Earnings-related daily allowance consists of a basic component that is equivalent to basic unemployment allowance and an earnings-related component based on your income. In 2024 the basic component is 37,21 euros per day.
The earnings-related component is generally calculated based on your taxable income from at least 12 employment requirement months directly before your unemployment. Holiday bonuses and holiday compensation are subtracted from your total income. In addition, we subtract the equivalent of the annual rate of your employment pension contributions, unemployment insurance contributions, and the daily allowance portion of your health insurance contributions from your income. In 2024 this deduction is 3,76 % (4,40 % in 2023).
There are a few exceptions (for instance if you have been on partial childcare leave, job alternation leave, or partial disability pension) when the calculation of your daily allowance is not based on income from directly before your unemployment, but rather from the time before the aforementioned situation began. This is only the case if you have not accumulated the employment requirement in full after the situation in question.
The total earnings-related daily allowance per day can be a maximum of 90 % of the daily income used to calculate your daily allowance and it must be at least the amount of basic unemployment allowance. Read more about how the amount of earnings-related daily allowance is calculated.
The gradual reduction of earnings-related daily allowance
The gradual reduction of earnings-related daily allowance means that the amount of daily allowance decreases as your unemployment continues. Before (up until 1.9.2024) there was no gradual reduction in unemployment security, so the amount of your earnings-related daily allowance remained the same for the entire duration of your maximum payment period. The amendment regarding the gradual reduction of earnings-related daily allowance is in effect beginning 2.9.2024.
Due to gradual reduction, earnings-related daily allowance will be cut as follows:
- when benefits have been paid for 40 unemployment days (about 2 months) the amount of daily allowance will decrease to 80 % of the original amount and
- when benefits have been paid for 170 days (about 8 months) the amount of daily allowance will decrease to 75 % of the original, full amount.
The reduction is always calculated based on the full amount of your daily allowance. The reduction is permanent and also concerns individuals entitled to additional allowance days.
How the change will come into effect
According to the transitional provision regarding the amendment, gradual reduction will be applied when
- the 300/400/500-day maximum payment period begins 2.9.2024 or later and
- your employment requirement for earnings-related daily allowance includes at least one half or one full employment requirement month based on the new legislation.
According to the transitional provisions gradual reduction will not be applied when
- the old legislation has been applied to work done by a family member of an entrepreneur that has no ownership in the business and the 52-week employment requirement has been partially accumulated after 2.9.2024, or
- pay-subsidised work and employment by statutory obligation use the 6-month employment requirement, even if the employment requirement is fulfilled on or after 2.9.2024.
The gradual reduction of earnings-related daily allowance does not concern 300/400/500-day maximum payment periods that began before 1.9.2024. If the employment requirement has been accumulated before 2.9.2024 but the beginning of payment moves to 2.9.2024 or later, gradual reduction will not be applied.