Slovenia is a small country with its own language, and job applications there are usually written in it. If you are an EU citizen, the legal side of working in Slovenia is light: no work permit, no sponsor, a written contract and a registration. The harder parts are finding the job and reading the paperwork in Slovenian. This guide covers both.
Do EU citizens need a work permit in Slovenia?
No. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no work permit. What you need is the registration of your residence if you stay longer than three months, covered in the residence certificate article. For a worker, the certificate is backed by a statement from the employer, which replaces the proofs of health insurance and means that non-workers must supply.
British citizens are the exception. Since 2021 they need a single residence and work permit, based on approval from the Employment Service. See moving to Slovenia from the UK.
How do you find a job when working in Slovenia is your plan?
Use the EURES portal while you are still abroad, and register with the Zavod RS za zaposlovanje (ZRSZ, the Employment Service of Slovenia) once you are here. Neither the service nor recruitment agencies may charge a job seeker. If someone asks you to pay for placement, that is a warning sign.
Applications are usually in Slovenian, sometimes in English, according to EURES. Diplomas and employer references may need translations if the employer asks. If your profession is regulated, such as medicine, law or architecture, have your qualification recognised by the competent Slovenian authority before you practise. For the academic value of a diploma, the Slovenian NARIC centre gives an opinion.
What must be in the contract?
The law requires a written contract before you start. It sets out the probationary period, working time and pay, among other things. Starting without a contract is the first mistake to avoid.
- Probation: up to six months.
- Working time: normally 40 hours a week, never fewer than 36 for full-time, spread over at least four days.
- Overtime: at most 8 hours a week, 20 a month and 170 a year, with written notice (up to 230 in some sectors, such as health, if the collective agreement allows).
- Rest: at least 12 consecutive hours in every 24, and 24 consecutive hours a week.
- Notice for ordinary dismissal: between 15 and 80 days, depending on the case.
- Right to disconnect: since a 2024 reform, the employer must protect your right not to be reached during rest and justified absence.
If you have an offer in hand and want to know what to check before signing, or you are weighing a Slovenian contract against a remote job for a foreign employer, Moovy can list the questions to ask and the documents to compare. It cannot sign or negotiate for you.
What is the minimum wage when working in Slovenia?
For 2026 the minimum wage is €1,481.88 gross a month for full-time work, in force from 1 January 2026 and roughly €1,000 net, according to the ministry. In 2025 it was €1,277.72. It is reviewed every January, at least in line with inflation.
What does not count towards the minimum: performance bonuses, meal and transport allowances and the holiday allowance (regres). Meal and transport reimbursements are added on top, not used to make up the minimum.
How much holiday and parental leave do you get?
- Annual leave: at least four weeks a year, full-time or part-time. If you worked the whole year, at least two weeks must be taken at once. Plan them with your employer.
- Maternity leave: 105 days.
- Paternity leave: 15 days, to be taken within three months of the birth.
- Parental leave: 160 days per parent, of which 60 days are non-transferable.
- Public holidays 2026: 1 and 2 January; 8 February; 5 and 6 April; 27 April; 1 and 2 May; 25 June; 15 August; 31 October; 1 November; 25 December; 26 December.
What happens if you lose your job while working in Slovenia?
You register with ZRSZ, which handles unemployment benefit. The right depends on the reason your contract ended, so do not resign before checking. For 2026 (since 1 January) the benefit is at least €1,037.32 and at most €1,926.44 a month. The ceiling falls over time: 130% of the minimum wage for the first three months, 110% for months four to six, 100% for seven to nine, 90% for ten to twelve, then 80%, with a floor of 70%.
To qualify you need 10 months of insurance against unemployment in the last 24 (6 of 24 if you are under 30) and a job loss that was not your fault or choice.
If you come from another EU country with unemployment benefit, two forms matter. U1 counts your periods worked abroad. U2 lets you keep your old country's benefit while you look for work in Slovenia, for at least three months and up to six depending on that country, if you register with ZRSZ within seven days.
What documents should you have ready?
- Passport or ID card, your residence certificate and your tax number.
- Diplomas and employer references, with translations if requested. For a regulated profession, the recognition decision.
- Your bank account details, because pay goes to a Slovenian or other euro account. See opening a bank account in Slovenia.
- The forms U1 or U2 if you are coming from another EU country and want your insurance periods or your benefit to follow you.
What about students, young people and side work?
The minimum age to work is 15. EURES lists a minimum gross hourly rate for student work of €8.98 and a value of €13.73 for each personal supplementary work voucher. Apprentices have their own minimum monthly pay: €317.58 in the first year, €381.42 in the second and €508.56 in the third. These figures come from the EURES page and are not dated, so confirm them with the Employment Service before relying on them.
Side activities next to an employment contract fall under another set of rules if you set up as a part-time entrepreneur: ask SPOT and FURS before you start.
What should you know about health and tax as an employee?
The employer registers you with ZZZS from your first day; see health insurance in Slovenia. Your tax is withheld by the employer, and FURS prepares a calculation in spring. Before the employer can do anything, you need a tax number and an EMŠO: the Slovenia tax number guide.
What is being debated right now?
The intervention law ZIURS, adopted on 11 May 2026 and, according to Slovenian media reports, due to go to a referendum on 6 December 2026, also contains labour rules. Unions object, in particular, to provisions such as the automatic end of employment once a worker meets the conditions for an old-age pension. Until the vote, the rules you read above are the ones in force. Whether they change depends on the result, so check the date of any source you read. This guide does not cover the tax side of the same law.
What are the common mistakes?
- Starting without a written contract.
- Counting allowances towards the minimum wage.
- Skipping the two-week block of holiday.
- Resigning without checking the unemployment rules.
- Paying an agency to find you a job. It is not allowed.