What is social insurance?
Social insurance provides you with benefits, should you become unable to work. Social Security contributions for this type of insurance are mandatory for all workplaces and employees. In this article you will read which social insurance contributions you must pay obligatorily and which you can pay voluntarily. We will also explain the basis for calculating social security contributions and how you can voluntarily pay contributions.
What are social security contributions?
Social security contributions include pension contributions, disability insurance contributions, accident insurance contributions and sickness insurance contributions. With these contributions you are guaranteed benefits in case of inability to work due to old age or sudden accident or illness.
Social and health insurance
Social Security provides you with cash benefits if you are unable to work due to a sudden accident, illness or reaching old age. Health insurance, on the other hand, guarantees you medical care under the National Health Fund. Both insurances are mandatory for employees and employers. It is also worth mentioning that social insurance includes retirement, disability, accident and sickness insurance. The social insurance rate for health insurance is 9%, while the social insurance coverage is about 30% (pension – 19.52%, disability – 8%, accident – 1.67%, sick – 2.45%).
Voluntary social insurance
Since the voluntariness of social insurance depends on the type of contributions you make and your title to compulsory contributions, we have looked at each case in turn.
Sickness insurance is voluntary for you, but other social insurances are compulsory:
(a) If you work under an agency contract, contract of mandate, other contract for the provision of services, or are a co-worker
b) You are a person who runs a non-agricultural business or you cooperate in its running,
c) You are a priest or other religious person
Accident and sickness insurance is voluntary, but you have to pay for pension and disability insurance.
a) You are a mother on leave and receive special benefits.
b) you are a person on parental leave and you are not entitled to an old-age or disability pension, or have no other title to compulsory social insurance
c) you receive carer’s allowance
(d) you work as a member of a supervisory board and are rewarded for performing the duties of that membership
Other cases:
(a) You can apply for voluntary pension insurance if you are not covered by compulsory social insurance. This does not apply to sickness and accident insurance.
b) Accident insurance applies to you if you are eligible for pension and disability insurance. (voluntary or compulsory)
c) Voluntary sickness insurance applies to you if compulsory pension insurance applies to you.
