INTRODUCTION
The Preamble to the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No. 2 of 2016 declares:
“WE, THE PEOPLE OF ZAMBIA: ACKNOWLEDGE the supremacy of God Almighty; DECLARE the Republic a Christian Nation while upholding a person’s right to freedom of conscience, belief or religion …”
In this constitutional context, tithing, the giving of one-tenth of one’s income to the church, is deeply entrenched among Zambian Christians. The practice is rooted in scripture: Abraham gave a tenth to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:20); the law of Moses commanded it (Leviticus 27:30); the prophet Malachi delivered God’s challenge to “bring the whole tithe into the storehouse” (Malachi 3:10); and Jesus Himself affirmed the practice (Matthew 23:23). Millions of Zambians pay their tithes faithfully every month.
What most tithing Christians do not know is that Zambian tax law, through Section 41 of the Income Tax Act, Chapter 323 of the Laws of Zambia (“ITA”), provides a deduction for payments made to approved churches and religious organisations. Where a salaried employee’s tithes qualify for this deduction, the employee has overpaid his personal income tax (commonly known as: “Pay-As-You-Earn” or “PAYE”) during the year and is entitled to a refund from the Zambia Revenue Authority (“ZRA”).
The reason for the overpayment is simple. When an employer deducts PAYE from your emolument each month, the employer does not know that you will pay your tithe and cannot adjust the PAYE calculation. PAYE is computed on the taxable emolument. But after the Section 41 of ITA deduction, your actual taxable emolument is lower than the emolument on which PAYE was calculated. This gap between what the employer deducted and what the law actually requires, creates an overpayment that you are entitled to reclaim.
Yet the majority of tithing Christians never claim this PAYE refund. Many fear that claiming a PAYE refund would amount to “taking back from God.” Others believe that any PAYE refund received must be returned to the Church. Some simply do not know that Section 41 of ITA exists. The result is widespread, unnecessary over-taxation – money that could support families, fund children’s education, or be given as additional offerings to the Church.
This article explains the law, demonstrates how the refund works through practical examples, and addresses the theological concerns head-on. Whether you tithe to the Catholic Church, the United Church of Zambia, the Reformed Church, the Seventh Day Adventist Church, the Pentecostal Churches, or any other registered religious body, this article is for you.
THE LAW: SECTION 41 OF THE INCOME TAX ACT
The Statutory Deduction
Section 41(1) of the Income Tax Act provides:
“Subject to the other provisions of this section, an amount paid by a person during a charge year to a public benefit organisation, shall be deducted from the income of that person for that charge year if:
the payment is in money or money’s worth;
the payment is made for no consideration;
subject to subsections (2) and (3), the Minister approves the public benefit organisation to which the payment is made: Provided that an approval by the Minister may be given retrospectively; or
the payment is made to a public benefit organisation that is owned by the Government.”
Churches as Public Benefit Organisations
Section 2 of ITA defines a “public benefit organisation” as an organisation registered under Zambian law and established exclusively for the purpose of providing a public benefit activity. Item (5) of the Tenth Schedule of the ITA lists the following as a qualifying public benefit activity:
“Religion – The promotion or practice of religious or ecclesiastical activities that encompass acts of worship, witness, teaching and community service.”
Churches, ministries and religious organisations registered under Zambian law and approved by the Minister of Finance therefore qualify as public benefit organisations. Your tithe paid to such an organisation is, by law, a tax deductible payment.
Conditions and the 15% Cap
Section 41(4) of ITA limits the tax deduction to 15% of the assessable income (taxable emolument) per charge year. Since a standard tithe is 10% of income, it falls comfortably within this cap. Additional offerings are also covered up to the 15% ceiling. The four (4) conditions for the tax deduction are:
Important: If your church is not approved by the Minister as a public benefit organisation, your tithe may not qualify for the tax deduction. Confirm with your church leadership. Most established denominations have obtained or are eligible for this approval. If your church has not yet applied, encourage the leadership to do so. Section 41(1)(c) expressly provides that the Minister’s approval may be given retrospectively, meaning that tithes paid before the approval date may still qualify once the approval is granted.
Gross Income vs Net Income: Does It Matter?
Churches differ on whether the tithe should be calculated on gross income (before PAYE) or net income (after PAYE). This is a theological debate on which churches may legitimately differ. From a legal perspective, however, the distinction is entirely irrelevant to the availability of the tax deduction.
Section 41(1) of ITA uses the words “an amount paid by a person during a charge year to a public benefit organisation.” The law is concerned with the amount actually paid, not how it was calculated. The ITA does not use the word “tithe” or require the payment to be 10% of any particular measure of income. Whether a person tithes ZMW 1,000 per month from gross income or ZMW 867 per month from net income, the amount paid qualifies for the deduction provided the Section 41 of ITA conditions are met. The only difference is the quantum of the PAYE refund - larger for those who tithe on gross income, smaller for those who tithe on net income.
Equally, Section 41 of ITA does not require payments to be made at regular intervals. Whether a person returns tithe monthly, quarterly, or in a single annual donation, the aggregate amount paid during the charge year qualifies. There is no legal requirement for consistency or regularity in the timing of payments.
The Right to a Refund
Section 87(1) of ITA provides that where tax has been paid in excess, the Commissioner-General shall determine the excess and give written notice. Section 87(6) allows PAYE refund claims to be made up to six (6) years after the end of the relevant charge year. In 2026, this means PAYE refunds can still be claimed for the charge years 2020 through 2025.
HOW PAYE CREATES THE OVERPAYMENT
Under Part VI of the ITA, employers deduct PAYE from employees’ emoluments at source using the tax bands in the Charging Schedule. The current 2026 tax band rates are:
Annual Income Band (ZMW)
Tax Rate
Monthly Equivalent
First ZMW 61,200
0%
K5,100/month
ZMW 61,201 to ZMW 85,200
20%
Next K2,000/month
ZMW 85,201 to ZMW 110,400
30%
Next K2,100/month
Above ZMW 110,400
37%
Balance
The employer has no knowledge of the employees’ tithe payments and cannot adjust the PAYE calculation. PAYE is therefore computed on the full emoluments. But after the Section 41 of ITA deduction, the employees’ actual taxable income is lower. The difference between the PAYE deducted and the correct tax liability is the overpayment, and this is what generates the PAYE refund.
This point must be clearly understood – the PAYE refund is not the tithe. It is excess tax. It is money that should never have been deducted from your salary in the first place. The government has no right to it. The Church is not involved. The refund is a straightforward correction of a mathematical over-deduction that occurs because the PAYE system cannot account for Section 41 of ITA deductions in real time.
WORKED EXAMPLES
Grace Mwila – Teacher, ZMW 10,000 per Month (Tithe on Gross)
Facts: Gross salary ZMW10,000/month (ZMW120,000/year). Tithe of ZMW1,000/month (ZMW12,000/year, being 10% of gross) returned as tithe to an approved church.
Description
Amount (ZMW)
Annual Gross Salary
120,000.00
PAYE Deducted by Employer (on full ZMW120,000)
15,912.00
Less: Tithe (Section 41 of ITA deduction)
(12,000.00)
Assessable Income after Section 41 of ITA
108,000.00
15% cap check (15% × ZMW120,000 = ZMW18,000)
ZMW 12,000 < ZMW 18,000 ✓
Correct Tax: ZMW24,000 @ 20% + ZMW22,800 @ 30%
11,640.00
PAYE REFUND (ZMW15,912 – ZMW11,640)
4,272.00
Without the Section 41 of ITA deduction, Grace Mwila’s employer calculates PAYE on her full ZMW 120,000 salary: the first ZMW 61,200 is tax-free; the next ZMW 24,000 is taxed at 20% (ZMW 4,800); the next ZMW 25,200 is taxed at 30% (ZMW 7,560); and the remaining ZMW 9,600 is taxed at 37% (ZMW 3,552). Total PAYE deducted is ZMW 15,912.
With the Section 41 of ITA, tax deduction of tithe – ZMW 12,000, her assessable income is reduced to ZMW 108,000. Therefore, the correct tax is: ZMW 4,800 at 20% plus ZMW 6,840 at 30% (only ZMW 22,800 falls in this band instead of ZMW 34,800). Correct PAYE liability: ZMW 11,640. The difference of ZMW 4,272 is the PAYE refund.
Grace Mwila’s full tithe of ZMW 12,000 remains with the Church. The Church has not lost anything. The ZMW 4,272 PAYE refund comes from ZRA - it is the excess tax over-deducted from her salary because PAYE was calculated on ZMW 120,000 instead of ZMW 108,000.
If Grace Mwila does not claim her PAYE refund from ZRA, she will pay ZMW 15,912 in tax annually instead of the correct amount of ZMW 11,640. This means she suffers a tax loss of ZMW 4,272 every year she remains in employment without claiming. The ITA is clear that ZMW 4,272 belongs in Grace Mwila's pocket, not the governments’.
Mr. Josias Banda – Mine Worker, ZMW 25,000 per Month
Facts: Gross salary ZMW25,000/month (ZMW300,000/year). Tithe of ZMW2,500/month (ZMW30,000/year).
Description
Amount (ZMW)
Annual Gross Salary
300,000.00
PAYE Deducted by Employer (on full ZMW300,000)
82,512.00
Less: Tithe (Section 41 of ITA deduction)
(30,000.00)
Assessable Income after Section 41 of ITA
270,000.00
15% cap check (15% × ZMW 300,000 = ZMW 45,000)
ZMW 30,000 < ZMW 45,000 ✓
Correct Tax on ZMW 270,000
71,412.00
PAYE REFUND (ZMW 82,512 – ZMW 71,412)
11,100.00
Over 5 years of not claiming his PAYE refund from ZRA, Mr. Josias Banda would suffer a tax loss of ZMW 55,500 to the Government treasury. The situation becomes even more striking when calculated over his entire working career. Assuming Mr. Josias Banda, a salaried Christian employee, has worked from early adulthood until retirement at 60 years. The cumulative tax loss over that working life is substantial.
Now multiply this across the Nation. If even one million salaried Christians fail to claim their PAYE refunds, the aggregate annual over-taxation runs into billions, potentially trillions, of Kwachas. This is money leaving Christian households not because the ITA requires it, but because of a widespread misunderstanding about how faith and taxation interact.
ADDRESSING THE THEOLOGICAL CONCERNS
“The Tithe Belongs to God – I Cannot Take it Back”
You are not taking back the tithe. This is the most important point in this entire article. When you paid ZMW 1,000 as tithe, that ZMW1,000 went to the Church. The Church received it in full. The Church still has it. The PAYE refund does not come from the Church, it comes from ZRA. It is the government returning excess tax that was over-deducted from your salary. The Church does not lose a single ngwee when you claim your PAYE refund.
“If I Get a Refund, My Tithe Was Not Really Sacrificial”
The sacrificial nature of the tithe is determined by your heart and your obedience, not by whether the government over-taxed you. A tax correction by ZRA does not undo your act of faith, diminish your obedience, or reduce the spiritual value of your giving.
“If I Get a PAYE Refund, I Should Give It to the Church”
What you do with the PAYE refund is entirely your choice. You have already paid your tithe in full - 10% of your income went to the Church, and the Church still has it. The PAYE refund is your money - excess tax wrongly deducted by government. You may choose to give it to the Church as an additional offering, and that would be a generous and commendable act of worship. But you may equally use it for school fees, medical expenses, savings, or any other family need. The tithe obligation was fulfilled when the tithe was paid.
In Matthew 22:21, Jesus distinguished between what belongs to the state and what belongs to God. This is perhaps the most commonly cited verse in discussions about tithing and taxation. You have rendered unto God what is God’s - your tithe, paid faithfully. You have rendered unto Caesar what is Caesar’s - your correct tax liability. The PAYE refund is Caesar’s acknowledgment that he took more than he was entitled to. Indeed, Caesar himself, through Section 87 of the ITA, has created the mechanism for you to get back what he over-collected from you. Not claiming your PAYE refund does not render more unto God, it simply leaves your money with Caesar.
“God Will Bless Me More If I Don’t Claim”
In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30), the master praised servants who managed their resources wisely and rebuked the one who buried his talent in the ground. Good stewardship means managing your resources wisely - including claiming PAYE refunds you are lawfully entitled to. Leaving money unclaimed with the government is not an act of faith, it is a failure of stewardship.
HOW TO CLAIM YOUR PAYE REFUND
Step 1 – Gather Records: Collect the following for each charge year you wish to claim:
your pay slips or PAYE certificate from your employer showing total emoluments and total PAYE deducted;
tithe receipts, bank statements, or mobile money records showing payments to your church; and
a letter or certificate from your church confirming the total amount received from you and confirming the church’s status as an approved public benefit organisation.
Step 2 – Register with ZRA: Ensure you have a Taxpayer Identification Number (TPIN) on the ZRA Tax Online portal www.zra.org.zm . All employees already have a TPIN through their employer. If not, registration is free.
Step 3 – File a Tax Return: File an individual income tax return for the relevant charge year(s), declaring your total emoluments and claiming the Section 41 of ITA deduction by entering the total tithe amount returned to the Church. The return can be filed electronically on Tax Online. If claiming for multiple years, submit a separate return for each charge year.
Step 4 – Submit Documents and Await Refund: Upload the church letter/certificate, tithe receipts, Identity card and PAYE certificates. ZRA will process your return, determine the excess, and refund the excess tax to your bank account.
Time Limit: PAYE refund claims must be made within 6 years of the end of the charge year. In 2026, you can still claim for 2020–2025. Do not delay – the older charge years are expiring.
WHAT CHURCHES AND RELIGIOUS ORGANISATIONS SHOULD DO
Churches have a vital role in ensuring their members benefit from the Section 41 relief:
Obtain Ministerial approval as a public benefit organisation under Section 41(1)(c) if the church has not already done so. This is the foundational step. Without this approval, church members’ tithes will not qualify for the tax deduction regardless of how faithfully they are returned. The approval process requires application to the Minister of Finance, demonstrating that the organisation is established exclusively for public benefit activities as listed in the Tenth Schedule. Most established denominations such as; the Catholic Church, United Church of Zambia, Reformed Church in Zambia, Seventh Day Adventist, well established Pentecostal Churches, and others - have obtained or are eligible for this approval.
Issue annual tithe certificates or statements to each tithing church member at the end of every charge year. The certificate or statement should show the member’s name and TPIN, the total tithes and offerings received during the year, and confirm the church’s approved Public Benefit Organisation status.
Educate congregations – Church leaders should include this information in their teaching on stewardship. A simple announcement during the service or a workshop during stewardship week can transform awareness.
Maintain proper records of all tithes and offerings received, including the identity of the giver, the amount, the date, and the method of payment.
While this Article focuses on Christian tithing because Christians constitute the majority of Zambia’s population, Section 41 and the Tenth Schedule apply equally to all religious traditions. The Constitution, while declaring Zambia a Christian Nation, expressly upholds every person’s right to freedom of conscience and religion, and Article 4(3) affirms Zambia as a “multi-religious” state. Contributions to any approved religious organisation - whether Muslim, Hindu, or any other faith – qualify for the Section 41 deduction on identical terms. The ITA makes no distinction based on denomination or religion.
CONCLUSION
Zambian Christians have faithfully rendered unto God what is God’s. But in doing so, they have allowed the government to keep what it is not entitled to – the excess PAYE that arises because the ITA provides a tax deduction for charitable giving that the PAYE system cannot apply in real time. There is no requirement in Zambian law to overpay taxes, and there is no spiritual virtue in doing so.
If you are a tithing Christian, or a member of any religious organisation and you have not claimed your PAYE refund, start now. Gather your records, file your returns, and claim what the ITA says is yours. You may have up to 6 years of unclaimed PAYE refunds waiting. At an individual level, this could mean thousands of Kwacha. At a National level, unclaimed PAYE refunds across millions of tithing Christians amount to billions of Kwacha in unnecessary over-taxation every year. A congregation that understands its tax rights is a congregation that can do more with the resources God has provided.
Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s. Render unto God what is God’s. And claim from Caesar what was never his to keep.
REFERENCES
Legislation
Income Tax Act, Chapter 323 (as amended to 2026) – Sections 2, 41, 87; Part VI; Second Schedule (para. 6); Tenth Schedule (Item 5); Charging Schedule (Part II).
Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No. 2 of 2016 – Preamble and Articles 4, 8, and 19.
Scripture
Genesis 14:20; Leviticus 27:30; Malachi 3:10; Matthew 22:21; Matthew 23:23; Matthew 25:14–30; Mark 12:41–44; 2 Corinthians 9:7.
About the Author
Arnold Kasalwe is a Chartered Accountant (CA Zambia) and holder of the Advanced Diploma in International Taxation (ADIT) from the Chartered Institute of Taxation, United Kingdom, where he is recognised as an International Tax Affiliate. He is currently a candidate for the MSc in Public Finance and Taxation at the University of Lusaka and for the OECD Pillar Two Award (Global Minimum Tax) at the Chartered Institute of Taxation, UK.
With over 12 years of progressive tax experience spanning Big 4 Audit firms and Multinational industry leadership, Arnold has advised on complex domestic tax matters, transfer pricing disputes, international tax matters and regulatory compliance across Zambian sectors. He currently serves as Group Tax Manager for a diversified Multinational group and is an accredited mentor for CA Zambia practical training in taxation. He is the author of “Mastering Zambian Taxation – A Comprehensive Guide,” a forthcoming reference work on Zambian tax law.
DISCLAIMER
This article is for general information and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. Readers should consult a qualified tax practitioner or ZRA before acting on any information herein. The views expressed are the author's own and do not reflect those of any organisation with which he is affiliated.
DISCLAIMER
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