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Popay Payroll · Congo-Kinshasa PopayPayroll
Payroll in DR Congo, handled the local way.
Statutory contributions, compliant payslips, local contracts and leave — configured to Congolese law inside our own engine.
One engine, all of Africa. DR Congo payroll rules run natively inside our own gross-to-net engine — CNSS, ONEM and INPP, monitored and kept current by our Pan-African team, not stitched from third-party aggregators.
Talk to our African payroll team No commitment — a working conversation about your team in Kinshasa.
CD
CD · payroll across the continent
This page covers the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo-Kinshasa) — capital Kinshasa, currency CDF. Looking for the Republic of the Congo? See Republic of the Congo payroll (Congo-Brazzaville) →
Understand HR in Democratic Republic of the Congo
Everything Democratic Republic of the Congo payroll asks of an employer — in one place.
The full local picture for Democratic Republic of the Congo: statutory contributions and the rules our engine runs natively — maintained by our Pan-African legislation team.
01 · At a glance
Democratic Republic of the Congo payroll, by the numbers
The fixed parameters every Democratic Republic of the Congo payroll run starts from.
CAPITAL
Kinshasa
CURRENCY
Congolese Franc (CDF) — functional domestic currency · US Dollar (USD) widely used for salaries, especially in mining and multinational sectors
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
French
STATUTORY AUTHORITIES
DGI — Direction Générale des Impôts · Social security: CNSS — Caisse Nationale de Sécurité Sociale
INCOME TAX YEAR
1 January → 31 December (calendar year)
PAYROLL CYCLE
Monthly
MONTHLY STATUTORY DEADLINE
IPR (income tax) and CNSS contributions: monthly withholding and remittance · Monthly payroll declarations to DGI and CNSS · Annual tax certificate
MINIMUM WAGE
The daily minimum wage is CDF 21,500
Ordinary working week
40 hours / week (typically 5 days) · maximum 8 hours / day; up to 6 days
RETIREMENT AGE
Pension eligibility: 60 years · Mandatory retirement: 65 years · Minimum CNSS contributions: 180 months (15 years)
MAIN LABOUR LAW
Labour Code of the DRC · General Tax Code
02 · Statutory obligations & contributions
Statutory contributions in Democratic Republic of the Congo
Statutory contributions declared by the employer, each scheme with its own rate,
| Contribution | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| CNSS — Old-age pension | 5% | 5% | Of gross salary |
| CNSS — Family benefits | 6.5% | 0% | Of gross salary |
| ONEM (national employment office) | 0.5% | 0% | |
| INPP (vocational training) | 2% / 3% / 3.5% / 4% | 0% | Employer-only, tiered by headcount: 2% for 300+ employees · 3% for 51–300 employees · 3.5% for 1–50 employees · 4% for public enterprises |
| CNSS — Occupational risk | 1.5% | 0% | Of gross salary. May vary under sector-specific collective bargaining agreements |
| Family allowance | 1/27 of the daily minimum wage, per dependent child, per day | 0% | A cash benefit funded through the CNSS family-benefits contribution above, paid to every insured worker with dependent children (as defined by the Family Code, up to age 25, or without age limit if disabled) |
03 · Income tax brackets
The income tax (IPR) withheld for the DGI
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo payroll, IPR (Impôt Professionnel sur les Rémunérations) is calculated on taxable employment income after deducting the employee’s CNSS contributions and applying the applicable progressive tax rates.
Annual taxable income (CDF)
- 0 – 1,944,000
- 3%
- 1,944,001 – 21,600,000
- 15%
- 21,600,001 – 43,200,000
- 30%
- Above 43,200,000
- 40%
- Overall IPR cap
- Total IPR liability cannot exceed 30% of taxable salary
Expatriate employees & IERE
- Expatriates — standard rate
- 25% of taxable salary base
- Expatriates — reduced rate (mining sector)
- 12.5% of taxable salary base
- IERE (expatriate payroll tax)
- 25% on taxable income (borne by employer only)
04 · Employment contracts & other terms
The contract types and the formalities that frame them
Contract types
- Indefinite-Term Contract- CDI
- Open-ended; runs continuously until terminated by either party
- Fixed-Term Contract- CDD
- Cannot exceed 2 years total
Overtime
- First 6 hours of overtime
- +30% of normal hourly rate
- From the 7th hour of overtime
- +60% of normal hourly rate
- Hours worked during the weekly rest day or on a public holiday
- +100% of normal hourly rate
Notice period
- Workers
- 7 days
- Employees
- 1 month
- Supervisors
- 2 months
- Executives / senior management
- 3 months
Termination
- Final salary
- Applies to employees on indefinite contracts with at least 6 months’ service who are terminated for qualifying reasons. It does not apply to voluntary resignation. The reference salary is the average gross salary over the last 3 months, or 12 months if more favourable
- Wrongful termination (labour court award)
- a labour court may award damages of up to 36 months of the employee's last salary, considering seniority, age and the nature of services rendered
- Gross misconduct
- No notice pay or severance is due where the employee is dismissed for gross misconduct
Retirement
- Pension formula
- Pension is calculated based on the average capped salary over the last 10 years and the applicable contribution rates for each period, with the final pension generally ranging from 30% to 81% of the declared capped salary
- Lump-sum benefit
- Payable where the minimum contribution period is not met
05 · Leave & employee rights
Statutory minimums under the Labour Code and collective agreements.
The law sets the floor; contracts and collective agreements can add to it. Below are the statutory minimums your accruals must track.
Annual leave
Minimum 1.5 working days/month (≈18 working days/year) on full pay
Sick leave
Up to 3 months- Full salary paid by the employer, 3 to 6 months- 70% of salary paid by the employer, More than 6 months- CNSS generally covers the wages beyond 6 months
Maternity leave
14 weeks total (6 weeks pre-natal + 8 weeks post-natal). Paid through CNSS and/or employer depending on arrangements
Paternity / birth leave
3 days, fully paid by the employer
Employer policy or collective agreement
Marriage of employee- 3 days, Death of spouse, parent or child- 3 to 5 days, Death of close relative- 1 to 3 days and Marriage of a child- 1 to 2 days
Public Holidays
Full salary maintained if not worked. If worked: paid at +100%
Native African payroll — one accountable partner.
Compliant payslips
CNSS contributions, IPR income tax and net pay computed and presented on a payslip built for Congolese requirements.
We own the gross-to-net calculation
Congolese rules are configured natively inside our engine, not stitched from third-party aggregators — one accountable system, one contract.
Talk to our Pan-African payroll team.
Tell us about your team in DR Congo and we'll map your options — payroll, contracts and local compliance — plainly and without commitment.
