Mali is a land-locked country in West Africa with a population of more than 18 million people. The economy in Mali is driven by agriculture and fishing, but Mali is also the third-largest exporter of gold in Africa. If you are thinking of expanding into Mali, or need to improve operations, there are payroll and employment requirements to consider.

Payroll and Tax Considerations:

  • Minimum wage is XOF 230.77 per hour and XOF 40,000 per month
  • Overtime premium rates vary depending on the time and hours worked
  • If overtime is worked on non-working days it is paid at 50% for work during the day and 100% for work at night
  • An employee who has completed a year of service is entitled to severance pay. This is paid as a percentage of the monthly average salary
  • Mali has a progressive tax based on annual income ranging from 5-37%

HR and Statutory Requirements

  • Employees are entitled to annual leave after 12 months of service. Employees earn 2.5 days of leave per month, or 30 days per year
  • Employees are entitled to sick leave upon presentation of a medical certificate in which the doctor says leave is necessary
  • Female employees are entitled to 14 weeks of maternity leave, including 6 weeks of prenatal and 8 weeks postnatal
  • Fathers are entitled to 3 days of full paid paternity leave that must be taken within 15 days of the child’s birth
  • Employees are entitled to pension benefits starting at 58 years old with at least 13 years of contributions
  • For each child born, a woman’s retirement age is reduced by 1 year
  • The amount of pension depends on the employee average salary in the last eight years before retirement and the number of years of contributions

Holidays in Mali

  • January 1 – New Year
  • January 20 – Army Day
  • March 26 – Martyrs’ Day
  • April 18 – Easter Monday
  • May 1 – Workers’ Day
  • May 3 – Eid al-Fitr
  • May 25 – Africa Day
  • July 10 – Eid al-Adha
  • September 22 – Independence Day
  • October 8 – The Prophet’s Birthday
  • December 25 – Christmas Day

Blue Marble has created a global payroll platform to manage employees in 150+ countries. Our easy-to-use technology with customized reporting gives you real-time access to your payroll costs across all countries and currencies. Our hybrid service model gives you a US-based service team and direct access to in-country experts to help when questions come up. To learn more or get started in Mali, click here.