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Understanding Your P9 Form
A complete guide to every field on your P9 certificate and what it means for your tax return.
What is a P9?
A P9 (Pay As You Earn Certificate) is an annual document your employer must issue to you by end of February each year. It summarises all taxable employment income and deductions for the previous tax year. You must use P9 figures when filing your IT1 individual income tax return.
P9 Fields Explained
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
Income fields
Deductible reliefs
Statutory levies
Tax paid (credit)
A
Basic Salary
Your gross monthly salary before any deductions. Multiplied by 12 gives your annual basic salary.
B
Benefits in Kind
Non-cash benefits provided by employer — company car, housing, medical. These are taxable at prescribed rates.
C
Gross Pay (A+B)
Total taxable employment income for the year. This is what you declare on your IT1 under "Employment Income."
D
Pension Contributions
Your personal contributions to a registered pension or provident fund. Deductible up to KES 240,000/year.
E
Owner Occupier Interest
Mortgage interest paid on your home (not rental property). Deductible up to KES 300,000/year.
F
SHIF / NHIF
Social Health Insurance Fund contributions. These are deducted from gross pay by your employer monthly.
G
NSSF
National Social Security Fund contributions. Mandatory deduction. Not tax-deductible but reduces net pay.
H
PAYE Tax Deducted
Total income tax withheld by your employer throughout the year. This is your advance tax payment — it appears as a credit on your IT1.
Key Things to Check on Your P9
✓Field C (Gross Pay) must match your total payslips for the year — dispute discrepancies with HR immediately.
✓Field H (PAYE Deducted) is a tax credit on your IT1 — the larger this is, the more likely you get a refund.
✓If Field D (Pension) is blank but you contribute to a scheme, ask HR to correct your P9 before filing.
⚠Multiple employers in the year? You need a P9 from each. ZidiTax can merge them automatically.