skill and its outputs are provided for informational and computational purposes only and do not constitute tax, legal, or financial advice. Open Accountants and its contributors accept no liability for any errors, omissions, or outcomes arising from the use of this skill. All outputs must be reviewed and signed off by a qualified professional (such as a CPA, EA, tax attorney, or equivalent licensed practitioner in your jurisdiction) before filing or acting upon.

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