Waiting period of unemployment security abolished temporarily

31.01.2022

On 28 January 2022, the Parliament decided on a temporary amendment to the law regarding the waiting period of unemployment security. As a result, unemployment benefit will be paid from the first day of unemployment without the five-day waiting period. The amendment affects unemployment benefits between 1 January and 28 February 2022.

Unemployment security is normally subject to a five-day waiting time during which no unemployment benefit is paid. If the person is partially employed, the waiting period accrues from days when unemployed or laid off.

As a result of the temporary change to the law, the payment period of earnings-related allowance starts immediately from the first day of unemployment without the waiting period. The temporary amendment applies to situations where the first day of the waiting period falls between 1 January and 28 February 2022.

Therefore, the amendment does not apply in situations where the waiting period had already begun before 1 January 2022, even in cases where part of the waiting period is in January or February, Correspondingy, the benefit for the waiting period can be paid after 28 February in cases where the waiting period began in February.

If a person’s unemployment began on 1 January 2022, they may have received their first earnings-related allowance before the amendment was implemented by the Parliament. In these cases, the Unemployment Fund will pay the missing sums automatically and retroactively without the need for seperate requests.