Step-by-step calculation
This walk-through assumes a Myanmar tax resident — a citizen, permanent resident, or foreigner present 183 days or more in the tax year (1 April – 31 March). Default: single, no dependant allowances, no allowable donations. Brackets are from the Union Tax Law 2025-2026 (Section 5). The Myanmar Income Tax Law assesses residents on worldwide income: salary, business profits, dividends, interest, royalties, and rental income earned anywhere in the world are added together before applying the 20% basic relief and the 0–25% bands.
Step 1 — Apply the 20% basic personal relief
The 20% basic personal relief applies to total assessable income — Myanmar-source plus foreign-source. The relief is capped at MMK 10,000,000/year regardless of how diverse the income mix is.
| Annual Myanmar-source salary | (your figure) |
| Plus: foreign-source salary, dividends, interest, rental | (your figure) |
| = Total worldwide assessable income | (sum) |
| Less: 20% basic personal relief | − up to MMK 10,000,000 |
| Less: spouse / child / parent allowances | 0 in default case |
| Annual taxable income | = residual |
Step 2 — Apply the Union Tax Law 2025-2026 brackets
The same six progressive bands apply (1L = MMK 100,000):
| Annual taxable income | Marginal rate |
|---|---|
| 1L – 20L (MMK 0 – 2,000,000) | 0% |
| 20L – 100L (MMK 2,000,000 – 10,000,000) | 5% |
| 100L – 300L (MMK 10,000,000 – 30,000,000) | 10% |
| 300L – 500L (MMK 30,000,000 – 50,000,000) | 15% |
| 500L – 700L (MMK 50,000,000 – 70,000,000) | 20% |
| 700L & above (MMK 70,000,000+) | 25% |
Worked illustration — resident with Myanmar salary MMK 15,000,000 + foreign rental MMK 5,000,000 = MMK 20,000,000 worldwide income (taxable = MMK 16,000,000 after 20% relief):
| Band | Amount in band (MMK) | Rate | Tax (MMK) |
|---|---|---|---|
| First 2,000,000 | 2,000,000 | 0% | 0 |
| 2,000,001 – 10,000,000 | 8,000,000 | 5% | 400,000 |
| 10,000,001 – 16,000,000 | 6,000,000 | 10% | 600,000 |
| Annual PIT (worldwide) | MMK 1,000,000 | ||
Step 3 — Convert to monthly withholding
- Annual PIT on worldwide income: MMK 1,000,000
- PAYE on Myanmar salary portion only: employer withholds based on the MMK 15,000,000 Myanmar-source slice; the foreign rental tax is settled via the annual return.
- Top-up at year-end: the resident pays the residual on the annual return by 30 June.
What about SSB and the true net salary?
SSB applies only to Myanmar-source employment income. The 2% employee contribution is capped at MMK 300,000 wage base (max MMK 6,000/month); employer 3% (max MMK 9,000/month). Foreign rental, dividends, and interest are outside the SSB base.
| Monthly Myanmar gross | MMK 1,250,000 |
| Less: PAYE on Myanmar slice | − (employer estimate) |
| Less: SSB (employee, 2% on cap) | − MMK 6,000 |
| Monthly take-home (Myanmar component) | = residual |
Employer takeaway
Test residency first (≥ 183 days in the 1 April – 31 March tax year). If resident, the employee must declare worldwide income on the annual return. Employers withhold PAYE on the Myanmar-source salary by the 15th of the following month; the resident files the annual reconciliation by 30 June to capture foreign rental, dividend, interest, and offshore salary, claiming any treaty relief or foreign tax credit available. Retain supporting records for at least 7 years.
Common variations to watch for
- Treaty relief — Myanmar's tax treaties may reduce withholding tax abroad and provide a foreign tax credit. See tax-treaty benefits.
- Non-resident in same year — under 183 days means only Myanmar-source income is taxable (flat 25%).
- Currency conversion — convert foreign income to MMK at the Central Bank reference rate on the date received.
- Foreign rental in joint names — split the income on the agreed ownership ratio.
- Returning Myanmar nationals — citizens are residents by default unless they prove non-resident status under the tax law.
Common PIT mistakes to avoid
- Treating foreign salary as exempt — residents are assessable on it. See expat PIT calculation.
- Forgetting the foreign tax credit — tax already paid abroad on the same income may be creditable; gather foreign tax certificates.
- Mixing tax-year and calendar-year totals — Myanmar tax year is 1 April – 31 March; foreign payslips often follow January–December.
- Skipping the annual return — PAYE alone does not capture foreign-source items. See PIT filing forms.
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