Rwanda, formally the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked nation in Central Africa's Great Rift Valley, where the African Great Lakes area and Southeast Africa meet. Rwanda is surrounded by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and is located a few degrees south of the Equator. Its terrain is characterized by mountains in the west and savanna in the southeast, with several lakes scattered across the nation, earning it the nickname "land of a thousand hills." Each year, the climate ranges from moderate to subtropical, with two wet seasons and two dry seasons. Rwanda is the most densely inhabited nation in Africa, with a population of over 12.6 million people living on 26,338 km2 (10,169 sq mi) of land; it is the fifth most densely populated country in the world among countries greater than 10,000 km2. Kigali, the capital and biggest city, with a population of one million people.
The population is youthful and primarily rural; Rwanda has one of the world's youngest populations, with an average age of 19 years. Rwandans are all members of the Banyarwanda cultural and language group. Within this group, however, there are three subgroups: the Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa. The Twa are a forest-dwelling pygmy group who are frequently considered Rwanda's first settlers. Scholars argue on the origins and distinctions between the Hutu and Tutsi; some say the divisions stem from prior social classes within a same population, while others believe the Hutu and Tutsi arrived in the nation independently and from various areas. The majority religion in the nation is Christianity; the primary language is Kinyarwanda, which is spoken by the majority of Rwandans, with English and French acting as supplementary official languages. Rwanda is a sovereign state with a presidential form of government. President Paul Kagame of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) has been in office since 2000. Rwanda now has low levels of corruption in comparison to neighboring nations, yet human rights organizations claim persecution of opposition parties, intimidation, and limits on freedom of expression. Since precolonial times, the nation has been ruled by a rigid administrative hierarchy; there are five provinces delimited by boundaries created in 2006. Rwanda is one of just three nations in the world with a female parliamentary majority, the other two being Bolivia and Cuba.
Hunter-gatherers populated the area in the Stone and Iron Ages, followed by Bantu peoples later. The populace was organized first into clans, later into kingdoms. From the mid-eighteenth century, the Kingdom of Rwanda ruled, with Tutsi rulers defeating others militarily, consolidating control, and eventually instituting anti-Hutu policies. Rwanda was colonized by Germany in 1884 as part of German East Africa, and was later attacked by Belgium during World War I. Both European countries controlled via their monarchs and maintained a pro-Tutsi attitude. In 1959, the Hutu people rebelled. They slaughtered many Tutsis before establishing an autonomous, Hutu-dominated country commanded by President Grégoire Kayibanda in 1962. A military coup in 1973 deposed Kayibanda and installed Juvénal Habyarimana, who maintained the pro-Hutu policies. In 1990, the Tutsi-led Rwandan Patriotic Front declared civil war. In April 1994, Habyarimana was murdered. Social tensions emerged during the Rwandan genocide, in which Hutu extremists slaughtered an estimated 500,000–1,000,000 Tutsi and Hutu in a hundred days. In July 1994, the RPF won a military victory that put an end to the genocide.
Rwanda's burgeoning economy suffered greatly in the aftermath of the genocide in 1994, but has since recovered. The economy is mostly dependent on subsistence agriculture. Coffee and tea are the most important export revenue crops. Tourism is a rapidly expanding industry that is presently the country's top foreign currency earner. Rwanda has been recognized as a developing digital powerhouse for Africa in the twenty-first century, with a surge in start-up firms. Rwanda is one of just two nations where mountain gorillas may be visited securely, and gorilla tracking licenses are expensive. Rwandan culture is rich in music and dance, notably the highly choreographed intore dance. Throughout the nation, traditional arts and crafts are created, including imigongo, a distinctive cow dung art.
Since 1994, Rwanda has been governed by a unitary presidential government with a bicameral parliament presided over by the Rwandan Patriotic Front. The African Union, the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, COMESA, OIF, and the East African Community are all members of the nation.
After a year of employment, employees are entitled to 18 days of paid annual leave. Employees under the age of 18 are entitled to 24 paid vacation days per year. In addition, paid leave entitlements for adult employees rise with duration of service. For every three years of service, an additional day of leave is granted, up to a maximum of 21 earned paid annual leave days each year.
There are many holidays
New Year’s Day
New Year’s Holiday
National Heroes Day
Tutsi Genocide Memorial Day
Good Friday
Easter Monday
Labor Day
Eid-al Fitr
Independence Day
Liberation Day
Eid-al Adha
Umuganura
Assumption Day
Christmas Day
Boxing Day
Employees can take up to 15 days of sick leave per year if they provide a medical certificate. A committee of three authorized medical practitioners determines long-term illness, which is allowed for no more than three months with pay and three months without pay.
Female employees are entitled to 12 weeks of paid maternity leave, which begins two weeks prior to the scheduled birth date and can be extended by a month if the mother or the child experience problems. Before beginning maternity leave, a certificate of delivery must be provided.
Rwanda does not have a statutory paternity leave.
Apart from maternity leave, there are no other provisions in the Rwandan law regarding parental leave.
Unless there is mutual permission, termination must be in writing. If an employee is terminated for egregious misconduct, he or she must be told within 48 hours after the occurrence of evidence of the same.
Unlawful termination can result in damages ranging from three to six months' salary for the injured person, but can reach nine months' compensation if the employment relationship lasted at least ten years.
Discipline may take the form of an oral warning, a written warning, a brief suspension, or termination.
Contracts with an indefinite duration may be terminated for cause, and written notice should be provided to the employee, except in the case of serious misconduct. The following are the notice requirements. A 15-day notice period is required for employees with less than one year of service. A one-month notice period is required for service of more than one year.
Six-month probationary periods are permitted. During the probationary period, no notice of termination is required.
After one year of service, employees are generally entitled to severance pay. Severance pay is paid in the following manner. Severance pay is equivalent to one month's salary for employees with less than five years of service. Severance pay for five to ten years of service is equivalent to two months' salary. Severance pay for 10-15 years of service is equivalent to three months' salary. Severance pay for 15-20 years of service is equivalent to four months' salary. Severance pay for 20-25 years of service is equivalent to five months' salary. Severance pay is equivalent to six months' salary for employees with more than 25 years of service.
There is a cap on the number of hours employees can work each week and a set working day of seven and a half hours, six days per week.
Overtime pay is set in the employment contract.
Rwanda's compensation regulations include industry-specific minimum salaries. Individuals working in the tea business, for example, earn $0.83 a day, while workers in the construction industry earn anywhere from $2.50 to $8.30 per day.
Rwanda features a public/private healthcare system supported by government funds, payroll taxes, and out-of-pocket expenditures. The vast majority of the population contributes to the Community-Based Health Insurance Scheme, which gives access to all public and non-profit health facilities for a 10% co-pay. Private clinic access is not provided.
Car allowance, loans, housing allowance, and phone allowance are some of the most popular employment perks in Rwanda.
Rwanda has both a source and a residence-based taxes system in place. This implies that any income considered to be derived from Rwandan sources will be subject to Rwandan taxation. Furthermore, resident entities are taxed on their global revenue. However, if such income is taxed in another country, a tax credit is given that does not exceed the tax due on the identical income in Rwanda.
Non-resident entities are taxed on revenue generated in Rwanda through a permanent establishment (PE). The usual rate of corporate income tax (CIT) is 30%. However, micro-enterprise firms (with less than 12 million Rwanda francs [RWF] in revenue in a tax period) pay flat tax amounts, while small businesses (with RWF 12 million to RWF 20 million in sales in a tax period) pay a lump sum tax at the rate of 3% of turnover.
Rwandan residents are taxed on their global earnings. Non-residents are taxed on income earned in Rwanda. Residents and non-residents are subject to the same tax rates.
A person's taxable income for any year is the sum of that person's income for the year minus the entire amount of deductions that person is permitted. Employment income, company earnings, and investment income are all examples of taxable income.
The current monthly personal income tax (PIT) rates are as follows.
For an income from RWF 0 to RWF 30,000, the tax rate is 0.
For an income between RWF 30,001 to RWF 100,000, the tax rate is 20 percent.
For an income beyond RWF 100,000, the tax rate is 30 percent.
VAT is imposed on both the supply of taxable goods and services in Rwanda and the importation of taxable goods and services into Rwanda.
The taxable turnover criteria for VAT registration is RWF 20 million in any relevant year or RWF 5 million in a calendar quarter. The normal VAT rate is 18% and applies to products and services that are neither exempt nor zero-rated from VAT.
VAT is levied at 0% on exports of goods and services. Supplies to privileged individuals, such as items imported for official diplomatic missions, supplies made under specific arrangements between the Rwandan government and donors, and supplies or imports made under special technical assistance agreements, are exempt from VAT. Persons eligible to zero rating on goods or supplies obtained must pay VAT at the time of receipt and then request for a refund of the VAT paid.
Some supplies are exempt from VAT, including water supply, health-related goods and services, educational materials and services, transportation services, books and newspapers, financial and insurance services, lending or leasing interests in land or buildings for residential purposes, funeral services, energy supplies, and all unprocessed agricultural and livestock products.
Suppliers that offer zero-rated services or products are allowed to reclaim the input VAT they paid in order to make the provision. In contrast, input VAT recovery is not permitted for exempt suppliers. As a result, a zero rating is preferable to exemption.
Monthly VAT returns and payments are required to the Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) by the 15th of the following month. Taxpayers with a yearly turnover of RWF 200 million or less, on the other hand, may choose to submit VAT returns or make payments on a quarterly or monthly basis.
Foreign citizens who have received an Entry Visa through the electronic visa system must enter Rwanda through one of the following authorized checkpoints: Kigali International Airport, Kagitumba, Buziba, Gatuna, Cyanika, Kabuhanga, Poids Lourds, Lacorniche, Kamembe International Airport, Ruzizi I, Ruzizi II, Bugarama, Ruhwa, Bweyeye, Nshili, Kanyaru Bas, Kanyar
Your visa's validity period and maximum length of stay are both 30 days per entry.
Applicants' passports must be valid for at least six months from the date of scheduled arrival in Rwanda.
To receive the travel document, you must provide evidence of accommodation. The dates in this document MUST correspond to the trip dates chosen in the application. This is a condition imposed by the government in order for the travel document to be issued.
It is strongly advised that visa applications be submitted at least three days before the projected date of travel.
Employers are not required by law to conduct pre-employment background checks. However, if an employer chooses to do a background check, it must adhere to Rwanda's data privacy rules.
Employment contracts may be for a set period of time or for an unlimited period of time. They may be written or oral, but they cannot be longer than 90 days.
Rwandan Franc
Before you begin the Rwanda subsidiary formation procedure, you should think about where you want to incorporate and how you want to operate in the nation. Separate towns or areas in Rwanda may have their own legislation that make incorporation simple or difficult. We propose studying different sites around the nation and choosing an office space in a region that is welcoming to incorporation.
Your company objectives will also influence the sort of corporation you select to incorporate as. Rwanda recognizes multiple subsidiary forms, including a public limited company, a limited liability company (LLC), and a representative business. Many corporations opt to establish up their subsidiary as an LLC since it gives them greater flexibility to operate in Rwanda and protects both the parent company and the subsidiary.
The following stages are included in the Rwanda subsidiary establishment process:
1. Registering your company using a copy of your ID or passport
2. Completing two copies of the Memorandum of Association Art 14
3. Opening an in-country bank account and depositing your paid-up capital
4. Paying corporate taxes on all firm earnings
5. Accounts are filed with the Registrar of Companies.
6. Going through audits if you earn more than 400 million Rwandan francs every year
Rwanda's subsidiary laws are determined by the entity you choose throughout the formation procedure. LLCs must have at least one shareholder and one director, both of whom may be of any nationality. To complete the procedure, you must also deposit at least $850 in paid-up capital into a bank.
Certain paperwork are required for all businesses in order to comply with Rwanda's subsidiary legislation. Your LLC will need a firm name, a description of business operations, information about shareholders and directors, an address, and other details. To properly establish a subsidiary, you must compile these documents and information ahead of time.
