Why bonus matters to a first-time founder
A bonus is extra pay on top of wages or salary. It may be a one-off, a signing payment, or a sum tied to a target in the contract. It still has to be promised clearly, budgeted, and run through payroll. Tax and employment rules differ by country, and by whether the scheme is discretionary or contractual. The figure you announce is not automatically the cash the person receives, or the full cost to the business.
Examples of bonus
A Cape Town agency promises a designer ZAR 40,000 if a named client stays for the full year, and nothing if the client leaves. The contract says so. When the target is met, payroll treats the ZAR 40,000 as extra pay and withholds tax under the rules for that payment. The agency does not hand over the gross sum and assume the designer receives all of it.
Common misunderstanding
A bonus is not a gift that sits outside payroll, and it is not only a payment nobody expected. A contractual bonus is still a bonus. It is also not a bonus issue of shares. Describing extra pay as a gift, or as a reimbursement, in order to avoid tax can be unlawful. Ask a local adviser how your structure is taxed before you pay it.
When to use it
Use the word in the offer or the plan when you mean extra pay, and say whether it is guaranteed, discretionary, or tied to a target. Cost the tax and the employer charges before you announce a number. If you are issuing shares from reserves, that is a bonus issue, not a pay bonus.