Egypt employment law in 2026 is governed primarily by Labour Law No. 14 of 2025, which changed employment contracts, annual leave, maternity leave, resignation, remote work and termination procedure. Employers must also comply with the EGP 7,000 private-sector minimum wage, Egypt payroll tax, social insurance and work-permit rules when hiring employees in Egypt.

For Chinese companies, a compliant Egypt hiring model requires more than a signed offer. The employer must use an Arabic employment contract, register the employee for social insurance, apply the 2026 insurable wage limits, maintain working-time and personnel records, and distinguish Employer of Record (EOR) feasibility from immigration approval.

1. Egypt Employment Compliance at a Glance in 2026

The law sets minimum rights. Employment contracts, internal policies and collective agreements may provide more favourable terms. Special rules can apply to government employees, domestic workers, maritime workers and other separately regulated groups.

2. Three Employment and Payroll Changes Requiring Action in 2026

The EGP 7,000 private-sector minimum wage has applied since 1 March 2025 and remains the relevant verified private-sector floor for 2026. Public-sector announcements, including higher government payroll figures, should not be imported into private-sector payroll without a binding private-sector decision.

The new law also permits modern working arrangements, strengthens anti-harassment and workplace-violence obligations, recognizes bank-transfer wage payment and extends personnel-file retention.

3. Egypt’s Employment Law and Regulatory Framework

Labour Law No. 14 of 2025 replaced Labour Law No. 12 of 2003 from 1 September 2025. It is supported by the Social Insurance and Pensions Law No. 148 of 2019, Income Tax Law No. 91 of 2005 as amended, Personal Data Protection Law No. 151 of 2020, Civil Code and applicable ministerial decisions.

The Ministry of Labour supervises private-sector employment and work permits. Labour offices handle registrations, authenticated resignations and inspections. The National Organization for Social Insurance administers social insurance, while the Egyptian Tax Authority administers payroll withholding. Specialized labour courts hear employment disputes under the new framework.

Employers should distinguish statutory law, implementing decisions and common practice. A government announcement may confirm policy, but payroll should be updated only after identifying the applicable decision, effective date and worker population.

Employment status depends on the real relationship. Calling a person a consultant does not remove labour obligations where the individual performs work personally under the company’s direction, control and organizational structure.

4. Recruitment, Offers and Onboarding

Recruitment criteria should be connected to genuine job requirements and comply with the new law’s equality, anti-harassment, bullying and workplace-violence protections. Candidate data, medical information and background checks must be proportionate and handled under Egyptian privacy rules.

Before issuing an unconditional offer, confirm the employer entity, work location, job title, salary, contract duration, probation, working schedule, social-insurance position and right to work. Foreign-national hires require a separate quota and permit assessment before the proposed start date.

The employment contract should be made in Arabic in the legally required form and number of copies. A bilingual contract can support an international employee, but the Arabic version should be reviewed carefully because it will generally control before Egyptian authorities.

Onboarding controls include employee identity and qualification documents, social-insurance registration, tax data, occupational health and safety instruction, attendance setup, payroll bank details, policy acknowledgements and proof of work authorization.

5. Employment Contracts, Contract Types and Probation

Employers may use indefinite-term, fixed-term, task-based, part-time, remote and other arrangements recognized by law. The written contract should identify the parties, workplace, role, wage and payment method, duration if fixed, start date, probation, hours, leave and termination conditions.

A fixed-term contract normally ends on its agreed date unless renewed or continued in circumstances that convert or extend the relationship. Premature employer termination can trigger compensation, including a new-law gratuity of one month’s wage for each year of service in relevant cases.

Probation cannot exceed three months and should not be imposed more than once by the same employer. Renewing a contract, changing the employee’s title or transferring the employee within a group should not be used to manufacture a new probation period.

Remote work, flexible work, job sharing and other non-traditional arrangements require clear written terms covering equipment, information security, attendance, expenses and the work location.

6. Wages, Minimum Wage and Gross-to-Net Payroll

The verified private-sector minimum wage in 2026 is EGP 7,000 per month. It was set by the National Council for Wages with effect from 1 March 2025. Employers should not substitute a later public-sector minimum because the employing population and legal instrument differ.

Regular monthly employees should normally be paid at least monthly. Labour Law No. 14 of 2025 expressly supports bank-transfer payment, but employers must retain reliable payroll and payment evidence.

Employment income also benefits from an annual salary tax exemption of EGP 20,000, subject to the statutory calculation and high-income restrictions. Employers should calculate withholding cumulatively and complete monthly and annual payroll reporting.

Illustrative monthly payroll: An employee earns EGP 20,000 gross. If the insurable wage is EGP 16,700, employee social insurance is EGP 1,837 at 11%. If illustrative payroll withholding is EGP 2,000, indicative net cash is EGP 16,163. Actual withholding depends on cumulative income, exemptions, benefits and payroll history.

Payslips should distinguish basic wage, variable wage, allowances, overtime, bonuses, taxable benefits, employee social insurance, payroll tax and other lawful deductions.

7. Working Time, Overtime and Records

Ordinary working time generally may not exceed eight actual working hours a day or 48 hours a week, excluding meal and rest intervals. Work should normally be arranged so the employee does not work more than five continuous hours without a break, subject to sector-specific exceptions.

Employees should receive weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours after no more than six working days. Friday is common, but operational requirements may support another rest day.

Overtime should be exceptional, authorized and recorded. Commonly cited minimum premiums under the new-law framework are 35% above the normal hourly wage for daytime overtime and 70% for night overtime. Work on a weekly rest day or public holiday triggers enhanced compensation or substitute rest under the applicable rules.

Maintain attendance, actual working hours, overtime approval, breaks, weekly rest, leave and payroll records. Electronic records must remain accurate, accessible and protected against unauthorized alteration.

8. Public Holidays, Annual Leave and Other Statutory Leave

Egyptian public-holiday dates are announced by government decisions, and Islamic dates can shift with the lunar calendar. The expected 2026 calendar below must be reconciled with each final government decision.

Annual leave is structured as follows:

Seven days of casual leave are available each year, normally limited to two days per incident, and count against annual leave. Employees may receive paid exam leave for actual examination days when statutory notice conditions are met.

9. Employer Social Security, Mandatory Benefits and Tax

Egypt’s 2026 monthly insurable wage limits increased from 1 January:

At the EGP 16,700 ceiling, the ordinary maximum monthly employee contribution is EGP 1,837 and the employer contribution is EGP 3,131.25. Pay above the ceiling is not subject to ordinary contributions unless another statutory basis applies.

The 18.75% employer rate incorporates multiple social-insurance branches. Employers should not add separately quoted subcomponents without confirming whether they are already included. Other payroll-related obligations require entity- and program-specific verification.

Register employees promptly, report the genuine insurable wage and reconcile payroll with Social Security filings. Declaring only the statutory minimum when actual insurable remuneration is higher can create arrears and penalties.

10. Local Employees and Foreign Employees

Egyptian nationals can be employed after ordinary identity, contract, tax and social-insurance onboarding. Foreign nationals generally require both lawful residence status and a work permit before performing productive work. A tourist or ordinary business-entry status does not authorize employment.

The Ministry of Labour examines the employer, occupation, qualifications, local-labour availability, foreign-worker ratio and compensation. Common quota rules restrict foreign employees to a percentage of headcount and payroll, but exemptions and sector-specific treatment may apply.

Work-permit files commonly require corporate documents, tax and social-insurance evidence, passport and residence documents, qualifications, experience evidence, medical or security clearances and a designated Egyptian assistant or understudy where applicable.

Permit approval, residence permission, tax registration and employment onboarding are separate workstreams. An EOR may support employment only where its structure and quota position can lawfully support the permit.

11. Remote Work, Data Privacy and Record Retention

Labour Law No. 14 of 2025 recognizes remote, flexible, part-time and job-sharing arrangements. A written remote-work agreement should define the place of work, schedule, availability, equipment, connectivity, information security, expense treatment and occupational-safety responsibilities.

Remote employees retain wage, working-time, leave, anti-discrimination and social-insurance protection. Monitoring software should not be used without a documented business need, employee notice and proportionality assessment.

Personal Data Protection Law No. 151 of 2020 regulates employee data. Cross-border transfer, storage or access may require an adequate protection level and authorization or licensing from the competent Egyptian authority. Chinese headquarters should not receive complete personnel files merely because both entities belong to one group.

The new Labour Law extends employee-file retention to five years after employment ends and permits compliant electronic files. Tax, Social Security and litigation rules may require certain records to be kept longer.

12. Termination, Severance and Final Settlement

Termination depends on whether the contract is fixed-term or indefinite and whether the employer relies on misconduct, incapacity, economic grounds, expiry, resignation or another legal basis. Notice payment is not a substitute for lawful grounds and procedure.

An indefinite-term contract generally requires three months’ written notice, regardless of service length. Notice should not be initiated during statutory leave, and sickness can affect the running of notice.

Unjustified absence for more than 20 non-consecutive days in a year or 10 consecutive days can be treated as resignation only after the required registered warnings. Pre-signed resignation forms are not a lawful substitute for the authentication process.

Final settlement should include salary through termination, unused leave where payable, overtime, earned incentives, expenses, notice amounts, compensation or gratuity and other contractual rights.

13. Hiring Model: Entity, EOR or Payroll Outsourcing

The correct model depends on headcount, duration, management control, regulated activities, work permits, data access, intellectual property and permanent-establishment risk.

sailglobal can support EOR and payroll operations in Egypt, but complex work permits, large-scale restructuring, regulated sectors and corporate-tax questions should be reviewed by qualified Egyptian advisers.

14. Common Egypt Employment Risks for Chinese Companies