Tanzania HR Information

Updated on: 2025/03/11 04:48 (UTC)

Overview

The Employment and Labor Relations Act 2004 (ELRA) is the main source of employment regulation in mainland Tanzania, the Labor Act 1997 the main source of regulation in Zanzibar. The ELRA applies to most Tanzanian employees, including public servants, but it specifically excludes both temporary and permanent members of the Tanzania Peoples Defense Forces, the Police Force, the Prisons Service, and the National Service. This summary outlines the employment and labor laws of mainland Tanzania (which sometimes differ from the laws in Zanzibar).

Hiring

Employment Contracts

Employment contracts may be for an unspecified period of time, for a specified period of time for professionals and managers, or for a specific task. Contracts for a specified period cannot be for a period of less than 12 months. A contract with an employee must be in writing if the employee is to work outside Tanzania.

When an employee commences work, the employer must supply the employee with the following particulars in writing:

• name, age, permanent address, and sex of the employee;
• place of recruitment;
• job description;
• date of commencement;
• form and duration of the contract;
• place of work;
• hours of work;
• remuneration, the method of its calculation, and details of any benefits or payments in kind; and
• any other prescribed matter.

These requirements do not apply to an employee who works fewer than six days in a month.

If in any legal proceedings an employer fails to produce a written contract or written particulars, the burden of proving or disproving an alleged term of employment shall be on the employer.

Restrictions on Hiring

Businesses cannot employ a child under the age of 14. A 14-year-old is limited to light work not likely to be harmful to the child’s health and development or to interfere with the child’s attendance at school or participation in vocational orientation or training programs.

A child under 18 years of age cannot be employed in a mine, factory, ship, or other worksite where conditions are considered hazardous by the minister of labor.

Recordkeeping

Employers must keep information related to remuneration and benefits for five years after the termination of the employee. Tax and pay related documents must be kept for a minimum of five years.

Background checks

Tanzania’s labor code does not address background checks.

Noncompetition Agreements

Tanzania’s labor code does not address restrictive covenants.

Reference Citations

Employment Contracts: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 14-15

Restrictions on Hiring: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 5

Recordkeeping: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 96

Immigration and Work Permits

In General

Before an employer can hire a foreign worker, it must prove to the Labor Commission that no Tanzanian national could be found to fill the position and submit a plan to train a Tanzanian national in the work the foreign employee will be performing. To hire a foreign worker, the employer must apply for a Class B residence permit for the prospective employee. The application form for the permit should be submitted to the Labor Department while the applicant is outside the country.

Visas and Work Permits

Before an employer can hire a foreign worker, it must prove to the Labor Commission that no Tanzanian national could be found to fill the position and submit a plan to train a Tanzanian national in the work the foreign employee will be performing.

To hire a foreign employee, the employer must apply for a Class B residence permit for the applicant. The permits are valid for two years and may be renewed for a further three years. The application form, which should be submitted to the Labor Department while the applicant is outside the country, must be accompanied by the following:

• signed contract of employment;
• job description;
• curriculum vitae of foreign national;
• two recent passport-size photographs;
• copy of academic or professional certificates of foreign national;
• certified translation of certificates or documents by a competent authority;
• copy of a valid passport;
• previous work permit (for renewal application);
• copy of industrial, business, or operating license;
• copy of certificate of incorporation or business name;
• articles of association; and
• a succession plan for renewals.

The Labor Department reviews the application and makes a positive or negative recommendation to the Department of Immigration, which then must certify that the applicant possesses skills and qualifications necessary for the job and of benefit to Tanzania.

Post-Entry Requirements

Every entity that employees a non-citizen must provide a list of the total number of foreign workers on its payroll to the Labour Commission every June 30th and December 31st.

Reference Citations

Visas and Work Permits: The Non-Citizens Employment Regulation Act, 2015

Post-Entry Requirements: The Non-Citizens Employment Regulation Act, 2015

Nondiscrimination

In General

No employer may discriminate, directly or indirectly, against an employee in any employment policy or practice on the grounds of color, nationality, tribe or place of origin, race, national extraction, social origin, political opinion or religion, sex, gender, pregnancy, marital status or family responsibility, disability, HIV/AIDS, age, or station of life. Harassment of an employee is considered a form of discrimination.

The ELRA provides that no employer may discriminate, directly or indirectly, against an employee in any employment policy or practice on any of the following grounds:

• color,
• nationality,
• tribe or place of origin,
• race,
• national extraction,
• social origin,
• political opinion or religion,
• sex,
• gender,
• pregnancy,
• marital status or family responsibility,
• disability,
• HIV/AIDS,
• age, or
• station of life.

Harassment of an employee is considered a form of discrimination and is prohibited in Tanzania.

Any person convicted of discrimination may be sentenced to a fine not exceeding five million shillings.

It is not considered discriminatory to take affirmative action measures consistent with the promotion of equality or the elimination of discrimination in the workplace or to distinguish, exclude or prefer any person on the basis of an inherent requirement of a job.

Gender Discrimination

Sexual harassment in the workplace is considered a form of discrimination and prohibited by the Employment and Labor Relations Act.

The Sexual Offences Special Provisions Act, 1998, also prohibits sexual harassment and defines sexual assault to include instances where a person utters a word or sound, makes gestures, or exhibits objects with the intent to cause sexual annoyance. The perpetrator may be imprisoned for a term not exceeding five years or fined not more than 300,000 shillings or both and may be ordered to pay compensation to the victim. Complaints must be filed within 60 days of the alleged event

Men and women can work in the same industries without any restrictions and must be paid equally for work of equal value.

Reference Citations

Nondiscrimination: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 7, 102

Gender Discrimination: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 7; Sexual Offences Special Provisions Act, 1998 §§ 9, 11

Employee Privacy

Employee Data

Tanzanian law does not address privacy in the employment context, but the constitution guarantees a right of privacy for individuals.

Employee Monitoring and Surveillance

Tanzanian law does not address monitoring of employees in the workplace.

Reference Citations

Employee Data: Tanzania Constitution, art. 16

Compensation

Hours of Work

The standard workday is nine hours, inclusive of an hour meal break, and the standard workweek 45 hours. A collective agreement can provide for the averaging of daily working time over an agreed period not exceeding one year. A written agreement may permit an employee to work up to 12 hours a day without receiving overtime pay, provided that working time does not exceed five days or 45 hours and 10 hours overtime a week. Employees should not work more than 50 overtime hours in any four-week period.

The daily hour limit does not apply to employees who manage other employees on behalf of the employer and who report directly to a senior management employee.

An employee should have a 60-minute rest break after five hours’ continuous work. Work during rest breaks is allowed if a task cannot be left unattended or performed by another employee.

The provisions on rest breaks do not apply to employees who manage other employees on behalf of the employer and who report directly to a senior management employee. They also do not apply to work in an emergency that cannot be performed by employees during their ordinary hours of work.

Generally, an employee is entitled to a weekly rest period of 24 hours.

Alternatively, a written agreement may provide for a rest period of at least 60 consecutive hours every two weeks or a weekly rest period reduced by eight hours if the rest period in the following week is extended equivalently.

An employee may only work during the weekly rest period if the employee has agreed to do so and the employer pays double the employee’s base hourly wage for each hour worked during the period.

The provisions on weekly rest do not apply to employees who manage other employees on behalf of the employer and who report directly to a senior management employee. They also do not apply to work in an emergency that cannot be performed by employees during their ordinary hours of work.

Night work is work performed after 8 p.m. and before 6 a.m. Employees working night hours are entitled to an additional 5 percent of their base wages as a shift premium. If hours worked at night are overtime, the 5 percent must be calculated at the employee’s overtime rate. An employer cannot require or permit night work by:

• a pregnant employee within two months before her expected delivery date, earlier than two months if she produces a medical certificate stating she is no longer fit to perform night work;
• a new mother for two months after the date of birth unless she requests to work and produces a medical certificate stipulating that her and the baby’s health will not be endangered;
• children under 18 years of age; or
• an employee medically certified unfit for night work.

A new mother may refuse night work beyond two months after the birth of her child if she provides a medical certificate stipulating that she is not yet fit to perform night work or that the baby’s health does not permit her to work a night shift.

Minimum Wage

Monthly minimum wages are set by sector and paid in Tanzanian shillings as follows:

• health services: 132,000 shillings
• agriculture: 100,000 shillings
• commerce, industrial, and trading: 115,000 shillings
• financial institutions: 400,000 shillings
• communication services: 150,000 shillings
• aviation services: 300,000 shillings
• clearing and forwarding: 300,000 shillings
• telecommunications: 400,000 shillings
• inland transport: 200,000 shillings
• mining licences/prospecting licences: 400,000 shillings
• primary mining licences/prospecting licences: 200,000 shillings
• dealers’ licences/lapidary: 300,000 shillings
• brokers’ licences: 200,000 shillings
• marine and fishing: 200,000 shillings
• international security companies: 150,000 shillings
• other security companies: 100,000 shillings
• domestics employed by diplomats and businesspeople: 150,000 shillings
• domestics employed by officers: 130,000 shillings
• domestics not residing in the home: 80,000 shillings
• workers in tourist hotels: 200,000 shillings
• workers in medium-sized hotels: 150,000 shillings
• domestics in restaurants, guest houses, and bars: 130,000 shillings
• All other sectors: 100,000 shillings

Night work is work performed after 8 p.m. and before 6 a.m. Employees working night hours are entitled to an additional 5 percent of their base wages as a shift premium. If hours worked at night are overtime, the 5 percent must be calculated at the employee’s overtime rate.

Overtime

Generally, work beyond an employee’s standard schedule is paid as overtime at 1.5 times the employee’s standard pay.

Employees receive time off with regular pay during public holidays. If an employee works on a public holiday, the employer must pay double the employee’s base hourly wage for each hour worked.

Employees cannot work more than 10 hours of overtime in a week and 50 hours of overtime in a four week time period.

Wage Payment

Employees can be paid on an hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly wage rate. An employer is required to pay an employee remuneration during working hours at the place of work on the agreed pay day and in cash unless the employee agrees otherwise, in which case the payment is made by check or direct deposit into an account designated by the employee in writing.

An employer may not make any deduction from an employee’s remuneration unless the deduction is required or permitted under a written law, collective agreement, wage determination, court order, or arbitration award or if the employee agrees in writing to the deduction in payment of a debt.

A deduction may be made to reimburse an employer for loss or damage only if:

• the loss or damage occurred in the course of employment and was the fault of the employee;
• the employer provided the employee with an explanation in writing of the cause, amount, and calculation of the loss;
• the employer gave the employee a reasonable opportunity to challenge its explanation of cause, amount, and calculation;
• the total amount deducted does not exceed the actual amount of the loss or damage; and
• the total deductions from the employee’s remuneration per paycheck do not exceed one quarter of the employee’s take-home pay.

Mandatory Bonuses

Tanzania does not mandate employers to provide bonus payments to employees.

Reference Citations

Hours of Work: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 17-24

Overtime: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 19, 21

Wage Payment: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 27

Benefits

Vacation

Every employee is entitled to at least 28 consecutive days of annual leave with full pay after six months’ employment. At the end of every second year, employers provide a travel assistance allowance to help the employee pay for transportation costs when taking leave. The law does not stipulate the amount of assistance that should be paid. Instead, the employer and employee must negotiate this amount and include the terms of the arrangement in a collective bargaining agreement, human resources manual, or employment contract.

An employer cannot require or permit an employee to work during any period of annual leave. An employer may determine when annual leave is to be taken.

The employer is required to pay remuneration to employees before the commencement of their leave. The law prohibits payment in substitution of leave whether an employee consents or not.

Holidays

Employees receive time off with regular pay during public holidays. Tanzania recognizes the following public holidays:

• New Year: Jan. 1
• Zanzibar Revolutionary Day: Jan. 12
• Karume Memorial Day: April 7
• Union Day: April 26
• Workers Day (Labor Day): May 1
• Saba Saba Day (Industrial Day): July 7
• Peasants Day (Farmers Day): Aug. 8
• Nyerere Day: Oct. 14
• Independence Day: Dec. 9
• Christmas Day: Dec. 25
• Boxing Day: Dec. 26
• the religious festivals of Eid el Fitr, Id ul Haji, Maulid Day, Good Friday, Easter and Easter Monday (days vary year to year)

Holidays falling on Saturday or Sunday are not moved to a weekday. Employees who are required to work on a public holiday are entitled to receive pay at the rate of 200 percent of their normal level of wages per hour.

Maternity Leave

In a leave cycle of 36 months, an employee is entitled to 84 days’ paid maternity leave if she gives birth to a single child or 100 days’ if more than one child. If an employee requires additional time off due to birth complications, she can ask her employer to use sick or annual leave or take unpaid leave. An employee may commence maternity leave at any time from four weeks before the expected date of childbirth. An employee may begin maternity leave earlier if a medical practitioner certifies that it is necessary for the employee’s health or that of her child. No employee may work within six weeks after childbirth, unless a medical practitioner certifies that she is fit to work.

The employee must give notice of the intention to take maternity leave at least three months before the expected date of birth, supported by a medical certificate. To be eligible for maternity leave, the employee must have worked for more than six months for the same employer and must not have taken similar leave within three years. An employee is entitled to up to four terms of paid maternity leave in the course of her employment with the same employer. Additional maternity leave must be granted if required but need not be paid.

An employee is entitled to an additional 84 days’ paid maternity leave if the child is stillborn or dies within a year of birth.

An employee cannot be terminated while on maternity leave.

Cash maternity benefits are provided through the social security system. To qualify for benefits, the insured must have at least 36 months of contributions including at least 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the expected date of childbirth. Cash maternity benefits are paid to an insured woman only once in each three-year period. The benefit is equal to 100 percent of the insured woman’s average daily wage in the six months before the 20th week of pregnancy. The benefit is paid for up to 12 weeks in one or two installments: four weeks before and eight weeks after childbirth (four weeks after childbirth for a stillborn child).

Medical benefits are also provided through the social security system. Pregnant employees receive prenatal and postnatal care from the 24th week of pregnancy until two days after childbirth, seven days after childbirth for a cesarean section, and up to 12 weeks if prolonged care is necessary. Benefits include preventive and curative care, essential drugs, X-rays, laboratory tests, hospitalization, and major and minor surgery. The National Social Security Fund Board of trustees may determine additional benefits.

When an employee is breast-feeding a child, the employer is required to allow her to feed the child during working hours up to a maximum of two hours per day.

Paternity Leave

An employee is entitled to at least three days’ paid paternity leave if the leave is taken within seven days of the birth of a child and he is the father of the child. The employee must not have taken similar leave within three years. An employer is entitled to up to four terms of paid paternity leave in the course of his employment with the same employer.

Paternity leave is available to all employees in public and private service except members of the Tanzania Peoples Defense Forces, the Police Force, the Prisons Service, and the National Service.

Sick Leave

An employee is entitled to sick leave of at least 126 days in any leave cycle. The first 63 days are paid at full wages, the second 63 days at half wages. An employer is not required to pay an employee for sick leave if the employee fails to produce a medical certificate or if the employee is entitled to paid sick leave under any law, fund, or collective agreement.

Other Leave

An employee is entitled to at least four days’ paid leave in the case of the sickness or death of a child or the death of the employee’s spouse, parent, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling.

Pensions and Social Security

Tanzania’s social security system funds old-age pensions, disability pensions, survivors’ pensions, funeral benefits, medical benefits, work injury benefits, and maternity benefits.

Benefits are funded by contributions from the employer (10 percent of gross payroll), the insured person (10 percent of gross earnings), and voluntary contributors.

Employees with at least 180 months of contributions to the system are entitled to receive a pension at age 60; employees leaving the country are eligible at any age. Covered employment must cease. An early pension is paid from ages 55 to 59 with 180 months of contributions. An old age grant is paid at age 60 with less than 180 months of contributions. Old-age grants are not payable abroad.

Medical benefits are provided through the social security system; there are no cash sickness benefits. Benefits include inpatient and outpatient health care services to employees and their eligible dependents and are provided by accredited hospitals under agreement with the National Social Security Fund.

Workers’ Compensation

The Workers’ Compensation Act 2008 was established to provide compensation for employees injured or incapacitated in the course of employment. Under amendments to the law that were enacted in 2008, all Tanzanian employers submit a percentage of employee wages to a Workers’ Compensation Fund (WCF).

Private sector employers must contribute one percent of each employee’s wages on a monthly basis to the WCF, while public sector employers must contribute 0.5 percent of wages to the fund. Both public and private sector employers also must:

• register with the Director-General of the WCF with information on the employer’s business, such as employees and their wages;
• notify the Director-General of any changes to the information submitted in the registration within seven days;
• maintain records on payments to the WCF for at least three years;
• submit an annual return on employee earnings to the Director-General by March 31; and
• notify employees of their rights and the proper procedure to follow in the case of an accident.

Employers that fail to comply with their workers’ compensation obligations will be subject to fines and/or imprisonment.

Reference Citations

Vacation: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 31

Holidays: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 25

Maternity Leave: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 33-36

Paternity Leave: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 34

Sick Leave: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 32

Workers’ Compensation: The Workers’ Compensation Act, 2008, §§ 71-78

Labor Relations

In General

The Trade Unions Act recognizes collective bargaining. Collective agreements must be submitted to the Industrial Court for approval and may be refused registration if they do not conform to the government’s economic policy. Every employee has the right to form and join a trade union and to participate in the lawful activities of the trade union. It is unlawful to discriminate against an employee for joining a union.

Right to Organize

Under Tanzanian labor law, every employee has the right to form and join a trade union and to participate in the lawful activities of the trade union. It is unlawful to discriminate against an employee for joining a union.

The Trade Unions Act allows workers to form trade unions but restricts union rights. Trade unions must have at least 20 members to register and must register within six months of being established.

Collective agreements must be submitted to the Industrial Court for approval and may be refused registration if they do not conform to the government’s economic policy.

A union must provide the registrar with annual lists of its membership and with financial audits, and the registrar can suspend a union if public security or public order is endangered. Trade union affiliation to other organizations can be annulled if obtained without government approval. Failure to register and comply with government requirements is a criminal offense subject to fines and/or imprisonment. In any given trade union, only one union leader may be employed full-time to carry out trade union functions; all others must work full-time in the enterprise or industrial sector from which they have been elected.

Dispute Resolution

If employers and unions are not able to resolve a labor dispute, the dispute may be brought to the Commission on Mediation and Arbitration. If a mediator cannot resolve the dispute, it may be referred to an arbitrator.

The mainland and Zanzibar governments have separate labor laws. Mainland workers have a legal right to strike, and employers have the right to lock out workers. Workers in Zanzibar are not allowed to join mainland unions.

Strikes and Lockouts

Strikes and lockouts are permitted only in certain situations. Using replacement workers is prohibited.

Picketing in support of a strike or in opposition to a lawful lockout is prohibited.

Reference Citations

Right to Organize: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 14-15

Dispute Resolution: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 96

Strikes and Lockouts: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 76-77

Safety, Health and Security

In General

The Occupational Health and Safety Authority carries out workplace inspections and is charged with ensuring that minimum standards of health and safety are maintained. Employers must register their workplaces with the authority.

Workplace Safety and Health

Tanzania’s Occupational Health and Safety Authority carries out workplace inspections and is the government agency charged with ensuring that minimum standards of health and safety are maintained in the country’s workplaces.

Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, the employer has the following duties:

• to register its factory/workplace/business with the Occupational Health and Safety Authority,
• to conduct regular medical examinations of employees, and
• to choose health and safety representatives in workplaces with four or more workers.

Employers must make sure that the workplace is safe and healthy and must inform workers of any possible dangers. In addition, they must:

• give necessary training to workers who use dangerous machines and materials,
• prevent workers from using or working with dangerous materials or machines unless all safety rules have been followed,
• issue protective clothing where necessary,
• ensure that dangerous machines are in good working order and are safe to work with,
• make sure that dangerous machinery carries warnings and notices,
• make sure that somebody who knows the work is supervising the operations to ensure the safety of workers, and
• keep the workplace open so that workers can escape from danger if necessary.

If a female employee performs work deemed hazardous to her health, her employer must offer her suitable alternative employment, if practicable, on terms and conditions no less favorable than those of her current employment.

If employer noncompliance with these requirements results in an employee being killed or suffering serious bodily injury, the employer may be liable for a fine of not less than 10 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both imprisonment and fine.

The employer is required to report within twenty-four hours any workplace incident or accident that results in an employee’s death, injury, loss of consciousness, occupational illness or permanent incapacitation. Within seven days of reporting the incident, the employer is required to submit a prescribed form containing information on the incident.

Employers are prohibited from dismissing an employee, reducing remuneration or altering the terms and conditions of employment because the employee:

• gives evidence in court about his or her conditions at work;
• responds to any requests by an inspector;
• refuses to do anything that is against the law;
• gives information about their conditions at work;
• complies with a lawful prohibition, requirement, request or direction of an inspector; or
• contracts an occupational or any other disease.

Reference Citations

Workplace Safety and Health: The Occupational Health and Safety Act, 2003

Termination

Termination by Employer

Minimum notice of termination is 28 days for employees who work on a monthly basis, seven days if given in the first month of employment, and four days for employees who work on a daily or weekly basis. The parties may agree to a longer notice period provided it is of equal duration for the employer and the employee. Notice of termination must be in writing and must include the reasons for termination and the date on which notice was given. Notice may not be given when the employee is on leave and may not run concurrently with any period of leave. An employer may choose to pay the employee the remuneration the employee would have received during the notice period in lieu of notice.

If termination is for operational requirements, the employer is required to give notice, disclose all relevant information, and consult any trade union and non-union employees.

The ELRA bars employers from unfairly dismissing employees. Termination of employment is unfair if the employer fails to prove that the reason for the termination is valid and that the employment was terminated in accordance with fair procedure. A “fair” reason is one related to the employee’s conduct, capacity, or compatibility or based on the operational requirements of the employer. It is not fair to dismiss an employee for:

• disclosure of information the employee is entitled or required to disclose,
• failure to do anything that an employer may not lawfully permit or require the employee to do,
• the exercise of any right conferred by agreement,
• membership in a trade union or participation in lawful activities of a trade union, or
• pregnancy, disability, or other reasons that constitute discrimination under the ELRA.

An individual employee may contest a dismissal through the Commission for Mediation and Arbitration, which will appoint a mediator who should resolve the matter within 30 days of the referral. The employee may be represented in mediation by his or her trade union or by an advocate. If the mediator fails to resolve the complaint, it is referred to arbitration or to the Labor Court. Any party may appeal an arbitration decision to the Labor Court, which may set aside an award under the ELRA on the grounds of misconduct by the arbitrator. If a termination is found to be unfair, an arbitrator or the Labor Court may order the employer to reinstate the employee or to pay compensation to the employee of not less than 12 months’ wages.

Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs

The employer must give notice and consult the union (or the employees if no union exists) prior to conducting a mass layoff. The employer must disclose:

• the reasons for the layoffs,
• measures to avoid or minimize the effects of the layoffs,
• the method of selecting employees to be laid off,
• the timing of the layoffs, and
• any severance to be paid.

If employer and employees reach no agreement as to the terms of the layoff during their consultation, the matter must be referred to the Commission for Mediation and Arbitration. The employer must allow 30 days for mediation, but if no agreement is reached during that period, the employer may act unilaterally.

Laid-off employees must be given preference if the employer refills the eliminated positions.

Payment on Termination

The ELRA requires severance pay of an amount equal to seven days’ wages for each year of continuous service with the employer up to 10 years. An employer is required to pay severance on termination of employment if the employee has completed 12 months of continuous service and the employer terminates the employment. Severance is not required, however, when the termination is for misconduct or the employee is terminated on grounds of incapacity, incompatibility, or operational requirements and unreasonably refuses to accept alternative employment with that employer or any other employer.

Unemployment Insurance

No statutory benefits are provided.

Reference Citations

Termination by Employer: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, §§ 37-41

Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 38

Payment on Termination: Employment and Labour Relations Act, 2004, § 42

Personal Taxes

Residency Requirements

An individual is considered a Tanzanian resident for tax purposes if either of the following conditions are met:

• the individual is present in Tanzania during the year of income for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more or
• the individual is present in Tanzania during the year of income and in each of the two preceding years of income for periods longer than 122 days each.

Taxable Income

All employment income is taxable, including wages, salary, payment in lieu of leave, fees, commissions, bonuses, travel or other allowances, retirement contributions and retirement payments and termination payments. Residents are subject to tax on their worldwide income, nonresidents only on income earned from Tanzanian sources.

Tax Rates

For nonresident employees, tax is withheld at a flat rate of 30 percent of the gross income of employment.

For resident employees in mainland Tanzania, the tax rate varies according to taxable annual income:

• below 2,040,00 shillings: 0
• 2,040,000 to 4,320,000 shillings: 9 percent
• 4,320,000 to 6,480,000 shillings: 205,200 shillings plus 20 percent of the amount in excess of Tsh 4,320,000 shillings
• 6,480,000 to 8,640,000 shillings: 637,200 shillings plus 25 percent of the amount in excess of 6,480,000 shillings
• More than 8,640,000 shillings: 1,177,200 shillings plus 30 percent of the amount in excess of 8,640,000 shillings

Employees also must contribute 10 percent of their wages to the National Social Security Fund. Employers contribute 10 percent of payroll to the fund.

Reference Citations

Residency Requirements: The Income Tax Act, 2006, § 66

Taxable Income: The Income Tax Act, 2006, § 66

References

Law & Regulation

Employment and Labor Relations Act, 2004

Legislation Tanzania

Persons with Disabilities Act, 2010

Workers’ Compensation Act, 2008

Zanzibar Labor Act, 1997

Government Websites and Publications

Immigration Services Department

Ministry of Labor and Employment

National Social Security Fund

Occupational Safety & Health Authority