How to apply for unemployment benefits

What are unemployment benefits?

Unemployment benefits are provided to unemployed persons during a support period of six months. They serve to secure income due to job loss.

Am I entitled to unemployment benefits?

You are entitled to unemployment benefits if you are a job seeker registered in the Register of Job Seekers at the Labour Office of Social Affairs and Family in your place of permanent or usual residence (www.upsvar.sk) and before this registration you were:

  • compulsory unemployment insurance as:
    • an employee or
    • a contract worker with a regular monthly income based on an agreement on labour execution, labour activity agreement or labour activity agreement for the performance of seasonal work, or
    • a police officer or a professional soldier (or another person covered by the Act on Social Security of Policemen and Soldiers) who did not meet the conditions for entitlement to a service allowance, service pension or invalidity pension according to the Act on Social Security of Policemen and Soldiers, or
  • voluntarily insured in unemployment,

and you have met the conditions for entitlement to unemployment benefits listed below.

Who is not entitled to unemployment benefits?

  • Persons not covered by compulsory unemployment insurance, namely:
    • a self-employed person who does not voluntarily pay insurance premium for unemployment insurance,
    • an employee according to a special regulation (e.g. judges, prosecutors),
    • a person accused in custody and sentenced to serve a prison sentence,
    • a person who has been awarded:
      • old age pension,
      • early old age pension,
      • invalidity pension with a rate of decline in the ability to perform gainful activity of more than 70%,
      • invalidity pension and has reached pensionable age.
  • Persons who are not employees according to the Act on Social Insurance, specifically:
    • a contract worker on the basis on an agreement on part-time student work,
    • a contract worker on the basis on an agreement on the execution of labour or an agreement on labour activities, who has been awarded:
      • old age pension,
      • early old age pension,
      • invalidity pension,
      • service pension and has reached pensionable age,
      • invalidity service pension,
    • a contract worker on the basis of an agreement on inclusion in active reserves according to a special regulation,
    • a secondary school student and university student during practical teaching during professional (production) practice.
  • Persons who were not insured against unemployment (for example, those who received care allowance from the Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family).

What conditions do I have to meet?

You are entitled to unemployment benefits if you meet the following conditions:

  • you are registered in the Register of Job Seekers at the employment office,
  • in the last four years before being included in the Register of Job Seekers, you were insured for unemployment for at least 730 days (2 years).

What insurance period is included?

  • a period of compulsory unemployment insurance of the employee,
  • an insurance period, or employment or periods of self-employment also taken into account is the one completed in the territory of another Member State of the European Union, Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland, Switzerland, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (if all the conditions for granting the benefit are met),
  • a period of voluntary unemployment insurance,
  • if you are a police officer or a professional soldier (or another person covered by the Act on Social Security of Policemen and Soldiers), your insurance period will be taken into account for the service allowance if you were included in the Register of Job and you have not met the conditions for entitlement to a service allowance, invalidity service pension or you have not met the condition of the duration of the employment relationship to be entitled to a service pension,
  • if you are a mother-employee after the end of parental leave, the period of interruption of compulsory unemployment insurance due to taking parental leave is also taken into account (in other words, the period of taking parental leave during the duration of the employment relationship)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

The insurance period, which has already been taken into account for commencement of a previous entitlement to a benefit, is not taken into account for the commencement of another entitlement to a benefit.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

The unemployment insurance period does not include the period during which the employee did not have an assessment basis for paying unemployment insurance premium. This does not apply to the period in which compulsory unemployment insurance is interrupted due to taking parental leave during the employment relationship (in other words, the period of parental leave during the employment) and the period of exclusion from the obligation to pay unemployment insurance premium.

  • the period of the necessary insurance in the concerned assessed period does not have to be continuous (individual jobs/insurances are added together).
  • if you are a voluntarily insured unemployed person, you have paid unemployment insurance premium on time and in the correct amount,
  • not examined:
    • payment of unemployment insurance premium by the employer,
    • the reason for the termination of the employment relationship or whether the employment relationship was agreed for a definite or indefinite period of time. These circumstances do not affect your entitlement to unemployment benefit, its amount or the period of its provision.

How do I apply for unemployment benefits?

1

At the labour office in the place of your permanent or usual residence

through the form Application for Inclusion into the Register of Job Seekers (SK), which also serves as an application for unemployment benefit. The application for unemployment benefit filed in this way will be delivered electronically to the Social Insurance Agency for processing. You do not need to come to the Social Insurance Agency in person.

2

At a Social Insurance Agency branch (if you did not apply at the labour office)

according to your place of permanent residence, by submitting an Application for Unemployment Benefits (SK) (if you did not apply for unemployment benefit directly at the labour office). In the application, do not forget to indicate the date of inclusion into the Register of Job Seekers. Deliver the completed form to the relevant branch of the Social Insurance Agency:

  • personally,
  • by post or
  • via eShránka, if you have it activated and use an electronic identity card - eID (you can find more information on the Central portal of public administration slovensko.sk).

 

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

Do not apply for unemployment benefit at both offices at the same time. If you apply for unemployment benefit twice at both offices, the later application will not be taken into account!

No other documents need to be attached to the benefit application. This does not apply if you are a police officer or a soldier. They will also attach the Confirmation of Payment of Insurance Premium for Service Allowance for the Purpose of Unemployment Benefits (SK). The confirmation is filled out by the relevant service office/authority.

If any questionable situation arises during the assessment of entitlement to a benefit or if you have worked abroad, Social Insurance Agency will contact you in order to obtain the necessary data.

More information is available in the section UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE - Unemployment benefit (SK)
or when returning from abroad UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE – Unemployment benefit and the EU