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Employing a Domestic Worker in South Africa (2026)

The minimum wage is R30.23 per hour from 1 March 2026. Here is what else you owe: a payslip, UIF through uFiling, and limits on hours and overtime, with the tools to work each one out.

Minimum wage

R30.23 per hour from 1 March 2026. Domestic workers are on the general national minimum wage (Government Gazette 54075 of 3 February 2026). Ordinary hours are capped at 45 a week. Minimums for common patterns:

Minimum domestic worker pay by working pattern
PatternHours a weekPer dayPer weekPer month
4 days a week, 8 hours a day32R241.84R967.36R4,191.89
5 days a week, 8 hours a day40R241.84R1,209.20R5,239.87
5 days a week, 9 hours a day45R272.07R1,360.35R5,894.85

A month is 52 weeks divided by 12. Before UIF is deducted. Pay may be higher than the minimum by agreement.

Use the minimum wage calculator for your own hours.

Payslip

Section 33 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act requires a written payslip each time you pay. It shows:

  • your name and address as the employer
  • the worker's name and occupation
  • the period the payment covers
  • the pay in money
  • the amount and purpose of each deduction, such as UIF
  • the amount actually paid to the worker
  • where needed to work out the pay: the hourly and overtime rates, and the ordinary, overtime and Sunday or public holiday hours worked

Make one with the free payslip generator.

UIF and uFiling

A domestic worker who works 24 hours or more a month for you must be registered with the Unemployment Insurance Fund. Workers under 24 hours a month for one employer fall outside the Unemployment Insurance Act. Register with the UIF first; once you have a UIF reference number you can register on uFiling to declare and pay online each month (see the gov.za guide). You pay 1% and the worker pays 1%.

Example at the minimum wage for a 45-hour week (R5,894.85 a month): R58.95 from the worker and R58.95 from you, R117.90 in total.

Work out any salary with the UIF calculator. If a worker loses their job, see claiming UIF.

Injury cover (COIDA)

All employers of private domestic workers must register with the Compensation Fund, as the Department of Employment and Labour has stated in its Compensation Fund notice.

Hours, overtime, leave and notice

Under Sectoral Determination 7 (domestic worker sector), a domestic worker may not be made to work more than 45 ordinary hours a week, or more than 15 hours of overtime a week. Overtime is paid at 1.5 times the normal wage, or the worker may agree to paid time off instead. Work on Sundays and public holidays is voluntary. Annual leave for a full-time worker is not less than three weeks a year. Notice after more than six months of service is four weeks (section 37(1)(c)(ii) of the Act). See the sectoral determinations on labour.gov.za.

Count leave with the leave days calculator.

The 2027 minimum wage

The 2027 rate is usually gazetted in February and applies from 1 March 2027. We'll update this page when it's published.

Frequently Asked Questions