Paying employees in Mali: pay deadlines, payslip, deductions, final settlement
A Malian employer's payroll obligations under the Labour Code: payment in legal tender, deadlines (15 days, 1 month, 8 days after month end), payslip and register, permitted deductions, final-settlement waivers without effect, three-year time limit, work certificate.
Paying on time, handing over a payslip, deducting only what the law allows: payroll is one of the areas where an employer can be caught out, and where an employee has the most rights. This page summarises articles 61 and 102 to 125 of the Labour Code, in its version consolidated up to the law of 5 July 2019. For the contract, working time and dismissal, see hiring in Bamako.
Before you decide: check that no amendment after 2019 or collective agreement changes these rules.
Key points (text checked on 19 October 2026)
- Salary is paid in legal tender; payment in kind is prohibited, except where provided.
- A monthly salary is paid no later than eight days after the end of the month worked.
- Each payment comes with a payslip, copied into a payment register kept for five years.
- A "for full and final settlement" note cannot be held against the employee, and employers may not impose fines.
How and when to pay
Means of payment (article 102). Salary is paid in legal tender. Payment in kind, in whole or part, is prohibited, subject to the provisions of the section on setting pay. Payment is normally made at the workplace or the employer's office, never in a bar or a shop (except for those who work there), nor on a rest day.
Frequency (article 103):
| Employee | Maximum interval |
|---|---|
| hired by the day or week | fifteen days (one month exceptionally, with the labour inspector's written authorisation) |
| hired by the fortnight or month | one month; monthly payments are made no later than eight days after the end of the month worked |
| piece-rate or output-based work lasting more than a fortnight | advances of at least 90% of pay each fortnight, with the balance within the fortnight after delivery |
Commissions earned in a quarter are paid within forty-five days of the quarter's end. At the end of the contract, pay and allowances are paid as soon as the service ends; in a dispute, the employer may ask the president of the labour court to deposit all or part of the seizable portion of the sums due with the court's registry.
The payslip and the register
At each payment, the employer hands over an individual payslip (article 104), whose entries are copied into a payment register. The payslip shows (article 105):
- the employer's name and address, or the company stamp;
- the employee's name, address and serial number in the employer's register;
- the payment date and the period covered;
- the job and occupational category;
- gross pay with all its components (base salary, bonuses, allowances, overtime, benefits in kind);
- itemised deductions (garnishments, assignments, repayment of advances, taxes and duties, pension contributions);
- net pay; and, for an hourly employee, the number of hours worked.
No signature or sign-off is required (article 106). The register may be computerised, provided it is validated by INSTAT; it also records absences by cause. It is kept for five years after the last entry and made available to labour inspectors (articles 107 and 108).
Deductions from pay
No deduction is allowed other than those the Code provides, and employers may not impose fines (article 121). Lawful by right are mandatory tax deductions (tax on salaries withheld at source) and social deductions (contributions to the statutory pension scheme and other social benefits), as well as payments provided by collective agreements (article 122). Deductions from a garnishment order or voluntary assignment are possible within limits; offsetting between pay and sums owed by the employee applies only up to the seizable portion (article 123). For social contributions, see INPS, insured card and pension.
When the employee leaves
Final settlement. Accepting a payslip without reservation, or signing it, does not amount to waiving payment of part of the pay (article 110). A "for full and final settlement" note signed after the contract ends, by which the employee would give up rights, cannot be held against them (article 111).
Work certificate. On final departure, the employee receives a certificate stating only the start date, the end date, the nature and dates of the jobs held, and the occupational category under the collective agreement (article 61). It is exempt from stamp duty and registration. An employer that fails to provide it, or gives misleading or inaccurate information about the employee, is liable for damages.
Time limit to claim. Actions to recover pay, bonuses, allowances and any sum due for work are time-barred after three years from the date the sums fell due (articles 118 and 119). The period is interrupted only by a labour inspector's certificate recording that an individual dispute was referred, or by a court summons that has not lapsed (article 120).
Going further
- Hiring in Bamako: contract, probation, leave, dismissal.
- Business taxation, including charges based on payroll.
- Starting a business at the one-stop shop.
Frequently asked questions
By when must monthly pay be paid?
No later than eight days after the end of the month worked.
Can an employer fine an employee?
No: the Labour Code prohibits it, and no deduction is allowed other than those it provides.
Does an employee lose rights by signing "for full and final settlement"?
No: that note cannot be held against them.
For how long can unpaid wages be claimed?
Three years from the date they were due.
Official source (checked on 19 October 2026)
- General Secretariat of the Government of Mali, Labour Code 1992, consolidated up to law no. 2019-025 of 5 July 2019 (French), articles 61, 102 to 108, 110, 111, 118 to 123.