Employ and run payroll with ease in

Kenya
kenya flag

Make employment in Kenya easy. Let us handle payroll, benefits, taxes, compliance, and even stock options for your team in Kenya, all in one easy-to-use platform.

Services available in this country:
Employer of Record ProductContractor ManagementPayroll
  • Capital City

    Nairobi

  • Currency

    Kenyan shilling (KSh, KES)

  • Languages

    Swahili and English

  • Population size

    47,564,296

Services available in this country:
Employer of Record ProductContractor ManagementPayroll

Facts & Stats

Kenya
  • Capital City

    Nairobi

  • Currency

    Kenyan shilling (KSh, KES)

  • Languages

    Swahili and English

  • Population size

    47,564,296

  • Ease of doing business

    Easy

  • Cost of living index

    36.30 (2021)

  • Payroll frequency

    Monthly

  • VAT - standard rate

    16%

  • GDP - real growth rate

    5.4 (2019)

Kenya is famous for its scenic landscapes and vast wildlife reserves teeming with lions, wildebeests, crocodiles, buffaloes, hippos, and flamingoes — like a savanna straight from the Lion King.

Beyond the incredible biodiversity, Kenya is sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest economy. Nairobi is one of the world’s fastest-growing cities, now a thriving metropolis and a key center for trade in East Africa. Kenya enjoys strong performance in agriculture, transport, energy, tourism, and the services industry, and further growth is expected to power the Kenyan economy in the years ahead.

Grow your team in Kenya with Remote

Want to hire employees in Kenya? Companies hiring in Kenya are typically required to 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 Kenya and keep you compliant at all times. Remote can hire, onboard, and pay your Kenya team so you don't have to set up local HR services in the region. Remote also makes it easy to pay contractors in Kenya. now to get started or talk to an expert for more details.

Risks of misclassification

Kenya, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in Kenya may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.

Employing in Kenya

The Kenyan Constitution of 2010 and the revised Employment Act of 2012 spell out provisions for employee protections and workers’ rights for Kenya’s workforce of 23.7 million.

Employees in Kenya enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, gender expression, and race.

Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your employees in Kenya.

Minimum Wage

In Kenya, the government-mandated minimum wage is defined by several variables, such as the industry an employee is engaged in, geographical location, age, and skill level.

Typically, the Kenyan minimum wage ranges from 14,427 KES ($111.32) to as high as 30,627.45 KES ($277.30) for skilled workers.

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 Kenya fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 3 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

Jan
Monday, January 1, 20241New Year's Day
Mar
Friday, March 29, 20242Good Friday
Apr
Monday, April 1, 20243Easter Monday
Wednesday, April 10, 20244Festival of Breaking the Fast
May
Wednesday, May 1, 20245Labor Day
Friday, May 10, 20246National Tree Growing Day
Jun
Saturday, June 1, 20247Madaraka Day
Monday, June 17, 20248Eid al-Adha
Oct
Thursday, October 10, 20249Moi Day
Monday, October 21, 202410Mashujaa Day
Dec
Thursday, December 12, 202411Jamhuri Day
Wednesday, December 25, 202412Christmas Day
Thursday, December 26, 202413Boxing Day

Want to see and manage all holidays? Sign up for our free HRIS!

Effortless HR Kenya: Take the Tour

Seamlessly manage your workforce, from first hire to final paycheck

Competitive benefits package in Kenya

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 Kenya 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

Fair Pricing in Kenya

Employer of Record

Hire and pay your global team

Starting at $599/month

paid annually, or $699/month paid monthly

Top features

  • Satisfaction guaranteed

  • No deposits or hidden fees

  • Zero onboarding or offboarding fees

  • Compliant equity incentives support including withholding and reporting

  • Built-in security and compliance

  • Fast onboarding (average 2-3 days)

  • Flexible, localized benefits

Contractor Management

Compliantly onboard and pay contractors

$29

per contractor/month

Top features

  • Only pay for contractors you actively work with

  • Work with contractors in 200+ countries and territories

  • Create, edit, and sign tailored, localized contracts

  • Approve contractor invoices with one click or auto-pay

  • Transparent payments with complete visibility

Payroll

Consolidate your multi-country payroll

$29

per employee/month

Top features

  • Support: Personalized assistance with a dedicated team and specialists

  • Accuracy: Test runs and parallel pay runs before implementation

  • Compliance: Adhere to local labor laws in every country

  • Timeliness: Accurate and on-time payroll with labor authority reporting handled

  • Experience: Seamless payroll with easy access to payslips and expenses

HR Management

Manage all of your employees in one place

Free

Top features

  • Guided onboarding and offboarding

  • Employee profile and document management

  • Time and attendance (time off and tracking)

  • Expense management and reimbursement

  • Employee self-serve on the platform and mobile app