Employment contracts in Slovenia are either indefinite or for a fixed term. Fixed-term contracts may not be for longer than two years and are only allowed for legally recognized reasons such as work that will last for a definite and defined period, seasonal work or a few other situations. The fixed-term contract must state the reason for the fixed term.

Written contracts are the norm and are strongly recommended. Written employment contracts may be in any language as long as there is also a version in Slovenian. The employee must be given a draft contract at least three days before the planned signing date and must receive a copy of the final signed contract. The employment contract should state:

• the identities of the parties,

• the date the employee will begin work,

• the employee’s job title and a brief job description,

• the workplace,

• if the contract is for a fixed term, the length of the contract and the reason for its fixed term,

• whether the employee will work full- or part-time, and working hours,

• the employee’s basic salary, pay period, date and payment method, and any other salary components or payments,

• annual leave information,

• notice periods for terminating the contract, and

• information about collective agreements.

The minimum wage is 1,253.90 EUR per month.

The standard working week consists of 40 hours over a five-day working week, including a 30-minute lunch break. To be considered a full-time employee in Slovenia, an employee must work at least 36 hours a week except for employees who work in a particularly dangerous environment who may work fewer than 36 hours.

Overtime

All work more than the standard working hours a week is to be paid as overtime and is regulated by the employment contract/collective agreement. When an employee is requested to work overtime or work on holidays, there are maximums in relation to the number of hours allowed. These maximums are 8 hours per week, 20 hours per month, or 170 hours per year. Maximums may differ for minors, pregnant women, and minors.

All overtime hours in excess of 40 hours a week are paid at an overtime compensation rate; this rate is to be stipulated in the employment contract/collective agreement, though is usually around 150% salary.

An employer must provide written notice of any upcoming overtime.

Slovenia requires employers to compensate an employee for sick leave for up to 30 days of absence; the amount is stipulated within the employment contract/collective agreement. If an employee is absent due to a work-related illness or accident, the employer should compensate them at 100% of their regular salary. 80% salary is usually paid out for a regular sick leave.

Sick leave in excess of 30 days is to be compensated by Social Security until they are deemed fit to return to work or their employment is terminated.

An employee must provide a medical certificate as soon as possible following sickness.

Maternity Leave

Mothers in Slovenia receive 105 days of paid maternity leave which begins 28 days before the estimated date of birth. An employee must take a minimum of 15 days maternity leave. To be eligible for paid maternity leave, an employee must have made a year’s worth of insurance payments to the Parent Protection Insurance over the three years preceding the pregnancy.

Social Security will compensate the employee based on the amount contributed to the Parent Protection insurance; the benefit will be between 55% of a minimum base salary and twice the average monthly salary in Slovenia.

Paternity Leave

Fathers are entitled to 30 days of paternity leave, with the paternity benefit equaling 100% of the base amount. However, this benefit cannot exceed 2.5 times the average monthly wage.

Parental Leave

Slovenia grants each parent 130 days of parental leave to care for a child. This entitlement can increase in the case of multiple/complicated births.

Either the father or the mother can transfer 100 days of their leave to the other to care for their child, making a total of 260 days that can be taken.

Employees are entitled to paid annual leave of at least four weeks (20 working days) in every calendar year regardless of whether they work full-time or part-time. An employee is entitled to this payment after six months of continuous employment, prorated accordingly.

The employer must let the employee take the annual leave entitlement by the end of the current calendar year. 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 30 June of the following year.

Local labor law defines cases of personal circumstances on the basis of which based on the law itself, the worker is entitled to additional days of annual leave:

• Length of Service Leave

  • 3-5 years of service: 1 day additional leave

  • 6-10 years of service: 2 days additional leave

  • 11-15 years of service: 4 days additional leave

  • 16-20 years of service: 5 days additional leave

  • 21-25 years of service: 6 days additional leave

• Workers with a child up to 15 years of age (1 additional day per child).

• A worker who has not yet reached the age of 18 has the right to an additional seven days of annual leave.

• Disabled workers with at least 60% physical disability, and workers who care for and protects a child in need of special care and protection, are also entitled for additional leave.

In addition to paid annual leave, the mandatory Holiday allowance must be paid by 30th June each year. A minimum and maximum tax free amount is set each year up (for 2024 the minimum is 1,253.90 Euros and the maximum is 2,317.82 Euros). Employers must pay at least the minimum monthly wage for the year, unless the employee was hired during the year, in which case they receive a proportional payment.

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

Public holidays that fall on the weekend are usually lost.

Date Day Holiday Notes
1 Jan 2024 - Monday - New Year’s Day
2 Jan 2024 - Tuesday - New Year’s Holiday
8 Feb 2024 - Thursday - Prešeren Day
1 Apr 2024 - Monday - Easter Monday
27 Apr 2024 - Saturday - Resistance Day
1 May 2024 - Wednesday - Labour Day
2 May 2024 - Thursday - Labour Day Holiday
25 Jun 2024 - Tuesday - National Day
15 Aug 2024 - Thursday - Assumption Day
31 Oct 2024 - Thursday - Reformation Day
1 Nov 2024 - Friday - All Saints’ Day
25 Dec 2024 - Wednesday - Christmas Day
26 Dec 2024 - Thursday - Independence & Unity Day

Slovenia has national health insurance. Many Slovenians buy additional health insurance from private insurers to ensure access to care beyond what the national plan provides.

The termination process varies according to the employment agreement or collective agreement in place and is based on the type of contract and reason for termination. There are two types of dismissals:

Regular dismissal is issued for a business reason (redundancy), worker incompetence, an at-fault reason (misconduct), unfitness to work due to disability, or failed probation period.

Extraordinary dismissal is issued for severe scenarios such as criminal offense, declining a transfer and similar breaches.

All dismissals must be presented to the employer in writing, and the employee must be given the opportunity to present a defense. In extraordinary dismissals, the termination must be presented in writing and in person.

Notice Period

The length of the notice period depends on the type of dismissal:

• Dismissal for business reasons has notice periods dependent on the employee’s length of service:

-Up to 1 year service = 15 days’ notice

-1 to 2 years service = 30 days’ notice

-Above 2 years service = 30 days plus and additional 2 days notice for every additional year of service above two years, up to a maximum of 60 days notice.

• Dismissal for at fault reasons = 15 days notice.

• Dismissal for failed probation period = 7 days notice.

• Extraordinary dismissal = no notice required. However, the employer must still provide termination of the notice within 30 days of the incident that led to the termination.

Severance Pay

For dismissal due to business reasons or employee incompetence, employees are entitled to severance pay based on the employee’s service length:

• 1-10 years of service receive 1/5 of the employee’s average salary from the previous three months for every year of service.

• 10-20 years of service receive 1/4 of the average salary from the past three months for every year of service.

• Over 20 years of service receive 1/3 of the average salary from the past three months for every year of service. However, there is a maximum severance payment limit of ten times the employee’s basic monthly salary.

Severance might also be required in certain cases of termination of Fixed Term contracts, receiving 1/5 of the average monthly salary for the first year of service. An additional amount (which amounts to one-twelfth of the one-fifth of salary calculated for the first year) will then also be added for each extra month of employment above the first year of employment.

Probation Period

In Slovenia, probation periods are outlined in the employee’s employment contract. The probation period can be no more than six months.

Employer Payroll Contributions
8.85% - Pension & Disability
6.56% - Health Insurance
0.06% - Unemployment
0.53% - Work Injury
0.10% - Parental Care
16.10%* - Total Employment Cost

*The following mandatory allowances must also be given by the employer:

Meal Allowance – paid monthly at a rate of up to 7.96 EUR per working day.

Transportation allowance (for office workers) – Employees are entitled to receive transportation allowance if commencing to work. This can be settled whether with mileage compensation (0.21 EUR per kilometre) or by settling monthly public transportation cost.

Homeworking allowance (for homebased workers) – Mandatory payment for all employees working from home. This compensation amount is exempt from the income tax base up to 2% of employee’s monthly salary. This amount usually varies from 1-5 EUR, depending on employer’s decision.

Employee

Employee Payroll Contributions
0.14% - Unemployment
0.10% - Parental Care
35 EUR/month - Medical Contribution
22.10%+35 EUR/month - Total Employee Cost

Employee Income Tax
16% - 0-8,755 EUR
26% - 8,755-25,750 EUR
33% - 25,750-51,500 EUR
39% - 51,500-74,160 EUR
50% - 74,160 EUR and above

Payroll Cycle

In Slovenia, the payroll frequency is monthly with the payment of salaries usually made on the last working day of each month.

13th Salary

In Slovenia, there is no 13th salary, however, a mandatory Holiday allowance must be paid by 30th June at the minimum and maximum tax free amount set each year up (for 2024 the minimum is 1,253.90 Euros and the maximum is 2,317.82 Euros).

Work and residence permits are regulated under the Employment, Self-employment, and Work of Foreigners Act, enacted in 2015. The permits are obligatory for all non-EU nationals who wish to be employed in Slovenia. Unless they can be considered for the following exception:

• Refugees

• Immediate family members of Slovenian citizens

• Non-EU nationals with a permit for permanent residence

• Non-EU nationals who have obtained the status of a long-term resident in another member state of the EU after residing in the Republic of Slovenia for one year

• Non-EU nationals of Slovenian origin up to the third successive generation

To obtain a long-term work permit, an individual should apply for a single residence permit for work and residence in Slovenia (The Single Permit).

Single permits are issued by the administrative unit (“Upravna enota”) with the consent of the Employment Service of Slovenia (“ESS”) on the basis of the Employment, Self-employment, and Work of Foreigners Act and corresponding regulation.

After applying for The Single Permit, the administrative unit will automatically begin the process of obtaining consent from the Employment Service of Slovenia. An application for The Single Permit may be submitted by a foreigner or by the employer.

The standard VAT rate is 22%.