Sources and rates
Every value the calculators use, the page it comes from, and the date it was last checked. Rates are for 2026. Where the official page could not be read, the table says so.
| Item | Value | Basis and sources | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAYE (income tax on pay) | Monthly bands on taxable pay: 10% from KSh 0; 25% from KSh 24,000; 30% from KSh 32,333; 32.5% from KSh 500,000; 35% above KSh 800,000. Personal relief KSh 2,400 a month | KRA PAYE page (read on the page) | 2 Nov 2026 Checked against the official source |
| Deductions before PAYE | SHIF and the Housing Levy come off before PAYE; employee NSSF is treated as a pension contribution, deductible up to KSh 30,000 a month | KRA PAYE page lists SHIF and the levy; NSSF treatment read on payroll guides | 2 Nov 2026 Not confirmed on an official page |
| SHIF | 2.75% of gross pay, at least KSh 300 a month, no upper limit | Social Health Authority premium rates page | 2 Nov 2026 Checked against the official source |
| Affordable Housing Levy | Employee 1.5% and employer 1.5% of gross pay, no upper limit | Rate read on payroll guides; the KRA page names the levy as a deduction before PAYE | 2 Nov 2026 Not confirmed on an official page |
| NSSF | Employee 6% of pay up to KSh 108,000; Tier I on the first KSh 9,000; at most KSh 6,480.00 a month | NSSF notice to employers, Year 4 (from February 2026) | 2 Nov 2026 Checked against the official source |
Not included or not confirmed
- The KRA PAYE page was read for the five monthly bands, the personal relief of 2,400 a month and the list of deductions allowed before PAYE. It does not mention NSSF. Employee NSSF contributions are treated here as deductible from taxable pay under the registered pension limit of 30,000 a month, which is how payroll guides apply them. That was not read on a KRA page.
- The Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 2024 itself was not opened. That SHIF contributions and the Affordable Housing Levy are deductible before PAYE comes from the KRA PAYE page and from professional-firm summaries. Insurance relief is not applied to SHIF, as the summaries say, and is not modelled for private policies either.
- The 1.5% Affordable Housing Levy rate for employees and the matching 1.5% for employers were read on payroll guides, not on a page of the KRA or the Affordable Housing Act text.
- The SHIF rate of 2.75% and the minimum of 300 were read on the Social Health Authority premium page. A High Court judgment of 23 June 2025 was reported to hold the 2.75% deduction from gross income unconstitutional; its present status and any appeal were not found. The calculator applies the deduction, as the Authority and employers do.
- NSSF Year 4 rates are from the NSSF notice to employers (lower limit 9,000, upper limit 108,000, 6% each side). Reports in mid-2026 describe litigation about the NSSF Act and say NSSF has told employers to keep deducting Year 4 contributions. The outcome was not tracked. After 2026 the limits are to be set by gazette notice, so later years may differ.
- NSSF Tier II contributions can be redirected to an approved private pension scheme. The calculator assumes the full contribution goes to NSSF. Contracted-out schemes would change the amount only if the employer deducts a different figure.
- The calculator treats pay as a flat monthly salary, with SHIF and the housing levy charged on gross pay. Benefits in kind, allowances, bonuses, overtime, pension or mortgage-interest deductions, post-retirement medical fund deductions, insurance premium relief, disability exemption and non-resident rates are not modelled.
- A Finance Act passed after the check date may change bands, reliefs or levies. Whether any of these rates were revised after 2 November 2026 was not tracked.
Last checked 2 November 2026. These pages are general information only. Found a difference from an official page? Tell us.