Social security contributions

Social security contributions finance pensions, health care, unemployment and sickness benefits. For employees the employer withholds the employee's share from the salary and adds its own share, remitting both to the social insurance institution. The self-employed pay their own contributions, usually calculated from the previous year's profit with minimum and maximum bases and adjusted in an annual reconciliation.

Rates and structures are entirely national and are often the largest cost of employing someone after the gross salary. EU rules only coordinate which country's scheme applies to people working across borders, so that nobody pays twice or falls out of coverage. Contributions are typically deductible from the income tax base. Some flat-rate regimes bundle income tax and contributions into one monthly payment. Kontevia records contribution payments as a separate category and reminds the user of the due dates of their country.