- Income tax brackets updated
Refreshed 2026 rates, brackets, WHT, pension, VAT, sources and prose from MRA and Taxation Act amendments (mra.mw) Source
MW
Malawi
Eastern Africa
MWK
MW · MWI · #98 · 8 cities
Nomad score
47/100
Compare
Top income tax
40.0%
Worldwide system
Corporate tax
40.0%
VAT
17.5%
standard rate
Tax residency
183 days
6 tax treaties
Malawi tax profile
Data year: 2026
- Tax system
- Worldwide Residents are taxed on worldwide income. Companies are generally taxed on Malawi-source income; foreign-source corporate income is exempt. Standard VAT is 17.5% from 1 January 2026 (previously 16.5%). Large companies with turnover above MWK 5 billion and at least three years of operations may pay minimum alternative tax at 0.5% of turnover if that exceeds normal CIT. Branches of foreign companies remain subject to a 35% rate under the general Taxation Act (not modelled in headline CIT brackets).
- Top PIT rate
- 40.0%
- Corporate tax rate
- 40.0%
- VAT
- 17.5%
- Capital gains tax
- Rate not recorded
- Social security (employee)
- 5.0%
- Social security (employer)
- 10.0%
- Dividend withholding
- 10.0%
- Interest withholding
- 20.0%
- Royalty withholding
- 20.0%
- Treaty count
- 6
Income tax brackets
Corporate
| Bracket min | Bracket max | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| MWK 0 | MWK 5,000,000,000 | 30.0% |
| MWK 5,000,000,001 | and above | 40.0% |
Personal income
| Bracket min | Bracket max | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| MWK 0 | MWK 2,040,000 | 0.0% |
| MWK 2,040,001 | MWK 18,840,000 | 30.0% |
| MWK 18,840,001 | MWK 120,000,000 | 35.0% |
| MWK 120,000,001 | and above | 40.0% |
Tax residency
- Days threshold
- 183 days
- Residency rules
- An individual is resident if present in Malawi for an aggregate of 183 or more days in the year of assessment, or if they meet other statutory tests (for example Malawian-incorporated companies and certain trusts). Non-residents are taxed on Malawi-source income; section 76A imposes a 15% final tax on certain gross payments to non-residents without a permanent establishment.
- Exit tax
- No
- CFC rules
- No
Filing information
- Fiscal year
- 01-01 – 12-31
- Filing deadline
- 180 days after year end
Sources
- MRA — New tax measures (Taxation and VAT amendments 2025) (accessed Oct 9, 2026) PIT/PAYE and CIT rate changes, VAT 17.5%, MAT, share CG exemption removal, gambling WHT 15%
- Taxation (Amendment) Act No. 36 of 2025 (accessed Oct 9, 2026) Eleventh Schedule employment and non-employment income tables; Fourteenth Schedule WHT on winnings
- Taxation Act (Cap. 41:01) (accessed Oct 9, 2026) Residency 183-day rule, Fourteenth Schedule WHT rates, non-resident final tax s.76A
- Malawi Pension Act 2023 (accessed Oct 9, 2026) Mandatory pension contributions 5% employee and 10% employer on pensionable earnings