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SALARY PAYMENT IN The Cordoba (C$)
CONTRACT LANGUAGE Spanish
PAYROLL TAXUp to 22.5%
PAYROLL CYCLE Weekly
TIME TO HIRE 24 hours
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Hire and pay talents
with Horizons in
180+ countries
Horizons ensures day-to-day guidance to help your business navigate Nicaragua labor laws and regulations. Horizons also ensures payroll is processed weekly or fortnightly (the standard periods in Nicaragua ), and that taxes are withheld as required.
As the Nicaragua Employer of Record, Horizons is responsible for employee income tax withholding, payment of payroll taxes to state authorities, and submission of tax returns to the Nicaragua Tax Office.
Partnering with our Nicaragua PEO is the quickest and most cost-effective way to enter the Nicaragua market.
| PEO Platform Hire in Nicaragua, and pay employees through our platform or app. | PEO Cost Our Nicaragua PEO solution is the most affordable on the market. | Time-to-hire Fast onboarding in Nicaragua, hire in as little as 24 hours. |
| Contracts We draft labor contracts compliant with Nicaragua labor law. | Local Benefits We administer all mandatory benefits and contributions in Nicaragua. | 180+ Countries It doesn’t stop with Nicaragua — we are an international PEO |
Employers in Nicaragua must provide a written contract of employment for every employee. These contracts should include all relevant details of the employment agreement, including compensation, benefits, terminations terms, and so on. They should be written in Spanish and references to money should be in Nicaraguan córdoba, although US dollars are also frequently used.
| Probationary period | 30 days (standard) |
| Termination notice period | 15 days (standard) |
| Severance | 1 month’s salary (min.) – 5 months’ salary (max.) |
| Probationary period | 30 days (standard) |
| Termination notice period | 15 days (standard) |
| Severance | 1 month’s salary (min.) – 5 months’ salary (max.) |
The standard working week for employees in Nicaragua is 48 hours spread across five or six days.
Quick, compliant hiring in 24 hours—no subsidiary required.
There are several annual public holidays in Nicaragua. Employees regularly receive the following days as leave from work each year:
| Date | Holiday name |
|---|---|
| 1 Jan , 2023 | New Year’s Day |
| 6 Apr , 2023 | Maundy Thursday |
| 7 Apr , 2023 | Good Friday |
| 1 May , 2023 | Labor Day / May Day |
| 30 May , 2023 | Mothers’ Day |
| 19 Jul , 2023 | The Sandinista Revolution Day |
| 14 Sep , 2023 | Battle of San Jacinto |
| 15 Sep , 2023 | Independence Day |
| 8 Dec , 2023 | Feast of the Immaculate Conception |
| 25 Dec , 2023 | Christmas Day |
Employers and employees in Nicaragua must contribute part of salaries to social security. Employers must pay 18.5% and employees must pay 6.35%.
Income tax in Nicaragua is progressive, with rates ranging from 0% to 30% depending on income level.
Corporate tax in Nicaragua is 30% in most cases
Employees in Nicaragua are generally entitled to 30 days of paid vacation leave each year.
For non-work-related sickness, employees in Nicaragua can take up to 26 weeks (six months) or paid leave. The first three days of sick leave are not necessarily paid, but many companies do choose to cover this time.
For work-related sickness, employees can take up to one year of paid sick leave.
Female employees in Nicaragua are entitled to 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, with four weeks to be taken before the birth and eight weeks after. Usually, 60% of normal salary is covered by social security payments and 40% is covered by the employer.
Fathers are not entitled to any paternity leave as standard, but some employers do choose to offer an allowance as part of their benefits packages.
In addition, female employees are entitled to to up to 30 days of ‘flexible’ paid parental leave. This need not be taken continuously, and should be negotiated with the employer.
To receive full maternity leave benefits, a woman must be the primary caregiver of a newborn child or a child they have recently adopted. Employees must have also been employed with the same company for at least 10 of the previous 13 months. Additionally, employees need to meet local residency requirements, earn less than $150,000 in the preceding fiscal year, and not return to work during the period in which they are receiving maternity leave.
Spouses or partners of the female employee on maternity leave are entitled to two week’s paid leave. This is paid for by the government, so long as the employee is not already receiving paid leave from their employer. It is also paid at the national minimum wage.
In addition, employees are entitled up to 12 months unpaid parental leave.
Permission to terminate employees must be received from Nicaragua’s Labor Inspection Department, otherwise you will be open to legal action. In general, notice periods of around 15 days are provided to employees prior to termination. Additionally, severance payments are often necessary, with around one month of salary being paid for every year of service (although the amount per year varies for longer tenures).
The mandatory minimum wage for employees in Nicaragua varies depending on the type of work they are engaged in. For example, agricultural workers are entitled to at least NIO4,286.33 per month, but government workers are entitled to at least NIO5,345.25 per month. Because of this variation, it is important that you determine which category your workers are in when deciding salaries.
Setting up a system of employee benefits for your employees in Nicaragua can be difficult. The complex regulations and organization can require a lot of time, effort, and investment on the part of employers.
Outsourcing your benefit management process to Horizons ensures that you can adhere to ensure compliance and speed up the process significantly. Our Nicaragua employment experts will help you to find and arrange your benefits, advise on your strategy, and ensure compliance with the law, potentially saving you a significant amount of time and money.
With Horizons, you get quick service, transparent pricing, and expert support.
A Nicaragua PEO and a Nicaragua EOR are two types of companies which specialize in providing human resources services to businesses in Nicaragua.
The main difference between a Nicaragua PEO and a Nicaragua EOR is in the scope of their services.
Nicaragua PEOs provide a full range of HR services, including payroll, benefits administration, and employee recruiting—all under one roof as a co-employer. Engaging a Nicaragua PEO is essentially outsourcing your HR duties in Nicaragua.
Nicaragua EORs actually take over as the legal employer of your employees based abroad. Nicaragua EORs become responsible for labor compliance for your employees in Nicaragua.
At Horizons, we offer both PEO and EOR services in Nicaragua. Get in touch now and let us know what service you are seeking.
A PEO in Nicaragua can feasibly hire both local and foreign nationals to work in Nicaragua.
However, the ability of Horizons to sponsor your foreign national employee in Nicaragua may be limited due to visa quotas practiced in many countries.
Contact us with your requirements and our Global Mobility team with review the case and get back to you within 2 business days.
In most cases, Horizons’ Nicaragua PEO can hire & onboard your employee within 24 hours. The actual start date of the employee will depend on their notice period obligation to their previous employer as well as any relevant hiring rules in Nicaragua.
It is possible to get a work visa in Nicaragua. Horizons’ Global Mobility team is a dedicated team of work visa experts. They assess the details of each case to determine feasibility and costs before Horizons applies for the work visa on behalf of your employee. If the Global Mobility team determines that your case is feasible, the process is smooth and transparent. Visa spots in Nicaragua are limited, however—get started today to secure your employees’ visa spot.
Headquarters
71 Robinson Road #13-153
Singapore 068895
+65 3158 1382
Europe
Skalitzer Str. 85/86
10997, Berlin
+49 30 3119 9653
Americas
1700 S. Lamar Blvd Suite 338
Austin, Texas 78704
+1 (737) 265-6065
See more locations
Headquarters – Singapore
71 Robinson Road #13-153
Singapore 068895
+65 3105 1170
Skalitzer Str. 85/86
10997, Berlin
+49 30 3119 9653
1700 S. Lamar Blvd Suite 338
Austin, Texas 78704
+1 (737) 265-6065
See more locations
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