The Hardest Market · Estonia
Estonia's HR data
The rules and costs of employing people in Estonia (Tallinn), from official sources, in English and Japanese.
36%women in management (2024, ILO)
1.34×employer's total cost on €36,000 a year, as a multiple of salary
12public holidays (2026)
Employment rules
| Statutory annual leave | 28 calendar days |
|---|---|
| Public holidays (2026) | 12 days |
| Notice of dismissal | 15-90 days by service (employer); 30 days (employee) |
| Severance required by law | Redundancy: 1 month + 1-2 months from insurance fund after 5 years |
| Typical negotiated exit | No official benchmark |
| Probation | Up to 4 months |
| Working hours | 40 h/week; max 48 h average |
| How hard is dismissal? | Moderate: good reason or redundancy required |
Employer contributions
| Social tax (pension and health insurance) | 33% |
|---|---|
| Unemployment insurance (employer) | 0.8% |
Employee contributions
| Unemployment insurance (employee) | 1.6% |
|---|---|
| Funded pension, II pillar (employee) | 2% |
Take-home pay and employer cost by annual salary
| Annual salary | Employee contributions | Income tax | Take-home | Employer cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| €24,000 | €864 | €3,242 | €19,894 | €32,112 |
| €36,000 | €1,296 | €5,787 | €28,917 | €48,168 |
| €54,000 | €1,944 | €9,604 | €42,452 | €72,252 |
| €80,000 | €2,880 | €15,118 | €62,002 | €107,040 |
Employee in Tallinn, Estonian tax resident and an Estonian national, below pensionable age, single with no children, salary only paid evenly as monthly pay (no bonus or fringe benefits), calendar tax year 2026. The employee has applied to the employer for the full basic exemption (€700 a month) and is in the mandatory funded pension (II pillar) at the default 2% rate. Income tax 22% on pay after the basic exemption and the employee's unemployment insurance and funded pension contributions. Employer pays social tax 33% and unemployment insurance 0.8%.