Overview
Nicaragua is a country in Central America between Honduras by the North and Costa Rica by South. The country’s economy is primarily dependent on the agricultural sector. However, other sectors have emerged and contributed to the economy. Nicaragua has entered into Free Trade Agreements with several countries, such as Taiwan, Mexico, the USA, and the Dominican Republic. International trade is important to the country’s economy as reflected in the summary of its imports and exports, which is equal to 96.7% of the GDP.
Currency: Nicaraguan Córdoba
Principal Language: Spanish
Government: Republic, Unitary State, Presidential System
Capital City: Managua
Major Cities: León, Granada, Jinotega, Matagalpa, Chinandega, and Masaya.
Employment Contracts
In Nicaragua, employer and employees can enter into determinate (fixed), indeterminate or professional services contract. It is mandatory to execute a written employment contract before commencing work. The contract must mention employees’ remuneration, benefits, and conditions of termination.
The indeterminate contract can be terminated at will by either of the parties, and when this happens, the employer needs to pay the applicable severance, cashed leave, and other benefits. Determinate or fixed-term contracts in Nicaragua must last for the period specified in it, and when an employer terminates it earlier, the dismissed employee is entitled to regular pay for the duration of the contract. A determinate contract becomes indeterminate after two renewals or if a worker continues to work after the term is over. However, courts can treat such a contract as indeterminate under certain circumstances.
Work/Time Regulations
The regular workweek in Nicaragua is for 48 hours, with 8 hours daily work for 6 days.
Overtime
A maximum of 3 hours in excess of regular working hours is allowed as overtime. Total work schedule in a week
must not be more than 9 hours. Payment for overtime is double the normal rate.
Leave
Holidays
Nicaragua celebrates 9 national holidays:
- New Year’s Day
- Holy Thursday
- Good Friday
- Liberation Day
- Battle of San Jacinto
- Independence Day
- Indigenous Resistance Day
- Immaculate Conception
- Christmas Day
Annual Leave
Employees are usually entitled to a leave of 15 days every 6 months that they are expected to take at once.
Employees can also get into a different arrangement with their employer for taking leaves.
Sick Leave
Employees who get sick or injured at work, receive a pension from Nicaragua’s Social Security Institute for
1 year (52 weeks). This reimbursement from social security starts after 3 days of absence due to sickness. The
employer may reimburse for those 3 days. Social security pays for 60% of the average income during the previous
8 weeks. Employees become eligible for the leave only when there are at least 8 contributions to social security
in the previous 22 weeks.
Maternity Leave
Women employees are entitled to 4 weeks of maternity leave before the expected date of birth and 8 weeks after
childbirth. Social security pays 60% of employees’ salary while the employer needs to pay the balance 40%. In
cases where an employee is not covered by the social security of the country, the employer needs to pay the entire
100%.
Benefits
Pension and Social Security
It is mandatory for all employers to join the social insurance program and induct their employees to the mandatory
saving. The self-employed are also allowed to join the optional program.
The membership of Nicaragua’s Institute of Social Security (INSS) includes sickness, disability, maternity, old age, professional risk, and death. The International Veterinary Program or IVM provides disability compensation, old age benefits, and death benefits (excluding health services).
Since December 2013, there has been a gradual increase in employers’ mandatory social contributions. Employee contributions are constant at 6.25%. However, the ceiling is expected to increase.
These contribution percentages provide short, medium and long-term benefits which include medical services. Employers need to pay a 2% surcharge on the payroll for INATEC, a mandatory employer contribution for government training programs.
Old-age Pension
An employee who is 60 years old and has made contributions for 750 weeks are eligible for the old-age pension.
The eligibility criteria for old-age pension are relaxed for employees who enrolled with INSS after 45 years
of age, miners and workers in hazardous occupation, and teachers. Pensioners who are still employed need to continue
paying their contributions to the INSS. The minimum pension is the statutory monthly minimum wage.
Disability Pension
The minimum pension payable for permanent disability is the legal minimum wage. Average earnings, as well as
contributions for each period of 52 weeks, are taken into account while calculating the exact pension amount.
In case of partial disability, 50% of the total permanent disability pension is payable, on the condition that
the pension amount must be higher than 133% of the minimum wage but not more than 150%.
Survivor Benefits
A widow aged 45 or older is entitled to 50% of her deceased husband’s old-age pension; the widower is eligible
for the same benefits when he is dependent and disabled, or 60 years or older. A widow or widower with 2 or more
children may be entitled to 100% of the deceased’s old-age pension. Dependent relatives can also claim 50% of
disability or old-age pension.
How GPS can Help
With our Global PEO/Employer of Record services, companies can expand into Nicaragua and hire their employees without having to establish a branch office or subsidiary in Nicaragua.
- Your candidate is hired via our Nicaragua PEO. If needed, we can also help you find the right talent in any country with our comprehensive global staffing services.
- Your new employee begins work quickly as we take care of employment contracts, statutory and non-statutory benefits, and running their payroll - all in full compliance with Nicaragua laws.
- Global PEO Services experts manage all day-to-day operational issues such as employee expenses, and severance/termination if required.
- With no contractor risks, pass on the compliance burden to Global PEO Services.
Spin Off/M&A Support
- Ensure continuity of payroll, benefits and HR support when acquiring or spinning off a business with employees overseas.
24/7 Support in 150+ Countries
- Empower your teams with 24/7 support and a single point-of-contact model in which experienced client services directors are in continuous communication with information and advice.
- We are backed by a mix of 300+ multidisciplinary experts from HR, Payroll, Finance, Tax, and Legal domains who are ready to respond to the expected and unexpected needs of your business on the shortest notice.
Easy Visibility into Your Employee Time & Attendance and Benefits Data
With our Global PEO, you get access to
Mihi, our proprietary SaaS solution for time and attendance, vacation, leave management and benefits enrollment
and management.
Mihi enables clients to have easy access to employee data in real time. It is designed specifically for companies
with a global workforce, especially when working in multiple countries with low headcount.
Ready for Growth When You Are
When ready, we can seamlessly transition you from the PEO/EOR model to your own legal entity and provide ongoing
international HR, finance, legal, compliance and staffing support. Learn more about our
end-to-end international expansion services.