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Waiting period

We can pay you earnings-related daily allowance only after you have been unemployed as a job seeker for a total of seven full working days during a maximum of eight consecutive calendar weeks. This is a waiting period.

The waiting period is no more than once per the maximum period of earnings-related daily allowance. With the exception of situations where the waiting period does not run out completely during eight consecutive calendar weeks. In that case, you may have more than one waiting period within a year.

However, there is no waiting period if your maximum period of daily allowance period would start within one year of the start of the previous maximum period and if the waiting period has already been set at the start of the maximum period of the previous daily allowance period.


The waiting period has changed

By way of a legislative amendment, the deductible period has been extended to 7 days from 1.1.2024. The amendment will affect the waiting period, which will begin on or after 1.1.2024. As a result of the amendment, the waiting period is equal to seven full working days. Prior to the amendment, the waiting period was five in a similar manner.


Expiry of the waiting period

The duration of the waiting period is equal to seven full working days and can be up to five days per calendar week.

The waiting period days are consumed by each day from which you would be entitled to full earnings-related daily allowance or from which you receive earnings-related daily allowance by participating in a employment promoting service.

If you work part-time, we will calculate the equivalent of seven full working days by deducting the maximum hours worked in accordance with the applicable collective agreement in the industry. This way we can find out your unemployment time. When your unemployment period corresponds to seven full working days, your waiting period has passed and we can start paying you earnings-related daily allowance. 

When you work part-time and we pay you adjusted earnings-related daily allowance, we check the restrictions on working hours so that we take into account working hours when the pay corresponding to working hours is actually paid. The waiting period is an exception to this. We always calculate the passing of the waiting time according to the actual time of the work, regardless of when the pay corresponding to the working hours is paid to you.

The waiting period is not consumed by the days in which

  • you are not unemployed
  • Your job search is not valid
  • you are employed in business continuously for a maximum of two weeks
  • You have a carnage.
  • you are not entitled to earnings-related daily allowance
  • you are not entitled to adjusted earnings-related daily allowance due to exceeding the working hours limits

Eight weeks

The waiting period must run during eight consecutive calendar weeks. If you are completely unemployed or laid off, this is of no practical significance, as the waiting period is usually one or two calendar weeks.

If you work part-time or have been partially laid off, it is possible that your waiting period will not last for eight consecutive calendar weeks. This is also rare and requires that the lay-off period is very limited.