This is not legal advice. This guide is general legal information for Mauritius and does not replace a consultation with a lawyer who has the full context of your case.
A bonus or commission may remain payable after employment ends in Mauritius if it was earned under the contract, scheme or applicable law. The payment date is not always the earning date. Resignation, dismissal or redundancy matters, but each must be tested against the precise trigger and any conditions.
The contract and scheme rules decide whether variable pay has been earned
Begin with the employment contract, then find the scheme document applying to the relevant year or sales period. The contract may promise participation while leaving the calculation to annual rules. A sales plan may instead create a fixed formula based on specified events.
Identify the earning trigger. It may be signed order, customer payment, delivery, completion of a project or the end of a performance year. Do not substitute the payroll date for that event. The two can be months apart.
The Workers’ Rights Act 2019 uses broad definitions of emoluments and remuneration within its scope, and its current text expressly refers to bonus and commission. Coverage and the relevant provision still require checking for the worker concerned. Foreign workers should also separate pay rights from permit status; see work permits for foreign employees.
Discretionary bonuses are not always free from legal scrutiny
“Discretionary” can describe several decisions. The employer may retain discretion to operate the scheme, decide the award, assess performance or withhold payment after misconduct. The word does not reveal which choice was reserved.
Read the surrounding criteria. A letter promising a target award after objective results is different from a scheme saying no award arises until approved. Past payments can illuminate practice, but they do not automatically create an entitlement for every future year.
An employee challenging the decision should identify the alleged defect. Was the wrong sales figure used, was an agreed rating changed, or was a condition introduced after performance? A bare assertion that the outcome was unfair is less useful than a calculation tied to the published rules.
When is commission earned on a sale completed after termination?
Sales often cross the termination date. The employee may source and negotiate a transaction before leaving, while signature, delivery or customer payment follows later. The scheme must say which step earns commission and whether responsibility can be shared.
Check cancellation and clawback terms too. A scheme may reverse credit if a customer cancels or fails to pay. That is different from denying credit because another employee administered the account after departure.
In practice, the useful document is often the transaction report rather than the final payslip. It shows the opportunity owner, stage changes, value, invoice and receipt. Preserve the records you may lawfully keep. Do not export an entire customer database to prove a small group of sales.
How resignation, dismissal and redundancy affect payment
A resignation may trigger a “good leaver” or active-employment condition in the scheme. Dismissal may engage separate forfeiture language. Redundancy may be treated differently because the employee did not choose the departure. None of those labels should replace the actual text.
The reason and effective date must be fixed. Notice worked, garden leave and payment in lieu can produce different timelines. A dispute about wrongful termination may also affect an employer’s reliance on a condition tied to being employed on the payment date.
The statutory and procedural issues in economic termination are covered in the Mauritius redundancy guide. Expatriate assignments can add currency and home-country scheme questions, considered in expatriate employment rights in Mauritius.
Payslips, targets and sales records needed to calculate the claim
A claim needs both entitlement and arithmetic. Collect the executed contract, scheme version, target notice, performance review, payslips and year-to-date statements. For commission, add the relevant orders, invoices, credit notes and customer-payment records.
Build the calculation sale by sale or target by target. State the trigger, date, rate and amount credited or omitted. Separate sums already paid from those disputed. If the employer controls the source data, identify the particular reports needed instead of demanding every commercial record.
Oral promises require different evidence. A contemporaneous message, diary note or witness may show what was said. Prior payments on the same formula can help. Guidance on how courts assess material is available in evidence and witnesses in Mauritius courts.
What happens when the employer changes the scheme mid-year?
First compare versions. Mark the issue date, stated effective date and how each was communicated. A policy uploaded quietly after targets were met presents a different issue from a prospective scheme accepted before the work began.
Ask what changed. The amendment may alter targets, rates, eligible sales, approval or forfeiture. It may also reserve a power to amend. The scope of that power and the treatment of work already performed need separate analysis.
The employer should not erase the earlier version. Keep the approval record and communication to affected staff. The employee should preserve the version actually received. A screenshot should include the document title, revision and source rather than a cropped paragraph.
Claiming unpaid bonus or commission after leaving
Write a focused demand identifying the contractual basis, earning event and calculation. Attach only the documents needed to understand the claim. Ask the employer to explain any different figure and to provide the relied-on scheme clause.
The Workers’ Rights Act 2019 generally addresses remuneration due on termination for those within its scope, and identifies the Industrial Court as the Court under the Act. A contractual claim or a claimant outside a particular statutory protection may require a different analysis. Forum, parties and time limits should be checked before filing.
The employment and workers’ rights practice describes assistance with pay and termination disputes. The final question is evidential. A clear scheme version and transaction ledger often do more work than an argument about the label “bonus”.
Related: Redundancy affecting an expat in Mauritius.
Frequently asked questions
Can my employer refuse my bonus because I left before payment date?
A scheme may make active employment on the payment date a condition, but that wording must be read with the contract and the reason employment ended. It may also matter whether the bonus was already earned or remained conditional. Advice on the actual scheme is necessary before accepting or disputing the refusal.
Am I owed commission on Mauritius sales completed after I was dismissed?
Possibly, if the agreed trigger occurred through work performed before dismissal or the scheme credits later completion. Other schemes require payment, delivery or another event before commission is earned. Your contract and transaction records need individual legal assessment.
How do I prove an oral promise of a performance bonus?
Emails, messages, meeting notes, prior payments and evidence from people who heard the promise may support your account. The authority of the person making it and the promised conditions also matter. A barrister should assess that evidence before advising whether an enforceable obligation can be proved.
How Lex Aquila Advocates can help
Lex Aquila Advocates can interpret the governing scheme, test the earning trigger against sales or performance records, and advise on the correct claim route. The chambers also assists employers responding to disputed calculations after departure. Related work is described on the employment law practice page.
The initial consultation is a fixed-fee conference, confirmed in writing when the appointment is made.
use the enquiry form; enquire on WhatsApp; or call +230 5858 7956 · urgent matters.
This is not legal advice. This guide is general legal information for Mauritius and does not replace a consultation with a lawyer who has the full context of your case.