Hiring staff in Suriname

Taking someone on in Suriname makes you an employer with fixed duties: an employment contract under the new Civil Code, monthly wage tax and AOV withholding, a pension premium to the APF, an FVO premium for parental leave, basic health insurance and accident insurance. This guide covers everything for your first employee, from the vacancy to the payslip.

In short

Arrange before the first working day: registration as a withholding employer with the tax office, sign-up with the APF (pension) and the FVO, basic health insurance and accident insurance.
A probation period is only valid if agreed in writing, equal for both sides and no longer than two months (art. 7:652 Civil Code).
Fixed-term contracts become permanent after more than 24 months or at the fourth contract, if the gaps between them are no longer than three months (art. 7:667c Civil Code).
Minimum wage: SRD 61.25 an hour since 1 July 2026. Pay wages at least once a month, with a payslip.
When an employee is ill you keep paying wages for at least six weeks. Pregnancy and maternity leave (16 weeks) and paternity leave (8 days) are reimbursed by the FVO.

On this page (16)

Finding staff
The employment contract under the new Civil Code
What goes into the contract?
Registering as an employer
Every month: pay, payslip and payments
Pay, working hours and overtime
Leave and public holidays
Illness and workplace accidents
Pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave
Health insurance and pension
Foreign workers
Record keeping
Mistakes with your first employee
First employee checklist
Sources
Frequently asked questions

Finding staff

Start with a clear job description: tasks, hours, pay and start date. You use it for the vacancy and later for the contract.

Our job board. Post your vacancy for free: Post a job. Job seekers find it under Jobs.
Government job placement. The Labour Market Sub-directorate (ODAM) of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Labour (VWA) matches job seekers with private-sector employers and publishes vacancies on gov.sr. Call the mobile number 8815616 to register a vacancy or ask for candidates. Labour affairs moved to this ministry under the new government, from the former Ministry of Labour (AWJ).
Staffing agencies. Existing agencies continue; new agency licences are temporarily not processed since 27 July 2026. Do not alternate someone between a fixed-term contract and agency hire: that creates a permanent contract (art. 7:667g Civil Code).
Internal vacancies. If you have staff on fixed-term contracts, also announce permanent vacancies internally (art. 7:667f Civil Code).

In recruitment you may not treat men and women differently, including on grounds of pregnancy (art. 7:633b Civil Code). If your candidate comes from abroad, you usually need a work permit: see below.

The employment contract under the new Civil Code

Since 1 May 2025 employment law is in Book 7, title 10 of the new Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek, BW). It also absorbed the rules of the Family Labour Protection Act and the conversion of fixed-term contracts. The key points for a new employer:

Oral is allowed, written is wise. An employment contract exists without paper. Anyone who works for you for pay for three consecutive months, at least 8 hours a week or 35 hours a month, is presumed to have an employment contract (art. 7:610a). But many terms only count if they are in writing: probation, a non-compete clause, fines, early termination of a fixed-term contract and the right to change terms unilaterally.
Probation (proeftijd). Only in writing, the same length for both sides and at most two months. A second probation that takes the total over two months is void (art. 7:652).
Fixed-term contract. A fixed-term contract ends automatically on its end date. Early termination is only possible if agreed in writing for both sides (art. 7:667(3)). If the employee simply keeps working after the end date, the contract continues for the same term, at most one year (art. 7:668).
Chain rule. If fixed-term contracts follow each other with gaps of no more than three months, the contract becomes permanent once the chain exceeds 24 months, or at the fourth contract (art. 7:667c). You must then give the employee a signed statement that the contract is for an indefinite period (art. 7:667e). This does not apply to employees who have reached the pension age of 60.
Copy. The employer bears the costs of a written contract, and you give the employee a full copy signed by you, free of charge (art. 7:654 and 7:667d).
Minors. From age 16 a person may sign an employment contract themselves (art. 7:612).

What goes into the contract?

On the employee's request you must give these details in writing (art. 7:655). So simply put them in the contract:

Name and place of residence of employer and employee
Place(s) where the work is done
Job title or type of work
Start date, and for a fixed-term contract its duration
Probation (at most two months, equal for both)
Pay, allowances and pay period (week, fortnight or month)
Usual working hours per day or week
Leave days or how they are calculated
Notice periods or how they are calculated
Pension scheme (APF or your own scheme) and health insurance arrangement
Any applicable collective agreement (cao)
For work abroad longer than a month: duration, housing, currency, allowances and return

A non-compete clause is only valid in writing and with an adult employee (art. 7:653). Fines must be stated with their amount and purpose in the contract or staff rules, may not benefit you personally and may not exceed half a day's wage per week in total (art. 7:650).

Registering as an employer

Arrange this before the first payday. A full overview of what each premium costs is in Employer costs.

Tax office: wage tax and AOV. Anyone who pays wages to one or more employees is a withholding agent (art. 6 Wage Tax Act). Register in the tax office (Belastingdienst) online portal, with or without an existing FIN number (tax identification number). You need: name and date of birth of the withholding agent, address, trade name and business address, phone number, the number of employees with their start dates and the pay per week, fortnight or month. Every company with staff registers separately and gets one FIN.
APF: pension. Every employer must give employees a pension scheme (General Pension Act 2014). Register your company in APF-MIS through pensioen.sr. The APF (General Pension Fund) launched a new system in July 2026: companies that were already registered must also register again as an existing client.
FVO: parental leave. Register your employees with the Parental Leave Fund bureau (Fonds Voorzieningen Ouderschapsverlof, FVO). The FVO only processes a claim if the premium was paid at least three months in advance.
Basic health insurance. Take out basic health insurance (basiszorgverzekering, BZV) for your employees with a recognised insurer (for example the SZF, the state health fund, or a private insurer). You pay at least half the premium.
Accident insurance. Under the Accident Regulation (Ongevallenregeling) you insure your employees against workplace accidents from the first working day, with a recognised insurer. Your employee is not insured automatically.
Notifying your business. The Accident Regulation requires you to report the start, changes and closure of your business within a month to the Director of Social Affairs, or outside Paramaribo to the district commissioner (art. 22). Ask the Labour Inspectorate (Arbeidsinspectie) how this works in practice today.

Every month: pay, payslip and payments

Calculate pay. Gross wage plus allowances and any overtime. Overtime has its own tax table: Overtime calculator. For net pay: Net salary calculator.
Withhold. Wage tax at the 2026 rates, the AOV (old-age pension) premium of 4% of the net taxable wage for employees under 60, the employee share of the APF and FVO premiums and, if agreed, the employee share of the health premium.
Pay out and issue a payslip. The payslip shows: employer and employee name, job title, start date, the period, working hours, gross pay and what it consists of, allowances, every deduction and premium, the statutory minimum wage for the period and, for pay in foreign currency, the exchange rate used (art. 7:626 and 7:667d Civil Code). Make one with Payslip generator.
File the wage tax and AOV return. Monthly in the tax office portal. It accepts the return from the 26th up to and including the 10th of the next month: Tax deadlines.
Pay the APF premium. First file the payroll statement in APF-MIS, then pay by the 15th of the month after the month the premium covers. State your coupon number, company name and period.
Pay the FVO premium into the account the FVO bureau gives you, and pay the health and accident premiums to your insurer.

Pay on time. If wages are paid later than the third working day after payday and that is your fault, the employee is entitled to an increase of 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). After the year you file the annual payroll summary (verzamelloonstaat), online since December 2025. By the end of February you give each employee a pension statement showing the employer and employee share of the APF premium.

Pay, working hours and overtime

Rule	What applies
Minimum wage	SRD 61.25 an hour since 1 July 2026, also for agency and home workers. Pay in kind counts at its real value. Minimum wage
Pay period	At least once a month and not more often than once a week (art. 7:623 Civil Code). Pay in foreign currency is allowed if agreed, but the employee can ask for SRD.
Working time	At most 8.5 hours a day and 48 hours a week (Labour Act). Timesheet and weekly pay
Overtime	At least 150% of hourly pay on workdays, 200% on rest days. Work beyond 8.5 hours a day or 48 hours a week needs a Labour Inspectorate permit. Overtime calculator
Sunday	No work on Sunday unless agreed or it follows from the nature of the work (art. 7:657a Civil Code). On top of that, Sunday work and night work need a permit from the Labour Inspectorate (Labour Act arts. 8 and 10).
Small contracts	Under 15 hours a week without fixed times: every call-in is paid as at least 3 hours (art. 7:628a Civil Code).

Leave and public holidays

Under the Leave Act (Vakantiewet) an employee is entitled to 12 working days of paid leave after a full calendar year. Each further unbroken year adds 2 days, up to 18. In the first, incomplete year it is one day per full month. On top of the wage you pay a leave allowance of half the wage for the days taken. When the employee leaves you pay out untaken days, with the allowance. Pregnancy and maternity leave may not be deducted from annual leave (art. 7:633e Civil Code). Calculate: Annual leave and leave allowance.

Official public holidays are paid days off. Anyone who has to work on a holiday gets at least 200%, or 300% if the contract or collective agreement says no replacement rest day is given: Public holidays 2026 and 2027.

Illness and workplace accidents

Who pays when an employee is ill? The employer. A sick employee keeps the right to wages "for a relatively short time, but at least for six weeks" (art. 7:629 Civil Code). Sick periods less than four weeks apart are added together. You may agree in writing that the first two sick days are unpaid, but nothing else to the employee's disadvantage. No state benefit takes this over; a benefit from an insurance or fund may be deducted from the wage.

No wage is due if the employee caused the illness on purpose, delays recovery or refuses suitable work or reasonable instructions without good reason. You must take timely measures so the employee can do their own or other suitable work (art. 7:658a). Dismissal during illness is prohibited, unless the incapacity has lasted at least six weeks (with a doctor's statement) or began after a dismissal permit was requested (art. 7:670(3)). More: Dismissal and notice.

Workplace accident. Report an accident to the Labour Inspectorate within 72 hours if the employee cannot work for more than 24 hours, and keep an accident register. For an insured accident, the insurer pays under the Accident Regulation the medical costs and a benefit of 80% of the daily wage while the employee is fully unfit, from the day after the accident. If you are not insured, you carry those costs yourself.

Pregnancy, maternity and paternity leave

The rules of the Family Labour Protection Act 2019 (Wet Arbeidsbescherming Gezin) are now in art. 7:633a to 7:633h of the Civil Code. Wages during the leave come from the Parental Leave Fund (FVO), which is funded by a premium of 1% of gross wages (see Employer costs).

Leave	Length
Pregnancy leave	4 to 6 weeks before the expected due date, the employee chooses
Maternity leave	10 to 12 weeks after the birth, 16 weeks together with pregnancy leave; up to 24 weeks for three or more babies
Paternity leave	8 days: the day of birth plus 7 working days (3 right after, 2 when maternity leave ends and 2 within the first 4 months)
Adoption (child under 18 months)	Mother 6 weeks, father at least 5 working days

The leave is compulsory, for both mother and father, and you must grant it. During the leave the employee may not do paid work.
The employee reports the pregnancy by the end of week 20, with a statement from a GP, midwife or specialist.
You apply once to the FVO for the benefit, co-signed by the employee. The FVO pays the gross wage to you and you pass it on to the employee immediately. Allowances on top of the basic wage may stay at your expense: ask the FVO.
Dismissal during pregnancy, maternity leave and the period after it is only allowed for urgent reasons. After the leave the employee has the right to the same or an equivalent job at the same pay.
A pregnant employee gets paid time off for necessary check-ups that can only take place during working hours, and with a doctor's statement she does not have to do night work or standing work.

Health insurance and pension

Basic health insurance (BZV). Every resident of Suriname, including a foreigner living here, must have basic health insurance (National Basic Health Insurance Act, since 9 October 2014). As employer you pay at least 50% of the premium and agree with the employee how their share is withheld. The statutory minimum premium for ages 21 to 59 is SRD 165 a month, but insurers charge more in practice. Ask the SZF or a private insurer for a group (collectief) quote.

Pension (APF). Employees aged 18 to 60 build a pension through the General Pension Fund (APF) or through an employer scheme that gives at least the same rights. The premium in 2026 is 8.5% of the basic wage without allowances, on pay up to SRD 5,000 a month. You pay at least half; you withhold the employee share from wages. You may not let the employee pay their share themselves. Amounts and exceptions: Employer costs.

Foreign workers

A foreigner may only work in Suriname with a work permit, and the employer applies for it. Exempt are, among others, PSA card holders, foreigners married to a Surinamese citizen and CARICOM nationals with a Skills Certificate. Employing someone without a permit is an offence. Steps, documents and fees: Work and residence permits.

A foreign employee who lives in Suriname falls under the same rules as anyone else: minimum wage, wage tax, AOV, APF, BZV and accident insurance. The APF does not refund premiums when someone leaves.

Record keeping

Every business owner must keep records that show their rights and obligations, and keep them for ten years (art. 2:15 and 3:15i Civil Code). For staff that means at least:

Signed contracts, amendments and the statement on conversion to permanent
Copy of ID and address of each employee, for foreigners the work and residence permit
Payslips, time records, leave days and sick reports
Returns and proof of payment for wage tax, AOV, APF and FVO, and the pension statements
Insurance policies and the accident register

The Labour Inspectorate may inspect your payroll records (Minimum Wage Act art. 4). More: Bookkeeping and invoices.

Mistakes with your first employee

Probation only agreed orally or longer than two months. Then there is no probation and you cannot simply terminate.
Fixed-term contract after fixed-term contract. The fourth contract, or a chain longer than 24 months, is automatically permanent.
No accident insurance. After an accident you then pay the medical costs and the benefit yourself.
APF premium on the full wage without a cap, or letting the employee pay their share. The premium is on the basic wage up to SRD 5,000 and you pay it all in.
FVO not paid. The FVO only pays out if the premium was paid at least three months in advance. Otherwise you carry the wage during the leave.
Not registered again with the APF. Since the move to APF-MIS in July 2026 the old login no longer works.
Stopping sick pay after a few days. Paying for at least six weeks is compulsory.

First employee checklist

Business registered at the KKF (chamber of commerce): Start a business
Registration as withholding agent in the tax office portal
Registration in APF-MIS (pensioen.sr)
Employee registered with the FVO bureau
Basic health insurance and accident insurance in place
Written contract with probation, signed copy to the employee
Work permit, if the employee is a foreigner
Payslip and time sheet ready: Payslip generator, Timesheet and weekly pay
Dates in your calendar: wage tax return (26th to 10th), APF (15th), pension statement (February)

Sources

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

Frequently asked questions

How long can a probation period be in Suriname?

At most two months. It must be agreed in writing and be the same length for employer and employee, otherwise it is void (art. 7:652 Civil Code).

When does a fixed-term contract become permanent?

When fixed-term contracts follow each other with gaps of no more than three months and together last longer than 24 months, or at the fourth contract. The contract then counts as indefinite (art. 7:667c Civil Code).

Does an employment contract in Suriname have to be in writing?

Not necessarily, but probation, a non-compete clause, fines and early termination of a fixed-term contract only count in writing. The employee can also demand a written statement of the terms (art. 7:655 Civil Code).

Who pays wages when an employee is ill?

The employer. The employee keeps the right to wages for a relatively short time, at least six weeks (art. 7:629 Civil Code). It may be agreed in writing that the first two sick days are unpaid.

Who pays maternity leave in Suriname?

The Parental Leave Fund (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. The FVO premium must have been paid at least three months in advance.

Where do I register as an employer in Suriname?

With the tax office as a withholding agent for wage tax and AOV (online portal), with the APF for pension (APF-MIS at pensioen.sr) and with the FVO bureau. You also take out basic health and accident insurance.

Do I have to insure my employees against accidents?

Yes. Under the Accident Regulation you insure employees against workplace accidents from the first working day with a recognised insurer. Report an accident to the Labour Inspectorate within 72 hours.