Hire Employees in Jordan

Your own entity is normally an LLC. Companies in the Aqaba Special Economic Zone and designated development zones benefit from reduced corporate tax rates, though those reliefs do not extend to social security.

An Employer of Record inverts the sequence: the Jordanian entity signs the Arabic contract, registers the employee with the Social Security Corporation within seven days, pays the 14.25% employer contribution and withholds income tax — while you direct the day-to-day work.

Amman has a capable technology and business services sector, and labour costs are competitive against comparable skills elsewhere in the region.

Jordan's contribution rates have been unchanged since 2017 — 14.25% employer and 7.5% employee, capped at an insurable salary of JOD 3,349 a month. That stability is genuinely useful for planning, and it distinguishes Jordan from most of the region.

The cap means maximum employer cost is about JOD 477 a month, so the effective percentage falls steadily for senior roles.

The detail that most affects expatriate-heavy teams is that Jordan has no totalisation agreements with any country. There is no mechanism to avoid double contribution, so a foreign national employed locally contributes in Jordan regardless of coverage at home. On a team of seconded or internationally mobile staff that is 14.25% nobody budgeted, and it cannot be structured around.

Coverage begins at sixteen hours a week, so part-time staff are in scope. Amman has a capable technology and business services sector and labour costs are competitive against comparable skills elsewhere in the region.

Break-even rule of thumb: EOR fees begin to exceed the running cost of a small Jordanian entity somewhere between 15 and 20 employees. Model both before committing — see EOR vs Entity for the full comparison, and plan any later migration so employees keep seniority.

Contribution rates have been unchanged since 2017 — 14.25% employer and 7.5% employee, capped at an insurable salary of JOD 3,349 a month. That stability is genuinely useful for planning and distinguishes Jordan from most of the region.

The cap means maximum employer cost is about JOD 477 a month, so the effective percentage falls steadily for senior roles.

The detail that most affects expatriate-heavy teams is that Jordan has no totalisation agreements with any country. There is no mechanism to avoid double contribution, so a foreign national employed locally contributes in Jordan regardless of coverage at home. On a seconded or internationally mobile team that is 14.25% nobody budgeted, and unlike most contribution questions it cannot be structured around.

The contribution ceiling does not cap the exit cost, and that catches foreign employers out. Social security stops at JOD 3,349 of monthly wage for 2026, but Jordanian case law indicates the ceiling does not limit end-of-service gratuity. Where salary exceeds the ceiling, the employer may still owe gratuity calculated on the full salary rather than the capped portion — a separate obligation that total-cost models routinely omit, and one that bites hardest on senior hires. Note also that high-risk occupations carry an extra 1% employer contribution, and that since the 2024 amendment salary changes must be reported to the SSC as they happen rather than fixed once each January.

Four representative profiles, costed with the 2026 contribution rates above. Salaries are illustrative market midpoints, not GX operating data — use them to see how the on-cost percentage behaves as pay rises, not as a salary benchmark for a specific role. For real market data on your roles, ask for a costing.

Watch the on-cost percentage rather than the absolute figure. 3 of the charges here are capped and 1 are not, so the effective employer rate falls as salary rises — but it flattens rather than disappearing. The senior rows below show where it settles.

Four representative profiles costed on 2026 statutory rates. Salaries are illustrative market midpoints, not GX operating data.

Payroll runs monthly in dinars. Social security and income tax declarations are both due by the fifteenth of the following month but filed separately, through the SSC portal and the ISTD system respectively.

Income tax is progressive from 5% to 30%, with a further 1% national contribution tax on annual taxable income above JOD 200,000.

The exemptions are generous by regional standards — a personal exemption of JOD 9,000 and a family exemption of JOD 9,000, each requiring more than 183 days of residence, plus a further JOD 3,000 for documented medical, education, housing loan interest, rent and professional fees. A resident household can therefore shelter JOD 21,000 before tax applies.

Thresholds and ceilings are uprated periodically, so a figure correct in January may not hold later in the year. Where a row below is flagged, published sources disagreed and the conflict is recorded rather than resolved.

Thresholds move on a local cycle that does not always fall in January, so a figure correct at the start of the year may not hold through it. Where a row below carries a flag, published sources disagreed and the conflict is recorded rather than resolved — there are 3 such rows on this page.

The sections that follow set out contracts and probation, working time, leave, termination and immigration in that order. Where an entitlement comes from a collective agreement rather than statute it is marked as such, because that distinction determines whether it is negotiable.

A written contract in Arabic is standard, with Arabic governing where a translation differs.

Probation is three months and may be used only once with the same employer. During it the contract may be terminated without notice or compensation.

Coverage begins at sixteen hours a week, so part-time staff are in scope for social security. Employers structuring below full time to reduce obligations will find the threshold lower than expected.

Employees genuinely outside the social security system instead accrue an end-of-service gratuity of one month’s salary per year of service, which is now a minority position but a real liability where it applies.

Forty hours a week is standard, with a statutory maximum of 48. Overtime is paid at between 125% and 200% depending on whether it falls on a normal day, a weekly rest day or a public holiday.

Overtime is where payroll disputes usually start. Record hours from day one even where the role is salaried and the expectation is that overtime will not arise — reconstructing records after a complaint is far harder than keeping them.

Overtime is where payroll disputes usually begin, and the burden of proving hours worked generally sits with the employer. Record hours from the first day even for salaried roles where overtime is not expected — reconstructing a record after a complaint is considerably harder than keeping one.

Public holidays sit on top of the annual leave entitlement. Where a holiday falls at a weekend, practice varies — some markets move it, some grant a substitute day and some do neither, so check the position before assuming a day in lieu.

The 13 dates below are the statutory position. Employers in many markets grant more by policy or collective agreement, and sector agreements sometimes add local or patronal days that do not appear in a national list.

Jordan observes 13 paid public holidays in 2026. Dates that fall at a weekend and any substitution rules are set out below; entitlement is separate from annual leave.

Maternity: 10 weeks (70 days) — Full pay, with at least 6 weeks taken after the birth. The employer is prohibited from engaging the employee before that period completes. Paternity: 3 days — Employer-paid. Sick leave: 14 days a year on a medical certificate — Extendable to 14 further days where hospitalisation is required. Nursing breaks: 1 paid hour a day for a year after returning — Statutory.

Nursery provision: Required where the employer has enough employees with young children — Under Ministry of Labour instructions.

The question that matters for budgeting is who funds each entitlement. Where the state or a social insurance fund pays, the employer carries administration but not cost; where the employer pays, it is a direct charge that headcount models routinely omit. Both patterns appear above.

Termination of an indefinite contract requires one month's written notice or payment in lieu, and the dismissal must rest on a ground recognised by the Labour Law.

An arbitrary dismissal can result in compensation or reinstatement ordered by the labour court, so the reason and the process both matter. Jordanian courts take a protective view where the stated ground is not made out.

Because social security now covers most employees, the traditional end-of-service gratuity of one month per year of service applies mainly to the minority who sit outside the SSC scheme. Where it applies it is a real liability and needs provisioning separately.

Probation is three months and may be used only once with the same employer. During it the contract may be terminated without notice or compensation.

Non-Jordanian nationals need a work permit issued by the Ministry of Labour, renewed annually and tied to a specific employer. Allow one to three months.

Certain occupations are closed to foreign workers entirely, and the list is periodically revised, so the position should be confirmed before making an offer rather than during the application.

Jordan hosts a large refugee workforce with its own permit arrangements, which operate separately from the standard route and carry different sector restrictions.

SSC registration is due within seven days of hire, a shorter window than most markets allow, and non-compliance can bar the business from public tenders — a commercial consequence rather than merely a financial one.

The expatriate contribution question is the second exposure. Because Jordan has no totalisation agreements, budgeting a foreign hire on the assumption that home-country coverage applies understates cost by the full 14.25%.

Practical controls: register within seven days without exception, budget full social security for foreign nationals, confirm which insurable ceiling applies for employees who joined before May 2010, and retain payroll records for the statutory five years.

Work backwards from the start date. For a Jordanian national through an EOR, one to two weeks is realistic. A foreign national needs a Ministry of Labour work permit, tied to a specific employer and renewed annually, adding one to three months — and certain occupations are closed to foreign workers entirely.

Confirm before making an offer: whether the role is open to a foreign national; that expatriate social security has been budgeted, since there are no totalisation agreements; and which insurable ceiling applies, as a higher one has historically applied to employees who joined before May 2010.

SSC registration is due within seven days of hire, which is a shorter window than most markets allow, and non-compliance can bar the business from public tenders. Social security and income tax declarations are both due by the fifteenth of the following month but filed separately, and payroll records must be retained for five years.