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Facts & Stats

The Slovak Republic (Slovenskà Republika) is a Central parliamentary democracy, famous for its breathtaking mountainous terrain and ancient towns with rich history.

Slovakia combines a free market economy with a strong social security system into one of the most equitable countries in Europe. Quality of life in Slovakia is strong thanks to universal healthcare, free education, and generous work-life benefits for its workforce of 2.8 million.

  • Capital city

    Bratislava

  • Currency

    Euro
    (, EUR)

  • Languages spoken

    Slovak

  • Population size

    5,464,060 (est. 2020)

  • Ease of doing business

    Very easy

  • Cost of living index

    $$ (70 of 139 nations)

  • Payroll frequency

    Monthly

  • VAT - standard rate

    20%

  • GDP - real growth rate

    2.3 (2019)

Grow your team in Slovakia with Remote

Looking to employ workers in Slovakia? Companies hiring in Slovakia must either own a legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solutions provider, usually one that provides employer of record services.

Remote can employ your team in Slovakia on your behalf through our local legal entity in the country and handle payroll, benefits, taxes, and compliance for your Slovakia team. You can also pay contractors now in Slovakia with Remote.

Risks of misclassification

Like many other EU countries, Slovakia treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time workers differently and there are risks associated with misclassification.

In line with EU labor statutes, your company may be required to pay accrued entitlements worth several tens of thousands of Euros, if you’re found guilty of misclassifying employees.

If you're worried about whether to hire contractors or employees in Slovakia or anywhere else around the world, Remote can help. Our Solutions Consulting team are experts in preventing misclassification risks. Download our Contractor Compliance Checklist for a solid overview, then talk to our team about your specific situation.

Employing in Slovakia

The Slovak Labor Code of 2001 is the principal statute guiding employment relations, including workers’ rights and entitlements across Slovakia’s eight regions.

Employees in Slovakia enjoy protections against discrimination based on age, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, and race.

Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include the minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your employees in Slovakia.

Minimum Wage

Factoring in pay for the 13th month, which is often prorated over the year, the Slovakian minimum wage is evens out to 623 Euros per month.

Payroll Cycle

For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal monthly installments on or before the last working day of each calendar month, payable in arrears.

Onboarding Time

We can help you get a new employee started in Slovakia fast. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 9 working days.

Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.

For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.

Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.

Competitive benefits package in Slovakia

At Remote, we’re obsessed with helping you craft the best possible employee experience for your team. We are leading the way in practicing “fair equity,” which means making sure employees everywhere have access to both the required and supplemental benefits they need to thrive (and that will allow you to attract the best local talent).

Our benefits packages in Slovakia are tailored to fulfill the local needs of your employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:

  • Health Insurance
  • Dental Insurance
  • Vision Insurance
  • Mental Health Support
  • Pension or 401(K)
  • Life and Disability Insurance

Calculate the cost to hire an employee
in Slovakia

Taxes in Slovakia

Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in Slovakia.

  • Employer

    • 10% - Health insurance

    • 1.4% - Sickness insurance

    • 14% - Pension contribution

    • 3% - Disability insurance

    • 1% - Unemployment insurance

    • 0.25% - Guarantee insurance

    • 0.8% - Accident insurance

    • 4.75% - Reserve fund

  • Employee

    • 4% - Health insurance

    • 1.4% - Sickness insurance

    • 4% - Pension contribution

    • 3% - Disability insurance

    • 1% - Unemployment insurance

  • Employee Income taxes

    • 19% - up to €37,981

    • 25% - €37,981 and above

Types of leave

Paid time off

The Slovakian Labour Code stipulates an annual leave entitlement for different classes of workers, depending on age, personal circumstances, occupation, and complexity or physical demand of an occupation.

  • 4 weeks: Basic annual leave
  • 5 weeks: Employees aged 33 and above
  • 8 weeks: Educational staff, i.e., teachers, lecturers, professors, etc.

Employees that have worked for less than 60 days are still entitled to 1/12 of their yearly entitlement.

Public holidays

Except for those employed in a few essential industries, employees are entitled to paid time off on Slovakia’s 14 public holidays and employers cannot enter into negotiations to get them to work.

Sick leave

Employees are entitled to paid sick leave, at a fraction of their normal wages.

Through the first three days of an employee’s illness, the employee will receive 25% of the normal wage s/he’s entitled to, paid by the employer; until day 10 the sickness benefit will be paid out at 55% of the normal wage.

From the 11th day of an illness, employees can draw a sickness benefit equal to 55% of the full wages, paid by the Social Insurance Agency.

Maternity leave

Pregnant employees are entitled to 37 weeks of paid maternity leave, starting up to eight weeks before delivery at a rate equivalent to 75% of the employee’s normal wages. Likewise, if an insured employee other than a postpartum mother takes care of a child, the employee will be entitled to 28 weeks of paid leave.

Slovakian maternity leave policy entitles only one insured person to draw a maternity benefit for childbirth, i.e., either the mother or the insured employee taking care of the child.

Slovakian maternity leave is paid by social security funds at a rate of 75% of the gross daily salary.

Paternity/parental leave

Employers are required to grant partners of postpartum employees a paid parental leave that will last until the end of the mother’s leave.

Additionally, parents can request time off work completely until their child turns three, or six — if the child has any disability. In this case, such employees will be entitled to a parental allowance equivalent to €203.20 per month.

Other leave

  • Adoption leave: Couples who adopt or foster children care entitled to 28 weeks of paid leave, 31 weeks for single parents, and 37 weeks of paid leave for parents with two or more children under their care.
  • Bereavement leave: Employees can take up to three days of paid leave off following the death of a spouse or child, and to attend the funeral.

Unique Slovakian benefits

  • Slovakian employees are entitled to a meal allowance and employers must comply with this statutory benefit
  • There is no statutory obligation but it is the common practice in Slovakia to offer employees both 13th and 14th month salaries
  • Overtime pay for hours over 40 a week must be paid at 125% of the gross salary
  • Pay for working on a Saturday is 150% of the gross salary
  • Pay for working on a Sunday is 200% of the gross salary
  • Pay for work during night hours is calculated at 140% of the employees’ gross salary

Employment termination

Termination process

Employees can be terminated for just cause, such as redundancy, dishonesty, negligence, fraud, any work-related offenses. This can either be with prior notice provided or during the probation period.

Notice period

Notice periods in Slovakia depend on how long an employee has worked with the employer.

The Employer needs to give the following notice periods based on Slovak labor law:

  • 1 month for an employee working for less than 1 year
  • 2 months for an employee working for at least 1 year but less than 5 years
  • 3 months for an employee working for at least 5 years

Severance pay

Employees are entitled to severance payment, ranging from one to 10 month’s salary, depending on the circumstances of the severance.

For employees terminated by notice, the severance pay can be anywhere from:

  • 2 – 5 years: one month’s salary
  • 5 – 10 years: two month’s salary

If an employer terminates an employee due to an occupational disability acquired while on the job (by accident, etc.) the employee will be entitled to a severance package equal to 10 months’ pay.

Probation periods

An employment contract can specify a probationary period of three months, or six when hiring for managerial positions.

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