The UIF has a contribution limit and a threshold it holds. There is a monthly amount of money that is paid as a contribution to employees and employers all of this is a result of the benefit that they will receive when they encounter any problem later on. The UIF contribution has increased from R14, 872 per month to R17, 712 per month

UIF Contribution

The UIF which stands for Unemployment Insurance Fund is a scheme that caters for unemployed persons/individuals in the country and those who are facing one challenge or the other that has been dropped from their previous jobs. The UIF caters for the unemployed, those who did adopt, illnesses, survivors/dependents and maternity. Some are exempted from paying any of this contribution and they hold special offices or do some menial jobs in the country.

The UIF contribution is paid on the 7^th of every month by every employer in the country. An employer deducts 1% of his/her employee’s salary and deducts 1% from his own which makes it 2% in total and with the new law that has been put into place there is a certain amount that every establishment must pay monthly to meet the target.

The UIF contribution has increased from R14, 872 per month to R17, 712 per month. The main UIF act states that the employer must deduct the employee’s contribution from the employee’s remuneration and it also goes on to say that the employer remains liable for the contribution of the UIF. If a contribution is deducted from the employee, then the deduction will be shown on the employee’s pay slip, giving him proof that the contribution was deducted.

Secondly, the payment of an employee contribution by the employer would be a payment of an employee’s debt and constitutes a taxable fringe benefit and this would result in a change to the remuneration on which the contribution was calculated, leading to another calculation of the contribution. All of this was stated in the UIF rule book and you must adhere to their rules strictly so you can enjoy the benefit.

Paying off all these funds can be done in the uFiling platform, you will just have to log in, make a payment and every transaction is recorded there. Each of the benefits that have been attached to this platform has different ways that it can be claimed, and it should be noted on the platform if you are a commercial worker or a domestic worker as there are two different types.

The UIF has benefitted so many individuals and this is due to the ongoing economic crises in the country and one of the reasons the government has made an increase in every way possible so that many persons can benefit good amount of money once they encounter any of the problems that have existed in those categories.

On the uFiling platform, it should be noted that everything that is going on is confidential and no one gets to see your payment or anything that you are trying to do, but you must have at least one person aware of all your payments in the case of survivor/ dependents benefits as this might be helpful later on in terms of claiming that particular benefit.

UIF Contribution Limit

There is a contribution limit that is attached to the UIF and this limit is pertinent to everyone. The maximum contribution has been stated to be about R17, 712 per month or R212, 544 annually and this has been clarified that if you earn higher there are ways that it can be worked around. There are so many reasons why the UIF increase has been a great approach and the government has used this opportunity to talk about the benefits that are being attached to the system.

The UIF contribution limit is meant for everyone and it is advised that as an employer you should follow the rules that have been set out for this. The maximum UIF contribution for each party is, therefore, R177.12 a month (R354.24 in total)*. For employees who are paid at more regular intervals (e.g. weekly), this cap will be apportioned across their pay periods, this may lead to slightly lower UIF contributions in the last pay period of the month.

One of the questions that are always being asked is what if an employee works for multiple employers does he/she have to pay the UIF contribution for every employer they work for? The answer to this question is YES and this is because section 5 of the Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act states that every employer and every employee must contribute to the Unemployment Insurance Fund, provided that it applies to them. This means that UIF is calculated per source of income.

Therefore, if an employee works for multiple employers, they must pay UIF with each employer, even though the cap may be reached with one employer. For example, if an employee works at two different companies and each company pays them R20 000, they will contribute R177.12 per month to the UIF from each salary (i.e. a total of R354.24 would be contributed per month).

Their contribution is not limited to a cap of R177.12 across all sources of income. If the employee were to become retrenched with both companies, they would be able to claim UIF in respect of their employment at both companies (i.e. they receive 2 benefit payments). Seeing the benefits that are attached to the UIF will give you more passion to join and make a contribution because you can predict what will happen and how that money will become useful to you over the years.

Conclusion

The UIF contribution limit is one everybody must uphold, as an employer you must ensure you contribute your 2% monthly to the system as this will help your workers in getting the benefits that they deserve. The UIF is a system that has been put up by the government to curb the economic issues of the country.