Senior Payroll Accountant
full-time
Description
The Senior Payroll Accountant owns the accurate, timely and fully compliant delivery of payroll for all of Tatu City's Kenyan legal entities. Beyond regular monthly payroll, the role manages a complex layer of additional pay elements notably property sales commissions, bonuses, allowances, staff loans and taxable benefits and the specific payroll, tax and mobility requirements of expatriate employees. Sitting within Finance, the role is both an operator and a controller: it runs payroll end-to-end on Sage 300 People, accounts for staff costs in the general ledger of each entity, and safeguards Tatu City's compliance with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Social Health Authority (SHA), the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and other statutory bodies. The role will also be the payroll lead for the planned 2027 migration to a Tier-1 ERP, shaping how payroll is designed, controlled and reported for the next stage of Tatu City's growth.
Key Responsibilities
Multi-Entity Payroll Processing & Control
Run the end-to-end monthly payroll for all Tatu City legal entities on Sage 300 People: collection and validation of inputs (new hires, exits, salary changes, overtime, leave, allowances, deductions), gross-to-net calculation, payslip issue, and preparation of bank payment files in KES and foreign currency.
Maintain a separate, auditable payroll set-up for each entity (KRA PIN, NSSF, SHA and Affordable Housing Levy employer registrations, pay groups, cost centres), and manage inter-entity secondments, recharges and staff cost allocations.
Perform monthly payroll variance analysis (headcount, gross pay, statutory deductions, net pay) and obtain approval before release under a strict payroll calendar.
Operate robust payroll controls: maker-checker review, segregation of duties, master-data and bank-detail change controls, and a clear audit trail for every adjustment.
Process off-cycle payments, final dues and terminal benefits in line with the Employment Act, 2007 (notice, accrued leave, service pay where applicable, redundancy dues) and issue the related documentation on time.
Administer third-party deductions accurately and on time: HELB loan repayments, SACCO and welfare contributions, insurance premiums, court orders and other agency notices.
Kenyan Statutory Compliance
Calculate, file and remit PAYE under the Income Tax Act (Cap. 470) through KRA iTax, including monthly P10 returns by the 9th of the following month, and apply reliefs and allowable deductions correctly (personal and insurance relief, registered pension contributions, post-retirement medical fund, mortgage interest, SHIF and Affordable Housing Levy deductibility).
Compute and remit all other statutory contributions by their deadlines: SHIF contributions to the Social Health Authority (Social Health Insurance Act, 2023), the Affordable Housing Levy (Affordable Housing Act, 2024), NSSF Tier I and Tier II contributions under the NSSF Act, 2013 (including the phased increases to the earnings limits) and the NITA training levy with zero penalties or interest.
Apply the correct tax treatment to benefits in kind: company cars, housing, employer-paid school fees, club memberships, meals, and low-interest staff loans (deemed interest and fringe benefit tax), as well as per diems and reimbursements.
Issue P9 forms by the statutory deadline, complete year-end PAYE reconciliations per entity, and support employees with their annual iTax returns.
Track and implement each year's Finance Act and statutory changes in the payroll system on the effective date (e.g. the Finance Act, 2026 rules on tax-exempt gratuity and the revised return-filing deadlines from January 2027), and brief Finance and HR on their impact.
Manage KRA, SHA and NSSF compliance checks and audits, respond to queries, and ensure every entity maintains a valid Tax Compliance Certificate.
Protect payroll and employee personal data in line with the Data Protection Act, 2019, and keep payroll records for the periods required by law.
Sales Commissions, Variable Pay & Complex Benefits
Calculate and pay sales commissions for the property sales teams in line with approved commission plans including milestone-based triggers (deposit received, sale agreement signed, completion or transfer), split sales, tiered rates, accelerators and clawbacks on cancelled or defaulted sales.
Reconcile commission calculations to the CRM, sales ledger and cash collections with Commercial Finance before payment, and resolve disputes quickly and transparently.
Process bonuses, retention and incentive payments, and recurring allowances (housing, transport, fuel, airtime, acting and responsibility allowances), ensuring each element is correctly classified for tax and statutory purposes.
Administer staff loans, salary advances and staff property purchase or discount schemes, including the related taxable benefit and recovery schedules.
Manage payroll inputs for the pension scheme (Retirement Benefits Act compliance, contribution caps), gratuity for fixed-term contracts, medical cover, group life and WIBA insurance, and reconcile with scheme administrators and insurers.
Model the cost of new or revised reward schemes (commission plans, allowances, salary reviews) for Finance and HR before implementation.
Expatriate Payroll & Global Mobility
Run expatriate payroll from start to finish: tax residency assessment (183-day and 122-day average tests), net-to-gross calculations for tax-protected or tax-equalised packages, hypothetical tax, and split or shadow payroll arrangements with home-country payrolls.
Apply the correct Kenyan tax treatment to expatriate benefits housing, school fees, home-leave airfares, relocation and repatriation costs, hardship and cost-of-living allowances, and foreign-currency payments and apply relevant Double Taxation Agreements.
Work with HR and immigration advisors to track work permits (Class D and others), special passes, dependant passes and KRA PIN registration, making sure payroll status always matches immigration status and permit expiry dates.
Handle the NSSF and social security position of foreign employees, arrival and departure payroll events, final tax clearance, and year-end tax equalisation settlements.
Payroll Accounting, Reconciliation & Reporting
Post payroll journals to the general ledger for every entity and cost centre, and complete monthly reconciliations of payroll control accounts, statutory liabilities, net-pay clearing, staff loans and advances.
Calculate month-end accruals and provisions for bonuses, commissions, leave pay and gratuity in line with IFRS (IAS 19 - Employee Benefits).
Allocate and support the capitalisation of eligible staff costs to development projects, working with project accountants.
Produce monthly payroll and staff-cost reporting by entity, department and project (headcount, cost, budget vs actual, variances), and support the annual budget and forecasts.
Act as the main payroll contact for external and internal auditors, preparing schedules and supporting documentation for the IFRS audits of each entity.
Systems, Process Improvement & ERP Migration
Be the Sage 300 People super-user: maintain pay elements, statutory tables and entity set-ups; update the system promptly for legislative changes; and build standard reports.
Lead the payroll workstream for the 2027 migration to a Tier-1 ERP: requirements and process design, data cleansing and migration, integrations (HRIS, time and attendance, banking, GL), parallel payroll runs, user acceptance testing, cut-over and post-go-live support.
Write and maintain payroll policies, procedures, the annual payroll calendar and a controls matrix; continuously automate and simplify manual steps.
Stakeholder Management & People
Serve as the trusted payroll contact for employees and managers, resolving payslip and tax queries quickly, clearly and with complete confidentiality.
Work closely with HR (People & Culture), Treasury, Commercial and Sales, Legal, banks, pension administrators, insurers, KRA, SHA, NSSF and external advisors.
Document processes and arrange back-up cover so payroll never depends on one person; as the function scales, help recruit, then supervise and develop, a Payroll Assistant.
Requirements
Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, Commerce or a related field.
CPA (K) and membership of ICPAK in good standing required; ACCA or an equivalent professional accounting qualification will be considered.
A professional payroll or employment tax certification is an advantage.
7 - 8 years of progressive payroll and payroll accounting experience in a comparable environment, with ownership of payroll for multiple legal entities.
Big Four experience (payroll outsourcing, employment taxes, or global mobility / people advisory services) is ideal and strongly preferred.
Detailed, current knowledge of Kenyan payroll law and practice: Income Tax Act, Employment Act, NSSF Act, Social Health Insurance Act, Affordable Housing Act, Retirement Benefits Act, Data Protection Act, and KRA iTax procedures.
Proven hands-on experience with expatriate payroll (residency, net-to-gross) and with complex variable pay such as sales commissions.
Strong working knowledge of Sage 300 People (or a comparable payroll system) and advanced Excel skills; strong grasp of IFRS payroll accounting and reconciliations.
Track record of performing under pressure in a fast-paced environment with fixed monthly deadlines, while keeping very high accuracy.