Hire Employees in Togo

Two routes exist. Registering a Togolese entity takes one to two weeks, plus minimum capital depending on the legal form, and requires enrolment with both the CNSS and INAM before any recruitment.

An Employer of Record removes that setup. The EOR is the legal employer in Togo, runs payroll, remits CNSS and health contributions, withholds IRPP and files the monthly contribution calls, while day-to-day direction stays with you.

Engaging someone as a contractor is a third option, but only where the work is independent, see the risk check further down this page.

Togo runs one of the higher employer burdens in francophone West Africa at around 21%, driven by a pension branch of 16.5% that is roughly three times what Benin charges. Registration, by contrast, is quick, one to two weeks, so neither route is an obvious default.

Registration with both the CNSS and INAM must precede any recruitment, not follow the first hire. That sequencing catches employers used to markets where affiliation follows engagement.

Break-even rule of thumb: EOR fees begin to exceed the running cost of a small Togolese entity somewhere between 12 and 18 employees. Model both before committing, see EOR vs Entity for the full comparison.

The CNSS total is 21.5%, split 17.5% employer and 4% employee. The scheme has three branches: family benefits and maternity at 3% and occupational risk at 2%, both entirely the employer’s, and pensions at 16.5% split 12.5% employer and 4% employee.

A widely cited employer guide states the CNSS total as 16.5%. That figure is the pension branch alone, mistaken for the whole scheme. It omits family benefits and occupational risk entirely and understates employer cost by five points. The CNSS publishes the full breakdown on its own site.

Health insurance sits outside the CNSS. It is 7% of base salary split equally at 3.5% each side, administered by INAM under loi n° 2011-009 and extended progressively under the universal health regime. Note the base differs, health contributions run on base salary while CNSS runs on declared earnings, so the two do not simply add on the same figure.

The Code du travail adds a third obligation on top of both funds. Since the June 2021 version, every employer must take out an insurance contract covering illness and non-occupational accidents for its workers. Unless a collective agreement or contract provides more favourably, the premium is jointly borne by employer and worker. This is a commercial policy, not a state contribution, and is easy to miss entirely when budgeting from contribution tables.

Additional employer levies fund development projects, the national employment agency and technical education. Confirm the current rates with the tax administration.

Gross monthly salaries for full-time roles in Lomé. Add around 21% for employer contributions, plus the mandatory illness and non-occupational accident policy.

Benchmarks below are gross monthly salaries in CFA francs for full-time roles in Lomé. Add around 21% for employer contributions, and budget separately for the mandatory illness and non-occupational accident policy the Code du travail requires.

Payroll is monthly and the contribution mechanism is distinctive. The CNSS sends three monthly contribution calls at the start of each quarter, and the employer completes the call for each month and returns it with payment by the 15th of the following month.

The employer must remit the whole amount, both its own share and the worker share, under article 17 of loi n° 2011-006. Failure to pay within the legal deadline triggers forced recovery under article 21 and the implementing arrêté.

The contribution base can never fall below the SMIG, whatever the employee actually earns, so very low or part-period salaries are grossed up to the floor for contribution purposes.

IRPP is withheld monthly at source and the base is generously reduced. CNSS and CRT contributions come off first, then a flat 28% professional abatement applies to the fraction of income not exceeding FCFA 10,000,000. Family charges reduce the charge by FCFA 10,000 a month per person up to six people. FCFA 720,000 a year at the maximum.

Life insurance premiums paid to Togolese-approved insurers are deductible up to FCFA 200,000, increased by FCFA 30,000 per dependent child to a maximum of six, provided the contract guarantees a death benefit or life annuity and runs at least six years.

IRPP applies to six categories of income and is withheld monthly on salaries. The base is gross less CNSS and CRT contributions, less the 28% abatement, less family charges.

The Code du travail is the governing statute, supported by loi n° 2011-006 of 21 February 2011 portant code de sécurité sociale and loi n° 2011-009 establishing INAM.

The SMIG is FCFA 52,500 a month for a 40-hour week and has been since 1 January 2023. Note that a current employer guide describes it as somewhere between FCFA 40,000 and 50,000; CLEISS gives the precise figure. It matters beyond pay, because it floors the contribution base.

The standard working week is 40 hours, with overtime at premium rates and higher rates for night work and work on rest days.

Union density is low at around 7%, though several confederations operate and sector agreements may improve on the statutory position.

Contracts may be for an indefinite period or a fixed term, with written form required for fixed-term contracts and for foreign workers.

Probation runs by classification and should be recorded in writing.

Register with the CNSS and INAM before recruiting, and put the illness and non-occupational accident policy in place at the same time. All three obligations attach to the employer rather than arising from the individual contract.

The standard week is 40 hours. Overtime is paid at premium rates set by the Code du travail, with higher rates for night work and for work on weekly rest days and public holidays.

Employees are entitled to at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest.

Sector collective agreements may improve on the statutory position and should be identified before setting terms.

Togo observes 13 public holidays in 2026. Islamic observances follow the lunar calendar and are confirmed close to the date, so the calendar should be reconfirmed annually rather than carried forward.

Togo observes 13 paid public holidays in 2026. Islamic observances move with the lunar calendar and are confirmed close to the date. Dates that fall at a weekend and any substitution rules are set out below; entitlement is separate from annual leave.

Maternity and family benefits are paid through the CNSS family benefits branch, which the employer funds entirely at 3%. Three consecutive months of work are required before family benefits become payable.

Health cover comes from INAM rather than the CNSS, funded 3.5% from each side on base salary, and is being extended progressively under the universal health regime.

The invalidity pension is at least 60% of the legal minimum wage, and a pension holder retains entitlement to family benefits for their children. The employer-arranged illness and non-occupational accident policy sits alongside both schemes.

Notice depends on classification and length of service under the Code du travail and may be paid in lieu.

Severance is payable after a qualifying period of service on a scale rising with tenure under the applicable collective agreement.

Economic dismissal requires engagement with the labour inspectorate and staff representatives. Dismissal without valid cause exposes the employer to damages set by the labour court.

Final pay including accrued leave is due on separation, together with a certificate of employment.

Foreign nationals need a work authorisation and a residence permit, both employer-sponsored.

Since 18 May 2026 Togo grants 30-day visa-free entry to citizens of all African nations. That eases travel but is not work authorisation, an employment engagement still requires the permit and CNSS affiliation.

ECOWAS and UEMOA nationals additionally benefit from regional free movement arrangements. Foreign employees contribute on the same basis as nationals.

Treating 16.5% as the whole CNSS rate is the most likely error. That is the pension branch alone; the employer rate is 17.5% once family benefits and occupational risk are included, and the scheme total is 21.5%. A widely cited guide publishes the lower figure.

The mandatory illness and non-occupational accident policy is easy to miss. It is a commercial insurance contract required by the Code du travail, separate from both the CNSS and INAM, and it does not appear in any contribution table.

The contribution base is floored at the SMIG. Part-period and very low salaries are grossed up to FCFA 52,500 for contribution purposes regardless of what is actually paid.

Note also that health contributions run on base salary while CNSS runs on declared earnings, that registration with both funds must precede recruitment, and that an employee concluding contracts locally can create a taxable presence for a foreign entity.

Work backwards from the start date. For a local hire through an EOR, two to three weeks is realistic once identity documents, the signed contract and CNSS affiliation are in hand. Entity registration is itself only one to two weeks, so the routes are closer than in most of the region.

Register with the CNSS and INAM before recruiting and arrange the illness and non-occupational accident policy at the same time, all three are employer-level obligations that should be in place before the first contract is signed.

Apply the SMIG floor to the contribution base, expect the quarterly batch of monthly contribution calls, and collect family details so the FCFA 10,000 per person IRPP reduction can be applied.