Structured employee lending for staff at approved employers, with repayment recovered directly through payroll checkoff. Lower rates, larger amounts and longer tenors than unsecured personal loans — because the employer’s deduction commitment is the strongest possible repayment guarantee.
Employee Checkoff Loans are the lowest-friction credit a salaried employee can access in Kenya. The employer signs a payroll-deduction agreement with STEMTIDE; eligible staff can then borrow at sharper rates and longer tenors than unsecured personal loans, with repayments deducted at source on payday. From the borrower’s perspective there’s no missed payment to worry about — the deduction simply happens.
We support five variants. Salary Checkoff is the general-purpose product with the longest tenors and lowest rates. School Fees Checkoff aligns to term-start dates and spreads fees across the school calendar. Emergency Checkoff allows same-day disbursement against confirmed payroll commitment. Government Employee Checkoff and Private Employer Checkoff are simply the two flavours of the underlying structure depending on whether the employer is in the public or private sector.
Affordability rules are strict on this product family — no matter the employer comfort, post-deduction net pay must remain above one-third of gross. That’s a regulatory floor, not a STEMTIDE preference, and it protects borrowers from over-extending. Loan multiples typically range from 3× to 12× monthly net salary, capped by that affordability floor.
Structured employee lending for staff at approved employers, with repayment recovered directly through payroll checkoff. Lower rates, larger amounts and longer tenors than unsecured personal loans — because the employer’s deduction commitment is the strongest possible repayment guarantee.
The strength of this loan family is structure: documented income, clear use of funds, and a repayment schedule sized to actual cash flow — never a hopeful number.
Six things borrowers most often tell us made the difference between a loan that helped and a loan that became a problem.
If your situation looks like one of these, employee checkoff loans are likely the right fit. If it doesn’t, talk to us anyway — we may have a better-suited product or structure.
Each entry below is a focused product within this loan family. Specific structures, deposit ranges and repayment frequencies are noted on each — final terms depend on full assessment.
General-purpose checkoff loan with the longest tenors and sharpest rates in our personal stack — funded against documented payroll commitment.
Time-aligned with term-start dates and structured to spread fees over the school calendar — with grace periods around term breaks.
Same-day disbursement against confirmed payroll commitment for staff emergencies — medical, family, urgent travel.
Tailored for civil-service staff at MDAs and parastatals where STEMTIDE has signed payroll-deduction arrangements.
Available to staff at any private-sector employer that has signed STEMTIDE’s payroll-deduction agreement.
Checkoff loans price more sharply than any other personal product because payroll deduction massively reduces credit risk. Rates vary by employer (public vs private), tenor and loan multiple. Government employer rates are typically the sharpest because deduction reliability is highest; private employer rates depend on the strength and history of the employer’s checkoff agreement with STEMTIDE.
The full cost of credit — interest, fees, taxes and any insurance premium — is disclosed in writing before you accept any offer. There are no upfront fees to release a loan.
Open CalculatorDocuments complete on Monday usually mean a written decision back to you by mid-week. Documents drip-fed across days mean the file restarts each time, so the team strongly encourages submitting everything at once.
Final requirements depend on borrower profile, requested amount and product structure. The credit team will confirm any additional documents during initial review.
View Full RequirementsShort answers for the most common borrower questions. For anything else, request a callback or message us on WhatsApp.
Browse all FAQsYes — we need a payroll-deduction agreement on file before disbursing checkoff loans.
Typically 3-12 times monthly net salary, capped by affordability rules (post-deduction net must remain above 1/3 of gross).
The remaining balance falls due — usually settled from terminal dues, or restructured into a non-checkoff loan.
Approved employers cannot reject confirmed deductions; they’re part of the agreement.
Yes — once 30% of an active loan is repaid, top-ups are available subject to fresh affordability.
Start your application or speak to a loan officer for guidance before submitting documents.
