Nigeria · Hiring guide

Hiring in Nigeria: the complete guide

You can hire in Nigeria either through your own entity or through an Employer of Record, which lets you employ legally without registering a company. CareerBuddy delivers a shortlist of three vetted Nigerian candidates in four business days, and takes an EOR hire from signed order form to first payroll in about 10 business days.

Start hiring in Nigeria →All services in Nigeria

Key facts

Primary hub: Lagos (Yaba, Ikoyi, Lekki)
Professional developers, Lagos: 100,000+
Senior software engineer median: $60,000 / year
Employer pension contribution: 10% of gross
NSITF: 1% of gross
Standard notice period: 1 month
Probation: 3–6 months
Entity setup avoided via EOR: 8–12 weeks + $5–15k

Statutory figures verified 2026-08-25. Currency: Nigerian Naira (NGN). Time zone: WAT (UTC+1).

The problem

What makes hiring in Nigeria hard

Nigeria is Africa's largest talent market, and also its most confusing to buy in. Setting up an entity takes 8–12 weeks and $5,000–$15,000 before you can pay anyone. Once you're live you owe PAYE to a state revenue service (LIRS in Lagos, not the federal FIRS), 10% employer pension to a licensed PFA, NSITF at 1% of gross and ITF at 1% of annual payroll above the ₦50m threshold. Meanwhile naira volatility means the senior candidates you actually want increasingly decline naira-only offers — so a package that looked competitive at signing can be 30% below market a year later.

The solution

How CareerBuddy handles it

CareerBuddy runs both halves. Recruitment gives you three vetted candidates in four business days from a Nigerian network of 200,000+ professionals, with a 90-day replacement guarantee. Employer of Record puts the hire on CareerBuddy's Nigerian entity: contract, NIN and BVN verification, PAYE to LIRS, pension to a licensed PFA, NSITF and ITF, all administered for you. Offers are quoted with both a naira base and a USD-linked figure so senior candidates accept and stay. Same team, same contract, same inbox for both.

Roles and salaries

What roles cost in Nigeria

Annual gross base salary in USD, by seniority. Employer statutory costs sit on top — use the Nigeria salary calculator for total cost of employment.

Annual gross base salary in USD by role family, Nigeria
Role family	Mid-level	Senior	Lead
Software EngineeringDeepest pool on the continent by professional-developer density in one city — backend, mobile and fintech-adjacent engineering.	$25,000	$37,500	$52,500
Product & DesignMature product and growth operator pool built out of the Lagos fintech cycle.	$20,000	$32,000	$47,500
Sales & Marketing	$18,000	$28,000	$42,000
Finance & OperationsStrong compliance, risk and payment-operations bench from banking and fintech.	$20,000	$30,000	$45,000
Executive / Leadership	$35,000	$50,000	$75,000

Pricing

Three ways to buy in Nigeria

Recruitment (permanent hire)15% of first-year salaryYou have a local entity, or you're hiring through your own payroll, and want a vetted shortlist in four business days.See how it works

Employer of RecordFrom $399 / employee / monthYou want to employ someone compliantly without registering a local entity. Contract, payroll, tax and statutory contributions handled.See how it works

Outsourced / managed teamPer-seat monthly rate, from 3 seatsYou need a pod — support, engineering or back-office — run on CareerBuddy's payroll with a single monthly invoice.See how it works

Recruitment carries a 90-day replacement guarantee. No upfront retainer. Full pricing.

From brief to first payroll in Nigeria

Day 0Signed brief
A 45-minute intake call sets the role scope, salary band, seniority and target start date for Nigeria. You sign the brief; no upfront fee.
Day 4Shortlist of three
Three vetted candidates, each with an interview scorecard, salary expectation and notice period. Four business days is the standard delivery window across every market.
Week 2Interviews and offer
You run your own loop; CareerBuddy manages scheduling, feedback and the offer negotiation, including the total-cost-of-employment figure rather than base alone.
Week 3Contract and compliance
Employment contract issued under Nigeria labour law, right-to-work checks completed, statutory registrations filed.
Week 4Payroll live
First payroll runs on schedule with all statutory deductions remitted. Onboarding to first payroll runs about 10 business days from a signed order form.

Where these numbers come from

10% employer pension contribution paid to a licensed Pension Fund Administrator, plus 8% employee.

Source: Pension Reform Act 2014

PAYE is withheld monthly and remitted to the state Inland Revenue Service — LIRS for Lagos-based employees.

Source: Personal Income Tax Act; Lagos State Internal Revenue Service

NSITF at 1% of gross monthly; ITF at 1% of annual payroll for employers above ₦50m payroll or 5 staff.

Source: NSITF Act; Industrial Training Fund Act

Probation typically 3–6 months with 1 month notice for monthly-paid employees.

Source: Labour Act 1990 (Cap L1 LFN 2004)

500+ CareerBuddy placements completed in Nigeria; 88.3% 12-month retention across all markets.

Source: CareerBuddy placement records — /about/company-facts

Hiring guides for the rest of Africa

🇰🇪Hiring in KenyaNairobi · senior engineering from $34,000 🇬🇭Hiring in GhanaAccra · senior engineering from $30,000 🇿🇦Hiring in South AfricaCape Town · senior engineering from $45,000 🇪🇬Hiring in EgyptCairo · senior engineering from $28,000

Common questions about hiring in Nigeria

Yes. An Employer of Record employs the person on its own Nigerian entity and invoices you, so you skip the 8–12 week, $5,000–$15,000 incorporation process. CareerBuddy's Nigerian EOR starts from $399 per employee per month.

Four business days to a shortlist of three vetted candidates, typically two to three weeks to a signed offer, and about 10 business days from signed order form to first payroll on an EOR hire.

10% pension to a licensed PFA, 1% NSITF on gross, and 1% ITF on annual payroll where the employer exceeds the ₦50m payroll or 5-employee threshold. PAYE is withheld from the employee and remitted to the state revenue service.

Quote both. Senior Nigerian candidates increasingly accept only USD-linked packages because of naira volatility; offers that show a naira base plus a USD-linked figure convert better and hold up at renewal.

15% of first-year salary, payable on placement, with a 90-day replacement guarantee. There is no upfront retainer.

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Get three vetted Nigeria candidates in four days

Tell us the role, the band and the start date. You'll get a shortlist of three with scorecards, salary expectations and notice periods — and a total-cost-of-employment figure, not just a base salary.