Change Employer Work Permit Tanzania: Why the Old Permit Cannot Move and the New Employer Files Again

This guide answers the change employer work permit Tanzania question for both sides of the move. It covers what the old employer must report, what the new employer files, how the eight-year limit and dependants are affected, the separate Zanzibar rules, and a costed example of a Kenyan engineer moving between two Dar es Salaam companies.

Who should read this

• Foreign employees on a Mainland work permit who have an offer from another company.
• Hiring employers that want to recruit a foreigner already working in Tanzania.
• Releasing employers whose foreign employee is resigning, or whose contract is ending.
• HR and finance teams that carry the employer's liability for permits, returns and reports.
• Group companies that move staff between sister companies, which are separate employers in law.
• Employers in Zanzibar, where a different statute and a different Labour Commissioner apply.

Readers starting from scratch, with no permit yet, should read our guide to the application sequence for foreign employees first.

What the law says

Two Acts and two authorities govern a change of employer on the Mainland. The Non-Citizens (Employment Regulation) Act, Cap. 436 covers the right to work. We read the TanzLII consolidation as amended to 14 March 2025 by the Labour Laws (Amendments) Act No. 4 of 2025. The Immigration Act, Cap. 54, covers the right to live in Tanzania.

The Act has no section headed "change of employer". A move is treated as two events: the end of one permitted employment and a new application for another.

Can a work permit be transferred to a new employer?

No. Section 12(3) settles the point. A Class C permit issued for an engineer at Company A authorises that engineer to do that job for Company A. It says nothing about Company B. Section 5(2)(a) gives the Commissioner power to "vary" a permit, but neither the Act nor the Labour e-permit guidelines describe variation as a route to a new employer.

The Labour e-permit guidelines list the documents for every class. They call for the original work permit only "for renewals and change of Work Permit Class". They do not offer a transfer status. The fee note also states that application fees are "non-refundable and/or non-transferrable".

The residence side points the same way. Immigration's e-Permit residence permit guidelines ask Class B applicants for a "Letter of no objection (if the application has shifted from another company)". Our fee register records a change of company as a fresh application at the class fee (register NEW-04-19). It lists status codes RG1 for a change of company in the same class and RG2 for a change of company and class.

Working for the new employer on the old permits is two offences at once. It is work without a valid permit under Cap. 436 s.9 (register F0422). It is also work outside the residence permit under Cap. 54 s.47(1)(m), with the employer exposed under s.47(1)(n) (register F0426).

What must the old employer do when the employee leaves?

The releasing employer has three duties and one courtesy that matters in practice.

1. Report to the Labour Commissioner. Section 16(2) of Cap. 436 requires the employer to report the cessation "immediately" when employment ends before the next half-yearly return. The half-yearly returns themselves fall due by 30 June and 31 December, and lateness costs TZS 500,000 for each month or part of a month (register NEW-04-39).
2. Report to Immigration. Under the Class B section of Cap. 54, the employer named in the permit reports the cessation to an immigration officer within 30 days. Failure is an offence. In the Act as enacted in 1995 this is section 20(3) and (4).
3. Close the employment properly. Notice, final pay and a certificate of service follow the Employment and Labour Relations Act. Our guide to employee termination covers the terminal benefits.
4. Issue a letter of no objection. No statute obliges the old employer to release the employee. Immigration's guidelines still ask for the letter when a Class B applicant "has shifted from another company". A prompt, neutral letter avoids a stalled file.

A letter of no objection is not a non-compete waiver. Contract terms on confidentiality and restraint are a separate question. Any dispute about them goes to an advocate, not to the permit file.

What does the new employer file?

The new employer files as if hiring from abroad, with three differences: the old permit, the release letter and the employee's current immigration status. Section 10(2) of Cap. 436 requires the prescribed form, the Fifth Schedule fee and the Second Schedule documents. Section 10(1) expects the application before the non-citizen enters the country, which is why an in-country move needs care.

Sector approvals still apply. The e-permit document table asks for sectoral approvals, permits or registrations where applicable. For an engineer, check with the professional board whether registration is needed before the file goes in.

The new employer also inherits the ratio test. Section 19 of Cap. 436 sets a one-to-ten ratio of foreign to local staff for employers outside the investor incentive. Our guide to the foreign employee ratio covers the count and the investor allowance.

Does the eight-year limit restart with a new employer?

Do not assume it does. Section 12(4) caps "the total period of validity of the first grant and its renewals" at eight years. The cap rose from five years through the 2021 written laws amendments, as Clyde & Co reported on Afriwise in November 2021.

The text does not say whether a permit for a new employer is a fresh "first grant". Section 12(9) lets the Commissioner attach conditions on the finality of a permit, including where a holder nears the eight-year limit. That power suggests the Commissioner looks at the person's whole history, not one employer's file.

Our working position is cautious. Count every year on any Mainland work permit toward the eight. Ask the Commissioner in writing if the employee's plan depends on a reset. Section 12(5) allows more than ten years only for an investor whose contribution is of great value, which does not help an employee.

The Labour e-permit guidelines page still prints "5 years" beside Class C. That figure predates the 2021 amendment, and the Act now says eight years. Rely on the Act.

What happens to the residence permit and dependants?

The Class B residence permit is tied to "specific employment by a specific employer". Immigration's guidelines confirm B-1 needs a work permit first and is filed before entry. When the employment ends, the permit ceases to be valid and presence becomes unlawful, subject to the Act. Our guide to the Class B residence permit sets out the full rules.

The new employer files a new Class B. Direct to Immigration, B-1 costs USD 2,000, or USD 500 for EAC citizens, plus a USD 50 re-entry pass (register F0406). Through the TISEZA one-stop centre, it costs USD 2,050, or USD 550 for EAC citizens, plus a 10% facilitation fee after approval (register F0404).

Family status rides on the principal. A spouse or child on a dependant pass, or endorsed on the principal's permit, needs the new status recorded. The dependant pass is USD 550, or USD 300 for EAC citizens (register NEW-04-22). Our dependant pass guide explains endorsement and the pass. Confirm with Immigration whether existing dependant passes carry over or must be re-issued.

Can the employee stay in Tanzania between the two jobs?

Only with a valid status. No published text gives an automatic grace period after a Class B employment ends. Three tools exist.

The Tanzania High Commission in Pretoria states that "if an expatriate changes employer and he/she is still in the country, a special pass will be issued". It cites regulation 12 of the Immigration Regulations 1997. Its fee table dates from July 2011, so treat it as indicative. None of these passes authorises work for the new employer.

The cleanest sequence keeps the employee on the old payroll, serving notice, while the new employer files. The new employer then asks for the start date to follow the grant notice.

What does a change of employer cost?

Every fee is paid again, in full. There is no transfer or change-of-employer fee. Government charges are paid against each authority's control number. The amount on the control number governs on the day.

The register inspection is optional. Section 8 of Cap. 436 lets anyone inspect the Work Permit Register for a fee. A hiring employer can use it to confirm a candidate's permit history and the years already used.

Who does what in a change of employer?

How do group transfers and Class A holders differ?

Sister companies. Two companies in one group are two employers. A move from the Tanzanian subsidiary to a sister company needs new permits, even when the work and the office stay the same. Secondment that leaves the employee on the first company's payroll, doing the first company's work, does not change the employer.

Class A investors. The Labour Laws (Amendments) Act No. 4 of 2025 added a narrow exception. A Class A holder may engage with another company in which he holds shares, with a tax clearance certificate and the Commissioner's written authorisation (register F0419). Clyde & Co (2 May 2025) notes that separate permits for each company are no longer needed in that case. It does not reach Class B or C employees.

Change of class. An employee who becomes an investor in the new business changes class. Section 13(3) requires the old permit to be surrendered for cancellation. Renewal or change of class costs the full class fee again (register NEW-04-36).

How does Zanzibar handle a change of employer?

Cap. 436 applies to Mainland Tanzania only. Labour is not a Union matter. In Zanzibar the Employment Act No. 11 of 2005 governs, and the Labour Commissioner of Zanzibar issues the permit. FB Attorneys (30 October 2022) confirm that a Mainland permit cannot be used for work in Zanzibar.

Section 42(3) refers to the "special permission of the Commissioner", so Zanzibar contemplates approval of a move. Zanzibar permit fees are not in our Mainland register; confirm them with the Commissioner. Our Zanzibar work permit guide covers the full route.

Worked example: a Kenyan engineer moves from Company A to Company B in Dar es Salaam

Amina is a hypothetical Kenyan civil engineer. She holds a Class C work permit and a B-1 residence permit for Company A, a hypothetical contractor in Dar es Salaam. Her first permit issued in November 2023 and was renewed in November 2025, so about three years are used. Company B, also hypothetical, offers her a design role from February 2027. Her husband holds a dependant pass.

Government fees, direct route. Kenya is an EAC Partner State, so the EAC residence rates apply. The register shows no EAC rate for work permits.

• Work permit Class C: USD 1,000 (F0415).
• Residence permit B-1, EAC rate: USD 500, plus USD 50 re-entry pass (F0406).
• Dependant pass for her husband, EAC rate: USD 300 (NEW-04-22), if Immigration requires a new pass.

The total is USD 1,550 for Amina, or USD 1,850 with her husband's pass. Company B pays these by its own decision; the law does not say who bears them.

Government fees, TISEZA route. If Company B holds a TISEZA certificate, it may file through the one-stop centre. Work permit USD 1,000 (F0415) plus USD 100 facilitation (F0418). Class B at the EAC rate USD 550, plus the 10% facilitation fee after approval, about USD 55 if charged on that amount (F0404). That is about USD 1,705 before dependants.

Illustrative timeline. These are planning assumptions, not official service standards.

On the eight-year count, Amina has about five years left if the Commissioner counts her Company A years. Company B should plan her succession plan around that horizon.

What to do now

1. Check the permit history. Read the current permit's class, expiry and conditions, and count the years used toward eight.
2. Agree the exit with the old employer. Secure a letter of no objection and agree that the employee stays on payroll until the new grant.
3. Build the new file. Prepare the contract, job description, succession plan, company documents and any professional board registration.
4. Choose the route. File direct with the Labour Commissioner and Immigration, or through TISEZA if the new employer holds a certificate.
5. File the work permit first. Lodge it on the e-permit system and pay against the control number.
6. File the residence permit and dependants. Apply for the new Class B, and settle the dependants' status at the same time.
7. Start only after both grants. Fix the first working day to follow the grant notices, not the offer letter.
8. Close the old status. The old employer reports to Labour at once and to Immigration within 30 days, and updates its half-yearly return.

Key dates

Our work permit renewal guide covers the 60-day rule for the new permit's first renewal.

What are the penalties for getting it wrong?

Both Acts reach the employer as well as the employee. Our note on working without a permit covers inspections. Any arrest, charge, passport seizure or removal order goes to an advocate at once.

How Zatra helps

Zatra's work and residence permits service prepares the new employer's work permit and Class B file, the release letter, the dependants' applications and the old employer's reports. We draft the new succession plan and check the eight-year count against the register.

Costs come in two separate buckets. Government fees are paid at the official amount to the Prime Minister's Office (Labour), Immigration or TISEZA, against each authority's control number. Zatra's professional fee is quoted on its own line and never mixed with them.

The Labour Commissioner and Immigration decide every application. Zatra prepares and coordinates, but does not decide or guarantee any authority's outcome. Appeals, restraint-of-trade disputes, prosecutions and legal opinions go to an advocate.

Sources and status

Accurate as at 29 October 2026.

• Non-Citizens (Employment Regulation) Act, Cap. 436: TanzLII, version 14 Mar 2025. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Immigration Act No. 7 of 1995, as enacted: TanzLII. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Labour e-permit guidelines: Prime Minister's Office (Labour), undated. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• e-Permit residence permit guidelines: Immigration Services Department. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• TISEZA residence permit page: TISEZA, 2026. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Tanzania High Commission, Pretoria: residence and work permits: fee table from 1 Jul 2011. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Zanzibar Employment Act No. 11 of 2005: Gazette, 7 Oct 2005. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Clyde & Co on Act No. 4 of 2025: 2 May 2025; and Clyde & Co on the 2021 amendments, via Afriwise: Nov 2021. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• FB Attorneys on Mainland permits in Zanzibar: 30 Oct 2022. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.
• Zatra fee register, fees at 26 Sep 2026; line IDs as cited in the text. Accessed 29 Oct 2026.

Figures to confirm before you act

• Eight-year count: whether the Labour Commissioner counts years under a previous employer toward s.12(4)
• Cap. 54 section numbers: the Class B cessation rule is s.20(3) and (4) in the 1995 text; confirm the number in the Revised Edition 2023
• Special pass: no fee on the current matrix (F0411); the Pretoria table of 2011 shows a pass at USD 600
• Dependants: whether existing dependant passes carry over or are re-issued with the new Class B
• TISEZA facilitation: the base on which the 10% fee under F0404 is charged
• Processing times: neither the Labour Commissioner nor Immigration publishes a decision period for the work permit stage
• 30 June 2025 amendment: TanzLII lists an amendment to Cap. 436 not yet applied to its text
• Zanzibar: permit fees and the form of the Commissioner's "special permission" under s.42(3)

This article is general information based on official sources available at the date of publication. It is not legal, tax or financial advice. Laws and notices change. Verify with the issuing authority or consult Zatra before acting.