Running payroll correctly is one of the clearest signals of a well-run business — employees notice immediately when it isn't, and PAYE compliance is a statutory obligation, not optional. Here's what employers should have a handle on.
What PAYE is
PAYE (Pay As You Earn) is the system through which employers deduct tax from employee salaries and remit it to the tax authority on the employee's behalf. As an employer, you're responsible for calculating the correct deduction, withholding it, and submitting it accurately and on time.
Because PAYE rates and bands are set by Botswana's tax authorities and can be updated, we don't publish specific figures here — the correct calculation for your payroll is confirmed as part of our payroll service.
Getting the fundamentals right
A well-run payroll process rests on a few consistent fundamentals:
- Accurate, up-to-date employee records — pay structure, benefits, deductions
- A consistent, documented pay cycle
- Correct PAYE and statutory deduction calculation each cycle
- Payslips that are clear and itemised
- Timely PAYE submission, aligned to statutory deadlines
Common payroll mistakes
The most common issues we see are inconsistent treatment of overtime and leave, manual calculation errors that compound month over month, and PAYE submissions that slip because payroll and tax filing aren't coordinated. Most of these are process problems, not knowledge problems — they're solved by a consistent, well-documented payroll workflow.
Where Rairez fits in
Our Payroll Management service handles calculation, payslips and PAYE submission end to end, so payroll stops being a monthly source of risk and becomes something you don't have to think about.