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Employees contracted before January 26, 2017
Every employee having worked at least 700 hours in the twelve-month period commencing October 1 and ending September 30 is entitled to receive a mandatory Christmas Bonus. The bonus is 6% of the employee’s wages up to a maximum employee individual wage of $10,000. Accordingly, the maximum bonus payable will be $600.
In the case of those employers with 12 or less employees, the applicable rate is 3% of the employee wages up to a maximum of $10,000 ($300).
Employees contracted after January 26, 2017
Every employee having worked at least 700 hours in the twelve-month period commencing October 1 and ending September 30 is entitled to receive a mandatory Christmas Bonus. In case, that the employer employs 21 or more employees for 26 weeks within the coverage period, will be required to pay to each employee a bonus equal to 3% of the total salary earned up to a maximum bonus of $600.
In case of those employers with 20 or less employees, the applicable rate is 3% up to a maximum bonus of $300.
Employees of PYMES must have worked 900 hours to qualify for the payment of the Christmas Bonus.
PYMES – It includes microenterprises, small and medium merchants as defined by Law No. 62-2014, as amended. Microenterprise is a business or enterprise that generates a lower gross income of $500,000 each year and has seven (7) employees or less. A small merchant is a business or enterprise that generates a gross income less than $3,000,000 each year and has twenty-five (25) employees or less. And the medium size merchant is a business that generates a gross income less than $10 million each year and has 50 or fewer employees.
The payment of Christmas Bonus required by law must normally made between November 15 and December 15 of the current year.
If the Christmas bonus does not exceed $600, the employer will not withhold taxes from bonus paid. When the Christmas bonus exceeds $600 but does not exceed $1,500, the employer must withhold a 7% tax from the total bonus. If the bonus exceeds $1,500, the employer may use the applicable withholding rules established on “Employer’s Guide”.
Christmas Bonus Exemption Request
Employer may request an exemption from payment of the Christmas Bonus if the total gross amount that would be payable to its employees exceeds 15% of its total net income during the same twelve-month period used to determine the eligible employees.
To request the exemption, an employer must send a written notification to the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources specifying the reason for the exemption not later than November 30, 2022. The employer must include original signed and sealed compiled, revised or audited financial statements and their notes for the period from October 1, 2021 through September 30, 2022. If the employer’s fiscal year does not end on September 30, the employer may submit, in the alternative, financial statements corresponding to its fiscal year, and interim financial statements for the remaining period between the end of its fiscal year statements and September 30, 2022.
If the employer fails to submit the data to support non-payment of the bonus, he becomes liable for the payment of the full bonus.
If the employer does not pay the bonus when due, the employee will be entitled to receive and additional bonus. It can be 50% or 100% of the amount of the bonus, depending on the date paid.
Employers are required to advise terminated employees who are entitled to the bonus before payment due date and may request his/her mailing address to mail the bonus.
Links:
DTRH – Christmas Bonus 2022
