The 2024 bonuses paid in 2025 will be taxed on the basis of the old, more unfavorable scale. For employees who will receive an exceptional bonus in 2025 for their performance relating to the 2024 financial year, it will be necessary to pay attention to the discrepancy with the new scale and the effect of “double tax penalty”. Decryption of this tax specificity.
For your bonuses acquired in 2024, did you think you would benefit from the new reduced IR scale in 2025? Think again! For 2024 bonuses, the old taxation applies. Explanations. “Patatras! The bonus acquired in 2024 which will be paid in January, February or March 2025 will be subject to the 2024 IR scale and not the new 2025 scale.” This is the warning issued by Mohamed Belkhayat, chartered accountant and auditor. A warning to be taken seriously for all employees who will receive a bonus in a few months.
According to article 71 of the General Tax Code (CGI), “income tax (IR) is established each year due to the overall income acquired by the taxpayer during the previous year”. Clearly, the applicable scale is determined by the year of acquisition of income and not that of its collection. In other words, this article of the CGI establishes a fundamental principle: income tax is calculated on the basis of income acquired during a given year, regardless of their actual collection date.
Let’s take the example of an exceptional bonus acquired for performance achieved in 2024, but which will be paid in January or February 2025. Although this bonus is collected in 2025, it remains income acquired over the year 2024. This is therefore the 2024 tax scale which will apply for the calculation of the tax corresponding to this bonus.
The payment date has no impact on the tax year. All that counts is the year during which the income was generated and acquired in respect of the activity carried out by the taxpayer. This principle has very few exceptions. One of the rare exemptions concerns workers not residing in Morocco who are only taxed on income actually received on the national territory during the year in question.
For employees and resident professionals, on the other hand, the tax administration systematically refers to the year of acquisition of income to apply the appropriate tax scale, in accordance with article 71 of the CGI.
A performance bonus acquired in 2024 will therefore be taxed according to the tax brackets in force for that year, even if it is paid in 2025. It is this possible gap between the years of acquisition and perception which leads sometimes with the effects of “double tax penalty” when changing the scale, as for the 2024 bonuses subject to the old scale despite their payment in 2025.
Concrete example
Bonuses, whether paid by a private or public employer, are considered salary income in the same way as the base salary. They are therefore included in the calculation of overall taxable income. Thus, an exceptional bonus acquired in 2024 but paid in 2025 will be subject to the tax brackets in force in 2024, and not to the new, more advantageous rates planned for 2025. Its amount will be added to the 2024 annual salary for the calculation of the ‘IR to pay.
Concretely, if an employee received 150,000 DH in salary in 2024 to which is added a bonus of 50,000 DH, their overall taxable income will reach 200,000 DH. It will therefore be taxed at 34% on the bracket from 180,000 DH to 200,000 DH, i.e. an additional tax of 6,800 DH on the bonus.
On the other hand, if this same bonus of 50,000 DH had been acquired and taxed in 2025, only the bracket from 40,001 DH to 50,000 DH would have been taxed at 10%, representing a tax saving of around 12,000 DH.
Technical limitation of payroll software
“Very few payroll software offer the possibility of adjusting the 2024 annual IR when paying the bonus in 2025,” underlines the accountant. This statement raises an important practical issue regarding the management of payroll bonuses and their taxation.
Indeed, most of this software does not allow the calculation of income tax for the previous year to be retroactively adjusted when a bonus is paid in a new tax year. Indeed, the calculation of IR is generally done annually on the basis of income received during the year. When a 2024 bonus is paid in 2025, the majority of IT payroll solutions do not have the functionality to attach this income to the 2024 financial year to recalculate the IR due to the old scale.
This technical constraint poses a problem in the specific case where the tax scale changes from one year to the next, as is the case between 2024 and 2025 in Morocco. The risk is then to see the 2024 bonus imposed by default on the basis of the new 2025 scale, leading to undertaxation.
To compensate for this lack, the accountant strongly recommends that the employees concerned consult a payroll and tax professional in order to anticipate and manually manage the imposition of the 2024 bonus according to the old scale and avoid unpleasant surprises. . An accountant familiar with the rules of the CGI could carry out the appropriate calculations, complete the necessary corrective declarations and ensure payment of the additional tax due on the bonus.
In the absence of appropriate manual processing, there is a great risk of the tax administration subsequently carrying out an automatic regularization, accompanied by penalties. This recommendation illustrates the current limitations of payroll tools for automatically managing certain specific situations in the event of changes in tax regulations.
Sanctions in the event of incorrect declaration
Beyond simple technical considerations, the accountant recalls the crucial importance of properly declaring and paying the taxes due on bonuses, under penalty of exposure to severe sanctions from the tax administration.
In the event of incorrect or incomplete declaration of income, such as a bonus unduly imposed on the 2025 scale instead of 2024, the tax authorities will have the possibility of carrying out an automatic regularization. This will consist of rectifying the tax base and demanding payment of the additional tax evaded, accompanied by heavy penalties. The CGI provides for fines of 10% to 30% of the additional duties due in the event of insufficient declaration.
The rate of 30% therefore represents the ceiling of penalties applicable when the breach is considered substantial by the administration. For example, for a bonus of 50,000 DH acquired in 2024 but unduly taxed at the 2025 scale, the tax difference could reach several thousand dirhams. With a maximum penalty of 30%, the total amount to be regularized would then easily exceed 10,000 DH.
Beyond the purely financial aspects, tax regularization also constitutes a long and tedious procedure, a source of repeated exchanges with the tax authorities and time-consuming administrative chores for the taxpayer. It is to avoid these inconveniences that it is recommended to anticipate now the appropriate tax treatment of 2024 bonuses paid in 2025.
By calling on a competent professional, the employee will be able to ensure strict compliance with his reporting obligations and the correct application of the tax scale for the year of acquisition of income. A prevention approach which, beyond avoiding financial penalties, will also save a lot of administrative hassle later.
A bitter taste for bonus recipients in 2024
You should know that the bonus tax regime does not have any specificities depending on the sector of activity. On the other hand, recurring bonuses linked to performance or seniority are generally better prepared in company remuneration policies. Employer and employee social security contributions due on the bonus are not deductible from taxable income, as is the case for the basic salary. As for the possible spread of payment over several years, it does not optimize taxation, the IR remaining due in the year of acquisition of the income.
While tax rates will fall in 2025, in particular with a 0% bracket extended to 40,000 DH, the reform could well leave a bitter taste for bonus beneficiaries in 2024. A situation which calls on employees to be cautious and anticipation to avoid tax disappointments.
Bilal Cherraji / ECO Inspirations
