Unemployment or lay-off may be a situation you are already familiar with and does not necessarily completely change your everyday life. It may also be an entirely new experience, accompanied by a strong initial reaction. In both cases, it is important to take steps to secure your income. One of the key questions is how much earnings-related unemployment allowance you may be entitled to receive.
The earnings-related allowance is a benefit you can receive if you are a member of an unemployment fund and become unemployed or laid off. As the name suggests, it is an income-related benefit, the amount of which is calculated based on the wages you earned before unemployment or lay-off. The allowance is paid by the unemployment fund if all eligibility conditions are met and you submit your application within the prescribed time. The earnings-related allowance is not means-tested, meaning that the recipient’s or their family’s assets and financial situation do not affect either the amount of the allowance or the right to receive it.
How is earnings-related unemployment allowance calculated?
An important question after meeting the conditions is how much daily allowance you can actually receive. The amount of your full earnings-related allowance is determined based on the wages you earned before unemployment or lay-off.
Full allowance is paid when a person is fully unemployed or laid off and has no income that would reduce the benefit.
The allowance consists of a basic part and an earnings-related part.:
- The basic part: €37.21 per day (in 2026). This amount is the same for everyone.
- The earnings-related part: determined based on your previous wage income.
When calculating the earnings-related part, your wage income received for at least 12 months before unemployment or lay-off is considered. The wages must fulfil the employment conditions. Income is considered as gross amounts, that is, before taxes are deducted.
The calculation is based on your established wage income, such as hourly or monthly pay. For example, holiday bonuses and holiday compensation are not taken into account. A statutory employee contribution deduction (3.83% in 2026) is applied, after which the daily wage is calculated.
The earnings-related allowance is not a direct fixed percentage of your salary. The earnings-related part is 45% of the difference between your daily wage and the basic part. If your monthly salary is higher than €3,534.95 per month, the earnings-related part is 20% of the portion exceeding this amount. The full earnings-related allowance is always at least equal to Kela’s basic daily allowance of €37.21 (in 2026) and at most 90% of the daily wage on which the earnings-related allowance is based.
Estimate the amount of your allowance
Calculating the exact amount of your final earnings-related allowance yourself is complicated. When you apply for daily allowance from the unemployment fund, the fund’s experts calculate the exact amount, and you will receive a decision on it.
However, you can easily estimate the amount of your allowance using the daily allowance calculator on the fund’s website. You enter your salary details and any other possible income or benefits into the calculator and receive an indicative estimate of the amount of your allowance.
For example:
- Monthly salary before taxes: €3,650
- No earned income or benefits during unemployment
- Child home care allowance for one child: €378 per month
- Tax rate: 25%
The calculator estimates the daily allowance at approximately €1,641.60 per month before taxes and €1,231.20 per month after taxes, if unemployment lasts less than 40 days.
If unemployment continues for a longer period, the earnings-related allowance is stepped down, meaning that the amount decreases. The calculator also provides an estimate of the stepped amounts.