Being self-employed in Slovenia is straightforward to start and hard to price without a calculator. Registration is free and fast. The monthly bill for contributions, however, begins whether or not you have sold anything, and the flat-rate tax scheme that many freelancers use depends on a referendum on 6 December 2026. This guide explains how to be self-employed in Slovenia, the 2026 numbers, and where the ZIURS law stands.
What forms can you choose when self-employed in Slovenia?
There are two main routes.
- The s.p. (samostojni podjetnik): an individual entrepreneur. Simple and cheap, but you answer for the business's debts on your personal assets.
- The d.o.o. (družba z omejeno odgovornostjo): a limited liability company with a minimum share capital of €7,500 (at least €50 per contribution). The owners do not answer for the company's debts, but you take on company accounting. The corporate income tax is 22% for 2024 to 2028 (19% otherwise), according to SPOT.
An s.p., and a simple d.o.o. with standard articles and capital paid in cash, are registered free of charge through SPOT (Slovenska poslovna točka), the one-stop shop, in the business register kept by AJPES. You can register online with a qualified digital certificate, or at a SPOT point: AJPES offices, chambers of commerce and craft, and the administrative units. For an s.p., a representative can also file with a written power of attorney with a certified signature. For a d.o.o. with a single shareholder, the online portal requires a natural person with an EMŠO, who is the sole manager and pays in the whole capital in cash. A notary is needed for contributions in kind or tailor-made articles, and the notary's fees then apply. A simple d.o.o. takes four to five days, according to SPOT.
Before any of this, you need your residence certificate and your tax number: see the Slovenia tax number guide and the residence registration article. A foreigner receives the EMŠO with a first residence document in Slovenia.
What must you do after registering as self-employed in Slovenia?
FURS enters an s.p. in the tax register automatically from the business register. Within eight days of registration, you send FURS the data it does not receive automatically (form DR-03 or NF-LD: premises, accounts abroad, who keeps your books), your tax estimate (form DD-IPDO) and, if you choose flat-rate expenses, the notification of that regime. Your social security registration (form M-1) goes through SPOT within eight days of starting the activity.
Then the rhythm is regular:
- Monthly: FURS sends a pre-filled contribution statement (POPSV) on eDavki by the 10th. You correct it by the 15th and pay by the 20th of the following month.
- Yearly: profit return (DDD) by 31 March, online only.
- Advance tax: monthly if the annual advance exceeds €400, otherwise quarterly.
If you are not sure whether an s.p. or a d.o.o. fits your project, or how the contribution base interacts with a salaried job, Moovy, our AI assistant, can set out the questions an accountant will ask you and the documents to gather. It does not register the business for you.
How much are the contributions for the self-employed in Slovenia?
A full-time entrepreneur pays contributions on at least 60% of the average wage, a minimum monthly base of €1,521.62. The minimum total was €651.04 a month in the FURS table for September 2026, including the €39.36 compulsory health contribution (from March 2026) and the long-term care contribution of 2% (since 1 July 2025). The maximum base is €8,876.11, 3.5 times the average wage.
Two softeners. If you have never been registered as self-employed, you are exempt from 50% of pension and disability contributions for the first 12 months and 30% for the next 12. And someone who runs an activity alongside a job pays flat monthly amounts instead: €13.63 and €40.90 for health in 2026, €6.43 for long-term care and, if not already insured for pension through the activity, a flat pension contribution of €52.05 since 1 April 2026. Check the line that matches your case in the FURS notice.
Contributions are due each month, even with no revenue.
When do you charge VAT, and what about bookkeeping?
VAT (DDV) exemption applies if your revenue in Slovenia does not exceed €60,000 excluding VAT in the previous year and the current year. If you cross €60,000 during the year you can keep the exemption until €66,000; beyond that you must register for VAT (form DDV-P2) before the month in which you exceed it. Rates are 22%, 9.5% and 5%. VAT payers have sent their VAT records online, period by period, since 1 July 2025, and electronic invoices between businesses become compulsory from 1 January 2028.
On bookkeeping, an s.p. on actual profit can choose simple bookkeeping (enostavno knjigovodstvo) if, according to the FURS brochure, it does not exceed two of these three limits in the last year: three employees on average, €50,000 of annual revenue and €25,000 of average assets. Otherwise it keeps double-entry books.
How is a sole trader taxed, and what are normiranci?
An s.p. can compute profit on actual revenue and expenses, with bookkeeping, or use flat-rate expenses (normirani odhodki), the regime of the normiranci. Under the flat-rate scheme, a full-time insured s.p. deducts 80% of revenue up to €60,000 and 0% above. Someone not insured full time deducts 80% up to €12,500, 40% from €12,500 to €30,000 and 0% beyond. The tax is 20%, then 35% above a base of €72,000 (€33,000 if not insured full time), and it is final. These are the FURS figures from its "Davki za začetnike" guide, 41st edition, March 2026.
For 2026 there is a revenue ceiling. Under the law known as ZPZR, flat-rate expenses are reserved for entrepreneurs whose average revenue for 2024 and 2025 did not exceed €120,000 (insured without interruption for at least nine months), €50,000 (not fully insured) or €85,000 (mixed cases), depending on the insurance condition, prorated if you did not trade for the whole of those years. A new business is not held to these ceilings at its first choice. If you leave the system or stop the activity, you can come back only when more than five tax years have passed, the year you left not counted.
What is the ZIURS law and what is the referendum?
ZIURS is the Zakon o interventnih ukrepih za razvoj Slovenije, the Act on Intervention Measures for the Development of Slovenia. The National Assembly adopted it on 11 May 2026. It touches several areas: according to the Constitutional Court decision, it amends among others the employment relationships act and health laws, and FURS writes that it also changes the flat-rate regime.
The sequence, from the official gazette:
- The Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions filed an initiative for a legislative referendum on 18 May 2026.
- On 27 May 2026 the National Assembly declared the referendum inadmissible, arguing that the law falls under the constitutional exceptions, which include tax laws.
- The Constitutional Court annulled that resolution on 24 July 2026 (decision U-I-106/26, published 4 August).
- After receiving a request from at least 40,000 voters on 9 October, the National Assembly called the referendum on 16 October 2026. The vote takes place on Sunday 6 December 2026.
What this means for you. The rule in force is the ZPZR one described above. FURS wrote on 16 October 2026 that if ZIURS does not enter into force, the ZPZR applies for 2026: a taxpayer who does not meet its conditions must determine the tax base from actual revenue and expenses, keep books for all of 2026 and will receive a FURS decision. If ZIURS enters into force, it would apply from 1 January 2026, those taxpayers would meet the conditions for flat-rate expenses, and FURS would notify them.
The practical lesson: if you are close to the ceilings, keep records of actual expenses for 2026 until the result is known, and check this page's date against FURS news before you rely on the flat-rate regime.
What are the usual mistakes?
- Underestimating contributions. €651.04 a month is due even in a quiet month.
- Forgetting the eight days after registration.
- Registering online without a qualified digital certificate. Use a SPOT point, or a representative with a certified power of attorney for an s.p.
- Believing an accountant is compulsory. The law does not require one for an s.p., but books and returns must be on time, and double-entry books or a company's accounts are hard to do alone.
- Assuming an A1 form settles everything. A posted worker stays covered by the home country's system with an A1; for a self-employed person, check with your social security fund which country you pay in.
Before you register, choose flat-rate expenses or pick between an s.p. and a d.o.o., have your plan confirmed by a Slovenian accountant (računovodja) or tax adviser. For the personal side, see income tax in Slovenia and working in Slovenia.