Pay and rights at work · 5 min read
PAYE tax rates in Ghana 2026: the new bands from 1 September, with examples
From 1 September 2026 the first GHS 588 of monthly chargeable income is tax free, and the rates then climb from 5% to 35%. Here is the full table and how to use it.
Since 1 September 2026, PAYE in Ghana has been charged on seven monthly bands: the first GHS 588 at 0%, then 5%, 10%, 17.5%, 25%, 30%, and 35% on anything above GHS 50,000. You pay it on your income after SSNIT comes off. Any table that starts at GHS 490 is the old one. A resident on GHS 6,000 a month, all basic salary, now pays GHS 1,022 in PAYE.
What are the PAYE bands for 2026?
These are the monthly bands for resident individuals as GRA prints them. The Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2026 (Act 1178) brought them in, and GRA gives the start date as 1 September 2026.
- First GHS 588.00: 0%
- Next GHS 80.00: 5%
- Next GHS 100.00: 10%
- Next GHS 2,900.00: 17.5%
- Next GHS 16,000.00: 25%
- Next GHS 30,332.00: 30%
- Above GHS 50,000.00: 35%
The yearly table has the same rates. Its bands are GHS 7,056 at 0%, then GHS 960, GHS 1,200, GHS 34,800, GHS 192,000 and GHS 363,984, with 35% on anything above GHS 600,000.
Non-resident employees are generally taxed at a flat 25%.
How do you calculate PAYE from a salary?
Add up your basic salary, cash allowances and any benefits in kind. Take off SSNIT at 5.5% of basic and any provident fund, which leaves your chargeable income. Then go up the bands. Here's a real example with an allowance in it.
Gross pay: 6,000.00 SSNIT, 5.5% of basic 5,000: 275.00 Chargeable income: 5,725.00 First 588.00 at 0%: 0.00 Next 80.00 at 5%: 4.00 Next 100.00 at 10%: 10.00 Next 2,900.00 at 17.5%: 507.50 Last 2,057.00 at 25%: 514.25 PAYE: 1,035.75 Take-home: 6,000.00 - 275.00 - 1,035.75 = 4,689.25
If you'd rather not do this by hand, the calculator does it for you.
Who pays more and who pays less since 1 September?
Low earners pay a little less and most others a little more. This is our own sum on GRA's old and new tables, not a GRA statement, and it uses monthly chargeable income, after SSNIT.
- GHS 600: new tax 0.60, old tax 5.50, so GHS 4.90 less
- GHS 1,000: new 54.60, old 65.75, so GHS 11.15 less
- GHS 3,000: new 404.60, old 415.75, so GHS 11.15 less
- GHS 3,816.67: 558.67 on both tables
- GHS 4,000: new 604.50, old 598.50, so GHS 6.00 more
- GHS 10,000: new 2,104.50, old 2,098.50, so GHS 6.00 more
- GHS 20,000: new 4,621.10, old 4,603.67, so GHS 17.43 more
- GHS 50,000: new 13,621.10, old 13,603.67, so GHS 17.43 more
What comes off before tax, and what is added?
GRA lists these as coming off before PAYE: SSNIT at 5.5% of basic salary, a provident fund of up to 16.5% of basic salary paid by you, your employer or both, mortgage interest on one home, and contributions and donations to a worthwhile cause.
It lists these as added to your pay: transport, rent, risk, night duty, responsibility, child education, house help, cook and garden boy allowances. Benefits in kind, such as a vehicle, are given a money value and added too. So a higher allowance means more PAYE, even though it means no extra SSNIT.
What tax relief can you claim?
Relief isn't automatic. You apply to the Commissioner-General on GRA's form, so most workers pay without it until they do. These are the yearly amounts on GRA's page.
- Marriage or responsibility: GHS 1,200
- Child education: GHS 600 per child, up to 3 children
- Old age, 60 and over: GHS 1,500
- Aged dependent relative, 60 and over: GHS 1,000, up to 2 relatives
- Educational relief for upgrading your skills: GHS 2,000
- Disability: 25% of income from business or employment
Relief comes off your income, not your tax. Marriage relief is GHS 100 a month. In the example above, that takes chargeable income to GHS 5,625 and PAYE to GHS 1,010.75, so you keep GHS 25 more a month.
How are bonus, overtime and casual pay taxed?
A bonus is taxed at 5% up to 15% of your annual basic salary. Anything above that is added to your employment income and taxed at the graduated rates. On an annual basic of GHS 60,000 and a bonus of GHS 12,000, the first GHS 9,000 costs GHS 450 and the other GHS 3,000 joins your income.
The overtime rate on GRA's page is for junior staff whose qualifying income for the year is not more than GHS 18,000. It's 5% on overtime up to 50% of monthly basic salary, and 10% on the rest. On a basic of GHS 1,200 and overtime of GHS 800, that's GHS 30 plus GHS 20, so GHS 50. GRA gives no separate overtime rate for anyone else, so ask payroll. For a non-resident, bonus or overtime is taxed at 20%.
A casual worker has 5% deducted from the amount paid. A temporary worker is taxed like any other employee.
Sources and further reading
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Frequently asked questions
What is the tax-free amount in Ghana in 2026?
The first GHS 588 a month of chargeable income, or GHS 7,056 a year, since 1 September 2026. The earlier figure was GHS 490 a month.
Is PAYE charged on allowances?
Yes. GRA adds cash allowances to your salary before PAYE. SSNIT, by contrast, is charged on basic salary only.
When must my employer pay PAYE to GRA?
GRA's page says monthly returns are filed by the employer on or before the 15th of the following month.
Does the new table apply to the whole of 2026?
No. It starts on 1 September 2026. Pay for months before that used the older table, so yearly figures for 2026 can need care. Ask payroll or GRA about your own case.