Income tax returns in Jordan: when employees must file and how

Is it enough that my employer deducts tax from my salary?

Not always. Article 17 of Income Tax Law No. 34 of 2014 says that anyone with one or more taxable sources of income must file a tax return by the end of the fourth month after the year ends. The same article allows certain groups to be exempted from filing under a regulation issued for that purpose.

In a statement on 22 April 2026, the department set out the practical threshold for that exemption: employees whose annual income is above 9,000 dinars if single, or 18,000 dinars if supporting dependants, must file. It stressed that monthly payroll deductions do not remove this duty once income is above the exemption limits.

In monthly terms: a single person earning more than 750 dinars a month, or someone with dependants earning more than 1,500 dinars a month, has to file a return for the year. If your income is below these limits you do not have to file, but nothing stops you from filing if you want to, for example to get back tax that was over-deducted.

When does a return really matter?

Even if your salary is above the threshold, there are cases where a return matters for your money before it is a legal duty:

• More than one employer: each employer deducts tax only on the salary it pays and does not see what you earn from the other. The return adds both incomes together and taxes the total at the correct brackets.
• Income other than salary: rent from property, freelance fees or a small business. This income never passes through your employer.
• Dependants exemption: if you support a spouse or children, you get an extra exemption of 9,000 dinars, however many there are, under Article 9 of the law.
• Expense exemptions: 1,000 dinars for you, 1,000 for your spouse and 1,000 for each child, up to 3,000 dinars, for medical, education and rent costs and interest on housing and murabaha loans.

All these exemptions together are capped at 23,000 dinars, whether a couple files jointly or separately. Under Article 17, spouses who both have taxable income may file a joint return if both agree.

How do I file the return online?

Article 26 of the law allows returns to be filed electronically, and the department takes employee and individual returns through its e-services on istd.gov.jo, with no need to visit its offices.

The steps, as the department has published them:

• Go to the department's website, choose the e-services icon, then "New user".
• Enter your tax number as the username and complete the required details.
• A verification code is sent to the phone number registered with the department, and you set your password.
• If you do not have a tax number yet, you can get one online for the first time too.

There is a second route for Jordanian employees who already have a tax number and an active login: the government app "Sanad". It offers the tax return service, a statement of the tax deducted from your salary and paid over, and updating your bank details. Sanad needs your digital ID activated, either at Sanad stations or through some banks' apps.

Before you start, gather: the salary certificate or deduction statement from each employer, the receipts for expenses that qualify for exemption, and your bank account number (IBAN) if you expect a refund.

What are the fines if I am late?

The law treats filing late and paying late differently:

• Filing late: a fine of up to 100 dinars for an individual, under Article 63.
• Paying late: a fine of 4 per thousand (0.4%) of the unpaid tax for each week of delay or part of a week, under Article 36. The fines cannot exceed the tax itself.
• Large understatement: if the tax declared turns out to be 25% or more below the tax due, an additional tax of 200 to 500 dinars applies, doubling for repeat cases, under Article 64.

If you find a mistake after filing, Article 27 lets you amend the return within two years of filing, unless the department has already issued an audit notice on it or found the mistake before you. A voluntary amendment is not treated as a violation.

How do I get back tax that was over-deducted?

If the tax deducted from your salary is more than the tax you owe after exemptions, the difference is a credit in your favour. Article 38 says the department first uses this credit to settle anything else you owe, then refunds the rest within 30 days of receiving a written request. If it does not, it must pay an extra 9% a year.

In practice, the department said in April 2026 that refunds are paid after the legal filing period ends, in the order returns were filed. In May 2026 it announced it had started paying refunds on returns filed in 2025 for 2024 income to about 140,000 taxpayers, including refunds paid over through the taxpayers' employers. The most important practical condition is that your bank account number (IBAN) is recorded correctly in your file: the department has contacted people whose refunds failed because of a wrong account number.

Worked example: an employee with two incomes

A single woman works for two employers and earns 800 dinars a month from each, so 9,600 dinars a year from each and 19,200 dinars in total. The figures below come from the Jordan calculator with 2026 rules.

What each employer may deduct: if each employer applies the 9,000 dinar personal exemption to the salary it pays, 600 dinars stays taxable at each, and the tax on it is 30 dinars. Together the two employers deduct 60 dinars a year.

The correct tax on all her income: 19,200 minus one exemption of 9,000 leaves 10,200 dinars taxable. The tax is 5% on the first 5,000 (250 dinars), then 10% on the next 5,000 (500), then 15% on 200 dinars (30). The total is 780 dinars.

The result: the 720 dinar difference only shows up in the return, and she must pay it before 30 April to avoid the fine of 4 per thousand a week. If she supported a family, the dependants exemption would raise her exemptions to 18,000 dinars, cutting her tax to just 60 dinars, and it could fall further if she submits expense receipts.

This is an illustration that assumes each employer applied the full personal exemption. How tax is actually deducted depends on what you declared to each employer.

What if I am Jordanian and work abroad?

Jordanian tax applies to income arising in the Kingdom. A salary you earn for work done in the Gulf or Europe does not go into a Jordanian return just because you are Jordanian. You count as resident if you stay in the Kingdom for at least 183 days in the year, and a resident's foreign income is taxable only if it comes from funds or deposits from the Kingdom.

But if you still have income inside Jordan, such as rent from a flat, you may have to file a return for it. Here there is a benefit for expats: Article 9 lets a non-resident Jordanian claim the dependants exemption for dependants living in the Kingdom whom they support.

If the country you work in taxes your salary, read the double taxation guide to see how treaties stop you paying twice. To compare before a move, see Jordan or Saudi Arabia and Jordan or the UAE.

Quick checklist before 30 April 2027

• Add up your annual income from all sources. If it is above 9,000 dinars if single or 18,000 with dependants, you must file.
• Activate your account on the department's e-services or in the "Sanad" app well before the last few days.
• Gather the deduction statements from each employer and your medical, education and rent receipts.
• If both spouses work, decide whether to file jointly or separately. The cap is 23,000 dinars either way.
• Pay any balance due before the end of April, and check your IBAN if you are owed a refund.

For the brackets and social security in detail, read the Jordan tax guide, and try your own numbers in the net salary calculator. To compare with neighbours: Jordan or Egypt and Jordan or Palestine.

This guide explains the general rules and is no substitute for advice from a certified accountant on your own case.

Sources

1. Income Tax Law No. 34 of 2014, as amended by Law No. 38 of 2018 (Articles 9, 17, 26, 27, 36, 38, 63 and 64), Jordan Open Government Data portal
2. Jordan News Agency (Petra): Income tax department urges filing of 2025 returns before 30 April, department statement of 22 April 2026
3. Jordan News Agency (Petra): Tax department pays income tax refunds, 3 May 2026
4. Jordan News Agency (Petra): Tax department pays refunds to 22,000 taxpayers and asks them to record their IBAN, 8 March 2025
5. Jordan News Agency (Petra): Getting an Income and Sales Tax Department e-services password without visiting an office
6. Jordan News Agency (Petra): Income and Sales Tax Department services available through the "Sanad" app

This guide is general information, not tax advice. Rules change; check with the authority or a qualified adviser before you act. How we work.