Working in Zambia as a French National: Permit, Taxation and Economy

French nationals stay in Zambia without a prior visa for fewer than 90 days, with a free visa on arrival since 1 November 2022. This visitor stay does not authorise salaried work. The immigration department indicates that anyone who wants to settle for work, investment, study or residence must obtain the corresponding permit, and offers an online application; its rates are revised periodically.

For a business trip, France Diplomatie (the French foreign ministry’s travel advice service) specifies that the visa can be requested online or obtained on arrival; you must then present an invitation letter from the Zambian company or institution and any document proving the economic and professional nature of the trip, which immigration examines on the spot. The central immigration office is in Lusaka (Kent Building, Haile Selassie Avenue).

The types of permit, the documents required and the fees can be read on the “Permit Types” and “Fees” pages of the immigration website. A local employer plays a role in the application; allowing several weeks before starting the job is recommended, as is checking the specific requirements of a regulated profession.

In Zambia, minimum wages are set by orders issued under the labour code (Employment Code Act), by category of employee, and revised periodically. The amount in force for each category could not be read on an official source for this guide: it must be confirmed with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security before signing a contract.

No average salary level is put forward here for lack of an official source read. Jobs open to foreigners lie rather in scarce skills; the currency in which the salary is paid should be read carefully in the contract.

To compare an offer, think in terms of the full package: base salary, housing, health insurance and repatriation, plane tickets, schooling, tax. The guide seconded or expatriate explains the differences between statuses.

The employment contract is the basis of the permit application and defines pay, term, probationary period and notice. It is wise to have it reviewed by a local employment law professional.

The Zambian tax authority, the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), levies tax on salaries through the PAYE system, withheld by the employer. The brackets and exemption thresholds are published by the ZRA and adjusted by the annual finance acts: they could not be read on an up-to-date page for this guide and should be checked on the authority’s website.

On the Franco-Zambian side, the BOFiP list of tax treaties indicates that France applies to Zambia the Franco-British convention of 14 December 1950 (Official Journal of 20 and 21 August 1951), supplemented by exchanges of letters of 5 November and 31 December 1963, for income tax only. It is an old text, with more limited provisions than a modern treaty: an employee on assignment should check its text before assuming an exemption.

Zambia does not appear on the list of States and territories bound to France by a social security agreement, published by CLEISS (the French liaison centre for international social security): periods worked locally cannot be added to French periods. The seconded employee in principle keeps the French scheme, with parallel affiliation to the host country in a country without an agreement, according to Assurance Maladie (the French national health insurance).

Locally, the website of the National Health Insurance Management Authority (NHIMA) presents a compulsory health insurance scheme, designed for Zambian households, with the possibility of enrolling the spouse and five children under 18. The site describes the arrangement as established for Zambians and settled citizens; the situation of a foreigner should be confirmed with the body and the employer. Its benefits package covers in particular hospitalisation, laboratory tests and imaging, maternity and surgery.

An expatriate employee in practice complements this with expat health insurance or with the CFE (Caisse des Français de l’étranger, the French social security fund for expatriates). See also reimbursements in Zambia.

A French self-employed person who wishes to work in Zambia checks with the immigration department the permit suited to their activity (investment, work, residence) and with the tax authority their registration. Any minimum capital or activity conditions are set by the local authorities and are not reproduced here.

Remote work for a foreign employer corresponds to no dedicated status in the official pages read for this guide. A stay of fewer than 90 days per calendar year with the free visa remains possible; beyond that, the residence document must be planned for. Income from a French employer remains to be declared in France according to tax residence. General information for this profile is in digital nomad insurance and visas for digital nomads.

The KAZA Univisa, at 50 US dollars for 30 days, eases travel between Zambia and Zimbabwe as well as day trips to Botswana; it does not replace a work permit.

France Diplomatie describes an economy dominated by copper. The mining sector accounts for 13% of GDP and about 70% of export revenue; Zambia is Africa’s second-largest producer behind the Democratic Republic of the Congo. GDP reaches 29.7 billion US dollars, which makes Zambia the fourth-largest economy in southern Africa behind South Africa, Angola and Zimbabwe.

The country defaulted on its external debt on 13 November 2020. This event explains the attention paid to budgetary discipline and exchange conditions. The country is in the bottom quarter of the UNDP Human Development Index ranking.

For expatriates, opportunities are concentrated around the Copperbelt mines, energy, business services and international cooperation; French companies are followed by the regional economic service in Pretoria. The page living in Zambia details daily life.

The currency is the kwacha (ZMW); its exchange rate varies: check the rate of the day before any conversion. Exchange conditions should be consulted at the date of the decision; an anti-money-laundering decree limits cash currency exchange to 1,000 dollars a day and 5,000 dollars a month since 1 July 2013.

The outlook depends on the copper price, mining output, energy and debt restructuring; the current trend in growth, inflation and unemployment is shown in the “Economic indicators” block. Zambia has the support of the African Development Bank and the IMF, which has a resident representative office there.

Before accepting a post, check the currency of the salary, the coverage of health insurance and medical repatriation, and the arrangements for transferring funds to France.