Kenya
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.
- Capital City
Nairobi
- Currency
Kenyan shilling (KSh, KES)
- Languages
Swahili and English
- Population size
47,564,296
Facts & Stats
- 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.
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
Want to see and manage all holidays? Sign up for our free HRIS!
Effortless HR Kenya: Take the Tour
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
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