Slovenia

The labour market in Slovenia

Each labour market has some peculiarities. It may be tricky for foreigners to fully understand the payment methods, taxes, and other benefits related to them. In TalentUp, we are starting a series of different blog articles, one for each country. This article analyses the labour market in Slovenia.

General data about the Slovenian labour market

Payroll taxes in Slovenia

Social security contributions are made by the employer and the employee and are used for funding unemployment, pension, maternity/paternity leave, and sickness or injury.

Once contributions are paid, employees need to pay an income tax that varies depending on their gross salaries. 

Contingencies from self-employees

There is a flat tax rate of 15.5% that covers social contributions on personal income earned through freelancing. 

Example of net salary in Slovenia

As a reference, we use the average salary of a software engineer. In Slovenia, on average, software engineers earn €43,100 annually.

The employer contributes 6,939.1€ to social security, and the employee contributes 9,525.1€.

After paying the income tax, the employee has a net salary of 25,173.18€, coming from a gross salary of 43,100€. 

Unemployment regulation in Slovenia

​​In Slovenia, the notice period is dependent on the employee’s seniority as follows:

Employees are entitled to severance pay depending on the employee’s seniority:

The maximum probationary period length is 6 months.

Different kinds of leaves in Slovenia

Annual paid leave is 4 weeks. The employee must use at least two weeks of annual leave before the end of the current calendar year; the remaining part can be used in agreement with the employer up until June 30 of the following year. Employees with children under the age of 15 are entitled to one additional day per year for each child.

There are 15 public holidays.

Employers pay for 30 days of sick leave (after that, it is paid by Social Security). They usually pay 80% of the pay rate, but they pay 100% if the absence is due to the job.

In Slovenia, employees are entitled to up to seven days of paid personal leave. This leave is to be used for weddings, births, and bereavements.

Paid parental leave

Paid maternity leave lasts for 105 days, 28 of them before the birth. The benefit will range from a minimum base salary of 55% to twice the monthly Social Security average salary in Slovenia.

The father or partner is entitled to 75 days of paid paternity leave. The first 15 days must be taken within three months of the child’s birth. The remaining leave can be taken at any time before the child is 8 years old and can be taken on multiple occasions. It is paid at the same rate as maternity leave.

Each parent has 130 days of unpaid parental leave (it increases in the case of multiple or complicated births). The mother should take at least 30 of these.

Other common Slovenian benefits

How to employ a Slovenian worker

Register your business with the relevant authorities in Slovenia. This typically involves obtaining a tax number and registering with the Slovenian Business Register (AJPES).