Nigeria
Make employment in Nigeria easy. Let us handle payroll, benefits, taxes, compliance, and even stock options for your team in Nigeria, all in one easy-to-use platform.
- Capital City
Abuja
- Currency
Nigerian naira (₦, NGN)
- Languages
English and Hausa
- Population size
206,139,589
Facts & Stats
- Capital City
Abuja
- Currency
Nigerian naira (₦, NGN)
- Languages
English and Hausa
- Population size
206,139,589
- Ease of doing business
Medium
- Cost of living index
29.74
- Payroll frequency
Monthly/Biweekly/ Weekly
- VAT - standard rate
7.5%
- GDP - real growth rate
2.2%
With a population of more than 200 million people, Nigeria is one of the top ten most populous nations on Earth. A member state of the African Union and home to Africa’s largest economy, Nigeria has a wealth of skilled workers, especially in tech. Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city, has been called “the Silicon Valley of Africa.” In addition, Nigeria is home to a thriving film industry, known as Nollywood.
Grow your team in Nigeria with Remote
Looking to employ workers in Nigeria? Companies hiring in Nigeria must either own a local legal entity or work with a global employment platform like Remote that can legally provide employment services in the country.
Remote can employ team members in Nigeria and keep you compliant at all times. Remote can hire, onboard, and pay your Nigerian team so you don't have to set up local HR services in the region. Remote also makes it easy to pay contractors in Nigeria. Sign up now to get started or talk to an expert for more details.
Risks of misclassification
Nigeria, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in Nigeria may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.
Employing in Nigeria
Nigeria recognizes two classes of workers. There are “workers,” who usually perform manual or administrative labor, and “employees,” who perform work that requires additional training or education. Different laws and regulations apply to each group. For workers of all types, it is best for companies to draft written employment contracts to ensure both sides understand the terms of the arrangement.
If you are looking to employ workers in Nigeria, contact Remote to learn about your options.
Minimum Wage
In Nigeria, the minimum wage is 30,000 nairas per month.
Payroll Cycle
For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal monthly installments on or before the last working day of each calendar month, payable in arrears.
Onboarding Time
We can help you get a new employee started in Nigeria fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 5 working days.
Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.
For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.
Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.
13 Public holidays
Competitive benefits package in Nigeria
At Remote, we’re passionate about helping you craft the best possible employee experience for your team. We are leading the way in developing globally competitive benefits programs. This means making sure employees everywhere have access to both the required and supplemental benefits they need to thrive, and your company has the localized expertise needed to attract and keep the best global talent.
Our benefits packages in Nigeria are tailored to fulfill the local needs of employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
Mental Health Support
Pension or 401(K)
Life and Disability Insurance
Taxes in Nigeria
Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in Nigeria.
10%
Pension Fund
10%
Health Insurance
1%
Workers’ Compensation
Types of leave
Employees in Nigeria are entitled to six paid days off per year after working for the same employer for 12 months. Employers may allow employees to roll unused time to the next year, but all accrued leave must be taken within two years. Employers may not pay employees a bonus in lieu of providing actual time off. Employees are entitled to payout of unused time at the end of an employment relationship.
Employment termination
Termination process
Nigeria is one of a few “at-will” employment countries. Employers are not required to provide employees with a reason for termination and may end the employment relationship at any time.
Notice period
While employers in Nigeria are not required to provide reasoning for terminations, they are usually required to provide employees with advance notice. Notice periods vary depending on the tenure of the employee:
One day for employees with less than three months of service
One week for employees with three months to two years of service
Two weeks for employees with two to five years of service
One month for employees with more than five years of service
Collective bargaining agreements or employment contracts may alter these notice terms.
Severance pay
Nigerian law does not mandate severance pay for terminated workers. Collective bargaining agreements or employment contracts may require severance pay, though.
Probation periods
Nigeria does not have laws governing the length of probationary employment periods.