Thursday, June 25,
2026 - The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has moved to clarify the
sudden reduction in June salaries for thousands of teachers across Kenya.
In a statement, the Commission admitted that a payroll
system anomaly had mistakenly granted teachers duplicate tax relief on National
Social Security Fund (NSSF) contributions.
The error, it explained, was corrected in the June 2026
payroll, resulting in higher PAYE deductions.
TSC stressed that the deductions were not new taxes.
The anomaly arose during the reconfiguration of the
Integrated Personnel and Payroll Database (IPPD) system after amendments
introduced under the Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 2024.
The law exempted contributions to the Affordable Housing
Levy (AHL) Fund and the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) from income tax,
requiring payroll systems across Government institutions to be updated.
The discrepancy between May and June salaries sparked anger
in schools and online forums, with many teachers initially speculating fresh
taxes had been imposed.
“What shocked teachers most is not just the deductions, but
the silence before they appeared,” one teacher lamented in an online
discussion.
Defending the adjustment, the Commission insisted that the
move was necessary to align payroll deductions with existing tax laws and
ensure accurate PAYE computation going forward.
Nonetheless, the controversy has reignited broader concerns
over shrinking disposable incomes among Kenyan teachers.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
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