Employer costs in Suriname: what does an employee cost?

On top of gross pay, an employer in Suriname pays at least half the APF pension premium, at least half the FVO parental leave premium, at least half the basic health insurance premium, all of the accident insurance and a leave allowance. The AOV premium and wage tax are paid by the employee; you only withhold them.

Overview: who pays what?

APF percentages apply to basic pay without allowances, up to SRD 5,000 a month. What the employee keeps after wage tax, AOV and premiums: Net salary calculator.

Pension: the General Pension Act and the APF

Since 9 December 2014 every employer must give employees a pension scheme (General Pension Act 2014, Wet Algemeen Pensioen, WAP). The default is membership of the General Pension Fund (Algemeen Pensioenfonds, APF), a statutory fund for the private sector.

• Premium. The premium started at 3% in 2015 and rises by half a percentage point each year (art. 8 WAP). The APF set the 2026 premium at 8.5% of basic pay without allowances (2023: 7%, 2024: 7.5%, 2025: 8%). Expect 9% for 2027, but check the APF announcement in January.
• Split. The employer pays at least 50%, the employee at most 50% (art. 8(7) and (8)). You may pay more than half, never less.
• Base. The premium is calculated on at least SRD 500 and at most SRD 5,000 a month. No premium is due above SRD 5,000. Someone earning less than SRD 500 still pays premium on SRD 500.
• Who. Residents aged 18 to 60, including foreigners living in Suriname and part-timers. Self-employed people pay the full premium themselves.
• Paying. Payroll statement in APF-MIS, then pay by the 15th of the next month. If you pay on time, no interest is charged.
• Pension statement. By 28 February you give each employee a statement with the employer share, employee share and total premium for the previous year, and also when they leave.
• Penalties. The law allows a penalty payment of SRD 500 to SRD 100,000 and an administrative fine of ten to a thousand times the premium owed (art. 19 WAP).

Your own pension scheme. If you already have a pension scheme (for example your own fund or an insurance policy) that gives at least the statutory rights, you do not have to join the APF (art. 10(2) WAP). The scheme must then meet the WAP requirements; if it does not, you adjust it or move to the APF while keeping accrued rights (art. 2). Have your scheme checked before you assume you are exempt.

FVO: the parental leave fund

Looking for a "Work and Care Act"? In Suriname the scheme is the Family Labour Protection Act (Wet Arbeidsbescherming Gezin, S.B. 2019 no. 64). Since 1 May 2025 the leave rules are in the new Civil Code (art. 7:633a to 7:633h); the fund is still governed by the 2019 act. The act gives 16 weeks of paid pregnancy and maternity leave, 8 working days of paternity leave and adoption leave. It does not provide care leave or emergency leave; for special circumstances such as the birth of a partner's child or a death in the family, art. 7:629(4) and (5) of the Civil Code applies (pay for a short, reasonable time).

• Premium. 1% of gross pay (basic pay without allowances). The employer pays at least 0.5%, the employee at most 0.5% (art. 12(4)). You withhold the employee share and pay the total monthly to the FVO bureau, and show the employee the proof of payment.
• Benefit. The FVO pays the gross wage for 16 weeks of pregnancy and maternity leave and 8 days of paternity leave to the employer, who passes it on immediately. Allowances and other pay components may stay at the employer's expense.
• Condition. A claim is only processed if the premium was paid at least three months in advance.
• Contact. FVO bureau, Arabistraat 7, Geyersvlijt, phone 456-800 or 874-6156.

If you do not pay the FVO premium, the FVO can refuse the benefit and you still have to grant the leave. In practice you then pay the wage during the leave yourself.

AOV: withholding only

The AOV (Algemene Oudedagsvoorziening, the state old-age pension) is paid by the employee: 4% of net taxable pay, for residents under 60 (AOV Act art. 19 and 20). The employer pays no share of its own, but withholds the premium and pays it with the wage tax through the tax office portal. Calculate: Net salary calculator.

Basic health insurance (BZV)

Under the National Basic Health Insurance Act (S.B. 2014 no. 114) every resident must be insured. The employer pays at least 50% of the premium for its employees and agrees with them how the employee share is withheld from pay. Insurers may not refuse anyone because of an existing illness.

These amounts have not changed since 2014. Insurers (Assuria, Parsasco, Self Reliance and the SZF state health fund run the BZV) charge more in practice; the Basic Care Implementation Body (Uitvoeringsorgaan Basiszorg) reports in its 2024 annual report that insurers raise premiums regularly. Your real cost is therefore 50% (or more, if you agree to that) of the premium your insurer charges. Ask for group policy quotes.

Accident insurance

The Accident Regulation (Ongevallenregeling, 1947) makes the employer liable for workplace accidents and occupational diseases of its employees, including accidents on the way to and from work. You must insure that risk with a recognised insurer (art. 10), from the first working day; according to the Labour Inspectorate for example with Assuria, Fatum, Parsasco or Self Reliance. The employer pays the full premium, which depends on the insurer, your sector and the payroll. There is no fixed statutory rate: ask for a quote.

What the insurance covers: medical costs and transport, 80% of the daily wage during full incapacity, a benefit for permanent disability and, in case of death, funeral costs and benefits to surviving relatives. If you are not insured you pay all of this yourself, and the minister can close an uninsured business.

Leave allowance, 13th month and overtime

• Leave allowance. Compulsory: half the wage for each leave day taken (Leave Act art. 10). With 12 days that is 6 days' pay a year, rising to 9 days' pay at 18 leave days. Up to SRD 19,500 a year the allowance is free of wage tax. Annual leave and leave allowance
• 13th month or bonus. No law requires a 13th month. If you promised one in the contract, staff rules or a collective agreement, or you pay it year after year, the employee can count on it. A bonus (gratificatie) is free of wage tax up to SRD 19,500 a year.
• Overtime. At least 150% of hourly pay on workdays and 200% on rest days, with an overtime permit from the Labour Inspectorate. Overtime pay is taxed separately at lower rates. Overtime calculator
• Public holidays. Holidays not worked are paid. Working on a holiday costs at least 200%, or 300% without a replacement rest day.

Worked example: SRD 10,000 and SRD 20,000 gross

Assumptions: gross pay is basic pay without allowances, employee aged 21 to 59, five-day week, first full year (12 leave days), APF base capped at SRD 5,000, employer pays exactly the statutory minimum of 50%. The daily wage is the monthly wage divided by 20 (art. 7:618a Civil Code). Amounts per month.

In this example the employee also pays SRD 212.50 APF, SRD 50.00 or SRD 100.00 FVO, 4% AOV and wage tax. On the statutory minimum premium of SRD 165 your BZV share would be at least SRD 82.50, but your insurer's premium is higher in practice. If the suspended base of SRD 22,500 applies after all, the APF employer share becomes SRD 425.00 at SRD 10,000 and SRD 850.00 at SRD 20,000.

Costs you do not see every month

• Illness. You keep paying wages for at least six weeks (art. 7:629 Civil Code). There is no state sickness benefit. You can agree two unpaid waiting days in writing.
• The leave days themselves. Wages continue during leave: 12 to 18 paid days without work.
• Special leave. For example for a partner giving birth, a death in the family or voting, the employee keeps their pay for a short, reasonable time (art. 7:629(4) and (5) Civil Code).
• Death. One month's wage to the surviving relatives (art. 7:674 Civil Code).
• Notice. On dismissal the notice period is one week per full year of service (up to ten years) and you generally need a dismissal permit: Dismissal and notice.
• Paying late. Wages that are late through your fault cost 5% a day for the fourth to eighth working day and 1% a day after that, up to half the amount (art. 7:625 Civil Code).

Minimum wage: no fund, no extra premium

The Minimum Wage Act (S.B. 2019 no. 101, amended in 2024) has no fund and no employer premium. It only requires you to pay at least the minimum hourly wage (SRD 61.25 since 1 July 2026), give a payslip showing how pay is built up and what is deducted, and let the Labour Inspectorate see your payroll records. Overtime is calculated from the minimum hourly wage. The fund with an employer contribution you may be looking for is the FVO for parental leave, which comes from the Family Labour Protection Act. Minimum wage

Common mistakes

• Using last year's APF rate. The premium rises by half a percentage point every 1 January.
• APF premium on allowances or above SRD 5,000. The base is basic pay without allowances, with a cap.
• Making the employee pay more than half of the APF, FVO or BZV premium. That is not allowed.
• Skipping the FVO. Then you pay 16 weeks of wages yourself when an employee is pregnant.
• No accident insurance. One accident can cost more than years of premiums.
• Budgeting with the statutory BZV premium of SRD 165. Insurers charge more; budget with a real quote.
• Booking AOV as an employer cost. It is a deduction from the employee's pay.

Hiring staff · Payslip generator · Hourly to monthly wage · Business taxes

Sources

• Wet Algemeen Pensioen 2014 (S.B. 2014 no. 113)
• APF: percentage pensioenpremie 2026
• APF: veelgestelde vragen
• APF: verplichtingen van werkgevers
• S.B. 2023 no. 118, staatsbesluit bijdragegrondslag (opgeschort)
• Celery: opschorting wijziging APF-grondslag, oktober 2023
• Wet Arbeidsbescherming Gezin (S.B. 2019 no. 64)
• Bureau Fonds Voorzieningen Ouderschapsverlof (FVO)
• Wet AOV (art. 19 en 20)
• Overheid: basiszorgverzekering, premies en werkgeversbijdrage
• Uitvoeringsorgaan Basiszorg: jaarverslag 2024
• Ongevallenregeling 1947
• Arbeidsinspectie: infoblad bedrijfsongeval
• US SSA: Social Security Programs Throughout the World, Suriname
• Burgerlijk Wetboek, S.B. 2024 no. 164 (Boek 7, titel 10)
• Wet Minimumloon (S.B. 2019 no. 101)
• Vacantiewet 1975 (De Nationale Assemblee)
• S.B. 2025 no. 129, overwerktabel en vrijstelling vakantietoelage/gratificatie
• WageIndicator: minimum wage increased in Suriname from 1 July 2026

Checked on 21 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.