Statutory notice period
The minimum notice an employer must give. Contracts and collective agreements can lengthen it and only rarely shorten it, and the tenure bands are where cross-border assumptions usually go wrong.
Employer notice for employees under the Civil Code. Collective agreements may set different periods; individual contracts may lengthen them but may generally not shorten them.
| Service | Employer notice | Runs |
|---|---|---|
| Base rule, from the start of employment | 4 weeks | to the fifteenth or to the end of a calendar month |
| After 2 years of service | 1 month | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 5 years | 2 months | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 8 years | 3 months | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 10 years | 4 months | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 12 years | 5 months | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 15 years | 6 months | to the end of a calendar month |
| After 20 years | 7 months | to the end of a calendar month |
The extended periods bind the employer only; the employee's own notice stays at the base rule unless agreed otherwise. During an agreed probation period the shorter probation notice applies instead.
Source: § 622 BGB, Kündigungsfristen bei Arbeitsverhältnissen, dejure.org, full text of the federal statute as in force. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Minimum paid annual leave
The statutory floor for paid holiday. The counting basis matters as much as the number, since some laws count a six-day week and others count working days or calendar weeks.
24 working days per year, counted on a six-day week, equivalent to 20 days on a five-day week.
Werktage count every calendar day that is not a Sunday or a public holiday, so Saturdays count. Most employers plan in a five-day week, where the statutory minimum converts pro rata.
Source: § 3 BUrlG, Dauer des Urlaubs, Bundesministerium der Justiz, gesetze-im-internet.de. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Probation limit
The longest trial period the law allows an employer to agree, together with the notice that applies while it runs.
6 months at most, with notice of 2 weeks during it.
A probation period applies only if agreed. The statute caps its length and sets the notice available to either side while it runs.
Source: § 622 BGB, Kündigungsfristen bei Arbeitsverhältnissen, dejure.org, full text of the federal statute as in force. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Employer social contributions
What the employer pays on top of gross salary into statutory schemes. Some countries charge a percentage of pay, others charge flat amounts, and a single headline rate hides caps, regional rules and industry-rated items.
Figures apply for 2026.
| Scheme | Rate, per cent of pay | Charged on |
|---|---|---|
| Pension insurance, employer share | 9.3 | pay up to 8,450 EUR per month |
| Unemployment insurance, employer share | 1.3 | pay up to 8,450 EUR per month |
| Health insurance, general rate, employer share | 7.3 | pay up to 5,812.50 EUR per month |
| Health insurance, supplementary rate, employer half of the published fund averageThe average supplementary rate of 2.9 for the year was set in November of the year before; each fund charges its own rate, carried half by employer and half by employee. | 1.45 | pay up to 5,812.50 EUR per month |
| Long-term care insurance, employer shareIn Saxony the employer share is 1.3, because Saxony kept the public holiday the other states abolished to fund the scheme. | 1.8 | pay up to 5,812.50 EUR per month |
| Sum of the shares aboveTypical employer total outside Saxony, before the variable items above. | 21.15 |
Statutory accident insurance, set by the industry body, and the wage-continuation and insolvency levies are employer costs as well, but they vary by industry, health fund and company size and are not part of the sum shown.
Source: Die Sozialversicherungsrechengrößen 2026, Deutsche Rentenversicherung Knappschaft-Bahn-See; Beiträge für Arbeitgeber 2026, Beitragstabelle, Techniker Krankenkasse; Sozialversicherungsbeiträge, Rechengrößen und Beitragsrecht 2026, AOK Firmenkunden; Finanzierung der sozialen Pflegeversicherung, Bundesministerium für Gesundheit. Checked on 2026-07-27.