The Slovak Spectator offers the basic information a foreigner needs to know about employment relations in Slovakia.

Click on a question to find out an answer:

Q: I am an EU citizen. What do I need if I want to be employed in Slovakia?

Q: I come from outside the EU. What do I need if I want to be employed in Slovakia?

Q: What is an average monthly salary in Slovakia?

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Q: How much will I really earn?

Q: What else am I entitled to as an employee?

Q: When can I take a break during the working day?

Q: How much do I get paid working overtime, at night or on holidays?

Q: How many paid days off do I get?

Q: What if I don’t use all my holidays?

Q: What should I do if I need sick leave (PN), or leave to care for a family member (OČR)?

Q: Can I get unpaid leave?

Q: What happens when I get fired?

Q: What should I do if I want to quit my job?

Q: I have a work permit and temporary residence valid for another few months. Can I change my employer and keep the temporary residence? Or do I need to go through the whole work permit process again?

Q: Also, is it a requirement that my new employer also pays my tax and health insurance?

Q: Can I simply not come to work?

Q: What do I get from the state when unemployed?

Q: What happens when I go on maternal leave?

Q: Where should I look when I’m looking for a job?

Q: What are employment relations in Slovakia?

Do you have more questions about working in Slovakia? Please let us know at spectator@spectator.sk.

Q: I am an EU citizen. What do I need if I want to be employed in Slovakia?

EU and EEA citizens have the same position as Slovak nationals, the only difference compared to employing a Slovak is that the employer has to report that they are employing a foreigner at the local labour office.

Q: I come from outside the EU. What do I need if I want to be employed in Slovakia?

In general, third-country nationals can work legally only with a temporary residence for the purpose of employment. This can be requested at the Slovak Embassy abroad or (in some situations) at the Foreign Police department after 20 working days from the day, when your employer reported a vacancy at the Labour office.

You do not need to wait 20 working days, only if the profession is included in the “shortage occupations list”. Police will decide on the temporary residence permit within 90 days/30 days (in some exceptional situations).



The application must include:

a valid passport (original, the police officer will make a copy for their use)

two photographs 3x3.5cm

employment contract or promise of employment

decision on the recognition of a document on education (only in case of regulated professions).

extract from the police/criminal records - officially authenticated (apostille or superlegalization) and officially translated into Slovak.

document about accommodation in Slovakia - it can be an ownership deed, if you own a property, a notarized lease contract, a notarized affidavit of the property owner to provide you with accommodation, if you are staying with family or friends or confirmation from an accommodation facility (hotel, dormitory) on the provision of accommodation. All signatures on the lease and the affidavit must be notarized.

document of financial coverage of your residence in the amount of statutory life minimum for each month of your residence (EUR 210.20 /month), if the length of residence exceeds 1 year amounting to 12-times the statutory life minimum (i.e. EUR 2 522.4; Financial coverage can be documented by confirmation of an employer on agreed salary or a bank account balance confirmation in the name of the foreign national.

Consent from the municipality, that the accommodation meets the hygienic standards.- administrative fee of €165.50 or €170, depending on whether the application is submitted to the alien police or at the diplomatic mission of the Slovak Republic.

administrative fee EUR 4.50 (for issuing a residence document).

All documents issued abroad must be officially authenticated (apostille or superlegalization) and officially translated into Slovak. The original of the document must be an apostilled document that comes from a country that signed the Hague Convention or superlegalised if the document comes from another country. This is not required for documents from the Czech Republic, Austria, and France. That original document is then officially translated.

Foreigners holding a temporary residence permit for the purpose of family reunion are entitled to work without the obligation to acquire a work permit after a period of 12 months from being granted temporary residence. Asylum seekers do not need a work permit, if their asylum application has not been decided upon, after nine months from entering the asylum procedure. Foreigners who became victims of human trafficking do not need a work permit after 180 days of granting tolerated residence, foreign students at college are entitled to work in Slovakia for a maximum of 20 hours per week; students of secondary schools or students attending professional training for university study, which is organized by the university, can work for a maximum of 10 hours a week. Research workers with a temporary residence permit for the purpose of special activity can only do pedagogical activities for a maximum of 50 days in a calendar year, exceeding their contract on visiting work.

Some other categories of foreigners who want to work in Slovakia for a very limited period of time do not need a work permit either. These include, for example, participants of scientific or artistic events whose working activities in Slovakia cannot exceed 30 days in a year. The other categories are posted workers, who, based on a commercial contract, are supplying services or goods and in connection with this supply providing industrial construction or repair works, programming works or expert training, and their work does not exceed 90 days in a year. Foreigners must obtain a temporary residence permit for the purpose of employment if he/she is supposed to work for more than 90 days a year.

The administrative difficulties that accompany the employment of the above-mentioned foreigners are similar to those for the employment of Slovak citizens. The employer has the duty to inform (informing the Labour Office of the employment of a foreigner) he/she is obliged to keep a copy of the residence card for the whole duration of employment.

Q: What is an average monthly salary in Slovakia?

There are several approaches to calculate the average monthly wage. One of the most relevant is prepared by the Statistics Office (estimation of wages of self employed included). Based on this statistic the average nominal monthly wage in 2019 was €1,092 - the highest in the Bratislava region (€1,359), the lowest in the Prešov region (€844).

Q: How much will I really earn?

Contributions to social insurer (9.4 percent) and health insurer (4 percent) are first deduced from your gross salary. Employees can then apply a tax deduction (€378.36 in 2020) which is deducted from the sum that is then taxed. The final sum is taxed 19 percent (if you earn more than €3,097 per month your tax will be 25 percent). The final sum is your net salary. From this salary there might be payment for part of your food vouchers as based on the law your employer is obliged to contribute to your food at a value which is defined by law every year. Remember that your company however pays an additional 35 percent on your health and social contributions, which is the overall price of work, higher than your gross salary.

Q: What else am I entitled to as an employee?

Besides paid holidays, health and social insurance, your employer must contribute to your lunches, most often they do it in the form of food vouchers, which you get for any day you work for more than four hours. You are entitled to one day off unpaid when you are moving within one municipality, and two days when you move to another municipality. You can also get unpaid half-day off every week during your notice period, to go to job interviews.

Q: When can I take a break during the working day?

You get half an hour break if your working time is at least six hours.

Q: How much do I get paid working overtime, at night or on holidays?

This explanation is for people whose regular working week is Mon-Fri and do not have a special agreement with employers dealing with overtimes. Based on the type of work as defined by the Labour Code you get a percentage of your average salary for working:

Saturday work:

25 percent of minimum wage/hour (since January 1, 2019)

50 percent of minimum wage/hour (since May 1, 2019)

Sunday work:

50 percent of minimum wage/hour (since January 1, 2019)

100 percent of minimum wage/hour (since May 1, 2019)

National holidays

100 percent of average salary of employee (if an employee gets min. wage, it is €3.333/hour)

Night shifts

30 percent of minimum wage/hour (since January 1, 2019)

40 percent of minimum wage/hour (since May 1, 2019)



If you work at the weekend, during state holiday and at night, you are entitled to all three benefits.

Q: How many paid days off do I get?

There are 20 days of paid leave, or 25 days if you are 33 years and older. You are entitled to go for a doctor visit or accompany a person with whom you live in a common household during your working time (56 hours for those working full-time(8 hours per day), each time only for the time necessary to make this visit – not the whole day). You also get a paid day off when you donate blood. You get a paid day off if you are getting married and your wedding takes place during a working day. You are entitled to a paid day off when a family member dies. If you are the one to handle the funeral formalities, you get two days off if it is on working days.

Q: What if I don’t use all my holidays?

All the days that you don’t use are transferred to the next year, but all the transferred days must be used by the end of the next year (e.g. holidays remaining from 2019 are only available until the end of 2020).

Q: What should I do if I need sick leave (PN), or leave to care for a family member (OČR)?

You need a document proving you or your family member are sick and that you need leave from work. This needs to be delivered to your employer within three calendar days. The first 10 calendar days you are paid by your employer: the first three days it’s 25 percent of your daily salary basis and then seven days with 55 percent. The salary basis is calculated based on your income in the past year. From the day 11 on, the social insurer (Sociálna Poisťovňa) pays your sick leave at 55 percent. For OČR, social insurance pays from the first day, 55 percent. However there is a daily limit what maximum can be paid from social insurance. Both OČR and PN have to be delivered to the employer who together with your doctor will communicate with the social insurer.

Q: Can I get unpaid leave?

You need to request it in writing. The employer does not have to agree, but usually they do. During unpaid leave, your employer does not pay your health and social insurance. You are obliged to notify your health insurer about your unpaid leave, and you are obliged to pay the contributions yourself during the leave. The procedure is required even if it is only one day. You are not obliged to pay social insurance, but be advised that these days do not count toward your pension.

Q: What happens when I get fired?

If your employer fires you for organisational reasons, your job position must be cancelled and not replaced by someone else at least for two months. Based on time you worked for the company notice period and severance pay apply as follows:

- up to one year, the notice period is one month and there is no severance pay

- 1 to 2 years, notice period is two months and there is no severance pay

- 2 to 5 years notice period is two months and severance pay is one month’s salary

- 5 to 10 years, notice period is three months and severance two salaries

- 10 to 20 years, notice period is three months and severance three salaries

- more than 20 years, notice period is three months and severance four salaries

In the contract, the company can increase severance and notice period. It is hard to fire an employee for other reasons, such as violating work discipline. In such case, employers and employees usually try to reach an agreement on resignation.

Q: What should I do if I want to quit my job?

You submit a written notice. There is a notice period of one month if you worked for the company for up to one year, or two months if you worked for over a year.

Q: I have a work permit and temporary residence valid for another few months. Can I change my employer and keep the temporary residence? Or do I need to go through the whole work permit process again?

You can change your employer while your temporary residence for the purpose of employment is still valid. However, there is a procedure which must be followed: your new employer is obliged to report a vacancy at the locally competent Labour Office. Within 30 working days you must submit your new employment contract to your respective Foreigner’s Police department. Within a few days, if the Labour Office agrees, the police will issue a document which is called “Additional Information on Employment” (“Dodatočné údaje o zamestnaní“). Afterwards, you can start working with the new employer.

Q: Also, is it a requirement that my new employer also pays my tax and health insurance?

Your new employer, like any other employer in Slovakia, is obliged to pay tax advance payments and health insurance payments.

Q: Can I simply not come to work?

In your work contract you might be obliged to pay one month’s salary back to the employer. If nothing like that is stated in your contract, there is not much an employer can do if an employee doesn’t show up for work and it is impossible to contact them. For the employer, this is a long and complicated process.

Q: What do I get from the state when unemployed?

Every day when you are not employed and not registered with the labour office you must register with the health insurance and pay your insurance alone. This applies also when you have just a day or two between jobs (even if these are a Saturday or a Sunday). If you register with the labour office as unemployed, the state pays your health and social contributions.

Q: What happens when I go on maternal leave?

You are entitled to 34 weeks of maternal leave. Single mothers get 37 weeks of maternal leave (43 weeks for multiple births). The social insurer will investigate whether the mother lives alone or not (in which case the regular 34 weeks apply). After the maternal leave you can stay on parental leave until your child reaches three years of age. Since January 2020, the sum of the parental allowance can be either:

A) €270 monthly

B) €370 monthly if the person who is entitled to be paid a parental allowance was before entitled also to maternal allowance.

Your employer must keep your position during maternal leave, and after the three years you must get an adequate job position back.

Q: Where should I look when I’m looking for a job?

Most job offers can be found on the online job portals, among them Profesia.sk that also has an English version. There are also job agencies which offer a variety of jobs. Some employers advertise jobs through labour offices.

11. Jun 2020 at 6:20 | Compiled by Spectator staff