Employer of Record Togo

Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo (EOR) solutions make business expansion to Togo easy and hassle-free. Our unique HR platform allows companies to hire exceptionally talented employees in Togo, without having to set up a separate legal entity. It streamlines the process of hiring and onboarding a remote team by handling payroll management, taxation, and other legal compliances.

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Togo At A Glance:

Population: 8.08 million (in 2019)

Currency: West African CFA Franc (XOF)

Capital city: Lomé

Languages spoken: French (official language), Ewe, Kabiye  

Annual GDP growth rate: 5.3% (2019)

Employment in Togo

Located on the western African coast, Togo is bordered by Ghana to its west, Burkina Faso to its north, and Benin to the East. Despite being one of the small countries in Africa, Togo is a bustling financial and logistical hub in the Sub-Saharan African region.

The Togolese economy is developing rapidly, and recent years have seen impressive growth in the company’s GDP. A major chunk of the population in Togo is engaged in agriculture and the biggest exports of the country include cotton, cocoa, and coffee. Another sector fueling Togo’s economical development is mining and the country has vast reserves of limestone and marble.

The employment contract laws and employment in Togo are governed by the Togo Labor Code. While arranging a work permit is relatively straightforward, having a local partner, well-versed with the local laws will minimize the risk of non-compliance.

Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo Service ensures a smooth and seamless hiring experience that is 100% compliant with the country’s labor laws. To learn more about Togo’s employment policies and ensure your expansion efforts fall within the legal requirements, book a demo with Skuad experts today.

Employment in Togo entitlements and explanation

Statutory Working Hours

A standard workweek in Togo is 40 hours and the employees work six days every week.

Overtime Eligibility

All working hours over the statutory limit are considered overtime.

Under exceptional circumstances, employers can authorize overtime, in consultation with the employees. The compensation for overtime, as per collective agreements is as follows:

• Between 41-48 hours overtime – 20% of the hourly wage.
• Over 48 hours of overtime – 40% of the hourly wage.
• Overtime on Sundays and public holidays – 65% of the regular pay.

Paid Public Holidays

Paid public holidays observed in Togo are as follows:

• New Year’s Day (January 01, 2021)
• Easter Monday (April 05, 2021)
• Independence Day (April 27, 2021)
• Labor Day (May 01, 2021)
• Eid al-Fitr (May 13, 2021)
• Ascension Day (May 13, 2021)
• Whit Monday (May 24, 2021)
• Martyr’s Day (June 21, 2021)
• Eid al-Adha (July 20, 2021)
• Feast of Assumption (August 15, 2021)
• All Saint’s Day (November 01, 2021)
• Christmas Day (December 25, 2021)

Holiday Pay

All employees in Togo are entitled to a paid day off on the public holidays observed in Togo.

Medical Leave

As per the Togolese Labor Code, workers are entitled to 5 days of paid sick leaves every year. However, the provisions for sick leaves in the collective agreements ensure that sick workers are compensated for the first six months of illness leading to absenteeism from work. The benefits vary with the duration of employment, summarized as under:

• If the period of service is less than 12 months – one month paid leave.
• If the period of service is more than 12 months but less than 5 years – a full salary for one month and a half salary for 3 months.
• If the period of service is more than 5 years but less than 10 years – a full salary for 2 months and a half salary for 4 months. 
• For a period of service that is greater than 10 years – a full salary for 4 months and a half salary for 2 months.

Maternity Leave

Female employees in Togo are entitled to 14 weeks of maternity leave which includes about 6 weeks of postnatal maternity leave. 

Maternity leave for women can be extended by up to 3 weeks in case of pregnancy-related complications. 

Togo labor laws do not provide for paternity leaves, however, as per the collective agreements, male workers are entitled to a paternity leave of up to 2 days.

Annual Leave Accrual Entitlement

Employees in Togo are entitled to 2.5 days of vacation per month, amounting to 30 days of annual holiday, per year.

Leave Expiry

Accrued annual leaves can be carried forward for up to 2 years with mutual agreement between the employer and employee.

Leave Cash Out

Upon the expiry of the employment contract, before the employee has availed of the annual leaves, he/she is entitled to leave encashment.

Employee Protection and Anti-discrimination Rights

There are several Employee Protection and Anti-discrimination laws that protect the employees against:

• Sexual harassment – sexual harassment of any employee is illegal and forms a ground for legal action. 
• Discrimination against women – the Togolese constitution provides equal rights to men and women and prohibits any kind of discrimination against women in the workplace. 
• Discrimination against disabled people – Togolese labor law prohibits discrimination against persons with mental, physical, sensory, or intellectual disabilities.  
• Discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS – Togolese government prohibits discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS.
• Underage employment – no child under 15 years of age can be legally employed in Togo.

Confidentiality of Personal Information

Any kind of collection, use, transmission, processing, and storage of personal data by natural persons, legal persons, state, or local authorities is governed by Togolese Data Protection Law aimed at protecting the right to privacy of the country’s citizens.

Contractors vs. Full-time Employees

The employment contract law in Togo mandates that all employers must provide written contracts of employment to the employees, irrespective of the category of the employees like permanent, seasonal, or temporary. The employment agreement in Togo must be in French, clearly identifying the employer and the employee. Employment contracts must also clearly indicate the details of employment such as the agreed-upon compensation in West African CFA Franc, date of joining, term of the contract, and other conditions as applicable.

An important fact to note here is that the Togolese government prohibits hiring employees for tasks that are permanent in nature by way of fixed-term contracts. This means that employers cannot hire employees in Togo to fill the post continuously. Each fixed-term contract, including renewals, cannot exceed a time duration beyond 4 years. Whereas indefinite fixed-term contracts can be freely renewed.

There must be a strong contract of employment in place before hiring employees in Togo. Skuad’s comprehensive Employer of Record Togo service also offers employment contract templates for hiring employees in Togo, so that companies don’t need to draft employment contracts themselves and risk oversight. Learn more by talking to Skuad experts.

Hiring in Togo

The employees that you hire are the face of your company, representing your company in a foreign country. Therefore, choosing only the best talents that will make your expansion successful is of utmost importance.

If you are looking to recruit and hire employees in Togo, you must begin by creating a basic understanding of the Togo employment laws. Then you can start posting job advertisements on top job portals in Togo such as Careers In Africa, or you can advertise your job openings in newspapers like A Lomé or Togo Presse.

If you choose to hire nonresident employees, make sure you sponsor their work permit. Work permits are mandatory for nonresidents to live and work in Togo. Obtaining work permits in Togo is relatively simpler than in other countries around the world, which allows you to hire both nonresidents and residents depending upon your requirements.

Once you have shortlisted the candidates, conduct personal interviews to make sure that the employees you hire are best suited for the job. The next step would be to conduct onboarding meetings to get the employees acquainted with the company, their roles, and responsibilities and their colleagues.

If you hire employees for a technical position, training will also form an important part of the onboarding process. All of this must be done in compliance with the requirements of labor laws in Togo which can be time-consuming and overwhelming if you do not have a local payroll outsourcing partner to help you every step of the way.

Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo services take care of the hiring and recruiting for you, allowing you to focus on other aspects of business expansion to Togo.

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Probation & Termination

The first few months in employment, the probationary period, essentially serve as a trial period. During this time, employers can assess their employees based on their professional competence. And the employees can gain a deeper understanding of their workplace, their roles, and responsibilities as well as the social dynamics at work.

The standard probation period in Togo can be up to 6 months. However, as per the collective agreement, the probation period varies with the terms of employment as follows:

When workers are paid monthly, the period of probation is:

• One month for regular employees (renewable once).
• Three months for supervisory and technical positions (renewable once).
• Six months for managers or above (non-renewable).

The period of probation is eight days when the workers earn hourly wages (renewable once).

Employees on probation are entitled to at least minimum wages and the probationary period also forms a part of the total length of employment for the computing annual leaves. 

While the employment contracts can be terminated without notice (by either the employer or employee), the Togolese labor code mandates a notice period for termination, or payment in lieu of the termination notice post probationary period in Togo.

All fixed-term contracts automatically terminate upon the expiry of their term or can be terminated by either party serving a minimum notice period as follows:

• One month for regular workers and employees. 
• Three months for employees in supervisory or technical roles.
• Five days for employees paid by the hour.

Moreover, the reasons for termination of employment must be indicated by the terminating party. When an employee is serving the notice period, he/she is entitled as well as obligated to work as per the agreed-upon conditions. However, they can take one vacation day per week. To ensure your expansion endeavors adhere to the laws regarding probation and termination in Togo, talk to Skuad experts and book a demo today.

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EOR Solution

Business expansion is a long-drawn process that calls for extensive planning, especially when expanding to a foreign country. It is complicated and can take up to several months to complete but by choosing the EOR route for hiring employees in Togo, you can fast-track the expansion process.

Employer of Record Togo (Togo EOR) solutions by Skuad can make expansion to Togo much simpler and a lot quicker for business. Our global outreach and a tech-enriched HR platform ensure compliance with local labor laws by managing employment responsibilities such as monthly payroll, work permits, employment contracts as well as taxation for your employees in Togo.

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Types Of Visas in Togo

One key aspect of expanding your business in Togo is to make sure that all your employees have a Togo work visa to legally work in Togo. Residents of Benin, Guinea, Ghana, Mali, Senegal, and Niger, as well as people with diplomatic passports issued by Morocco, and China don’t need a visa to enter the country. The categories of work visas available in Togo are:

Business Visa

Nonresidents visiting Togo for business-related purposes should apply for a business visa.

Validity – 90 days.

Immigration Visa

The immigration visa is for nonresidents that intend to live and work in Togo for long-term

Togo work visa requirements

To apply for a work visa in Togo, employees need the following documents:

• A valid passport
• Photocopies of the passport
• Correctly filled visa application that is complete in all respects.
• Latest passport-sized photograph.
• Return-flight proof.
• Valid travel insurance.
• Yellow Fever certificate.
• Proof of income – bank statements.
• Health insurance 
• A letter detailing the reason behind immigration to Togo.

Process of Applying for Work Visa in Togo

For employees immigrating to Togo for work-related purposes, it is advisable to apply for a work visa before traveling to the country. The process of applying for a visa is as follows:

• Submitting a complete visa application form, along with the requisite documents.
• Payment of visa application fee.

It can take 5-10 working days for the application to be processed.

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Work Permits

Along with a work visa, employees also need a valid work permit to live and work in Togo. A work permit in Togo authorizes employees to work for your company and is sponsored by the employer. If employees change their jobs, they need to apply for a new work permit.

With our local partners in Togo, Skuad is eligible to sponsor a Togo work permit for foreigners immigrating to Togo. Our Employer of Record Togo solution takes care of all the HR-related responsibilities for you so that you can focus on running your business. To know more about work permits in Togo and how Skuad can secure them for you, speak to our experts today and kick-start your expansion.

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Payroll & taxes in Togo

To hire and compensate your employees in Togo, you must set up a payroll. You can either use an in-house payroll or hire payroll outsourcing services to pay your employees. Setting up your payroll can be a complicated task as it is subject to several local laws. For instance, every foreign company must register with the Togolese Tax authority and submit annual tax returns every year. Skuad’s localized EOR services in Togo, make payroll management and tax compliance easy and hassle-free.

Taxes in Togo

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Incorporation

Business expansion in Togo can be accomplished in either of the following two ways:

1. Setting up your own subsidiary company in Togo, where you then hire your employees, manage their compensation and payroll. 
2. Partnering with a global EOR like Skuad and availing of their payroll management services.

The local subsidiary laws vary with the location of your entity within Togo. Depending upon the kind of business activities you intend to undertake from your Togo office, you can choose to incorporate a limited liability company or a public limited company. The most preferred form of business entity, however, is a limited liability company (LLC). The process for incorporating an LLC in Togo is as follows:

• Choose an appropriate location for your subsidiary. 
• Get yourself acquainted with Togolese subsidiary laws. 
• Open a domestic bank account. 
• Deposit the required minimum share capital – $1800.
• Appoint at least one director and allot shares to at least one shareholder.
• Appoint a statutory auditor to audit the financial records of the company if your share capital is over $1800 or your annual turnover is above $450,000 or you hire over 50 employees.
• Submit the required documents with the authorities and wait for their approval.

Setting up a subsidiary company in Togo is a lengthy process that requires a lot of time and resources. Working with Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo services can save you the hassle of learning Togolese subsidiary laws, allowing you to expedite your expansion process and start working immediately.

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PEO

Even though Professional Employer Organization (PEO) and Employer of Record service (EOR) both assist you in the process of hiring and recruiting remote talent in foreign countries, there are certain nuanced differences in the kind of services that they provide.

Here are the key differences between PEO and EOR so that you can decide which one serves your HR needs better:

• With PEOs, companies enter into a co-employment contract meaning that any employees that you hire through a PEO will be on your company’s payroll. On the other hand, an EOR is a legal employer on record of all the employees hired through their services. 
• EOR provides general risk management and insurance, worker compensations, etc. as required by the local labor laws of the country. However, if you choose PEO services, you will be required to provide for your employees’ insurance cover yourselves. 
• When you partner with a PEO, you will still need to figure out the local laws for compliance. But an EOR will manage all the legal documentation required for hiring employees in a foreign country.

While Professional Employer Organization in Togo can assist you with HR management, Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo solutions can help you in growing and benefit from the business opportunities in Togo by assuming all the legal responsibilities of being an Employer of Record, that too without going through the hassle of setting up a separate legal entity.

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Conclusion

Do you think you are ready to expand your company’s business operations in Togo? Skuad’s Employer of Record Togo services can make the process fast and easy by handling your HR requirements in compliance with the local labor laws. If you want to discuss how Skuad’s payroll management services can help you, please get in touch with us today!