Bonus tax calculator Botswana
A bonus is taxed at your top rates, not at your average rate, so the tax on it is often higher than you expect. Enter your regular monthly salary and the bonus to see what you will actually receive.
How it's calculated
- Your regular salary is turned into a yearly amount.
- The tax on that yearly amount is worked out with and without the bonus, using the annual tax table.
- The difference is the PAYE your employer withholds from the bonus.
An example
This is the BURS example: an employee on P4 000 a month gets a bonus of one month. Regular pay is P48 000 a year, which pays no tax. With the bonus it is P52 000, which pays P200. So P200 comes off the bonus.
Frequently asked questions
Why is so much tax taken from my bonus?
The whole bonus sits on top of your regular pay, so it is taxed at your marginal rate. With a yearly income above P 400,000 that rate is 27.5%.
Is a 13th cheque taxed the same way?
Yes. Any additional payment on top of a regular salary, such as a 13th cheque, a performance bonus or occasional overtime, is taxed with this method in the BURS tax table.
Will I get some of the tax back?
Not if your income for the year turns out as expected. The method already spreads the tax correctly over the year, so the PAYE withheld should match the tax you owe.
Key terms
- Marginal rate
- The rate on the last pula you earn, which is the rate a bonus pays.
Up-to-date official data
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