Hiring in Germany through an Employer of Record
A German employer pays half of each social insurance contribution. These are the employer halves for the three biggest, as published by Techniker Krankenkasse, a statutory health insurer, because the federal pages give only the totals.
Employing someone in Germany through an Employer of Record costs their salary, plus 9.3 percent pension insurance, 7.3 percent health insurance, general rate, 1.3 percent unemployment insurance, plus the vendor's own monthly fee, the lowest published being from $199 from RemoFirst. The charges were read from tk.de, last on .
What does an employer pay on top of salary in Germany?
- 9.3% Pension insurance
- 7.3% Health insurance, general rate
- 1.3% Unemployment insurance
Each charge, and what it is for
- Pension insurance: 9.3 percent of gross pay, the employer half.
- Health insurance, general rate: 7.3 percent of gross pay, the employer half.
- Unemployment insurance: 1.3 percent of gross pay, the employer half.
- Minimum wage: €13.90 an hour, the statutory floor for almost every employee.
- Pension and unemployment ceiling: €8,450 a month. The pension and unemployment rates are charged on pay up to this figure and not above it.
- Health and care ceiling: €5,812.50 a month. The health insurance rate is charged on pay up to this figure and not above it.
These figures are in EUR, and the calculator below works in US dollars, so it does not apply them. Converting would need an exchange rate this site has not sourced.
Each health fund also charges its own top-up, shared with the employee, and long-term care insurance depends on whether the employee has children; both are left out, along with accident insurance and small levies. All three rates stop at yearly pay ceilings, so the totals run high for well paid staff.
What does one employee in Germany cost a year?
Salary plus the charges above plus the vendor's published monthly fee, for twelve months. "At least" marks a vendor whose published fee is a starting price. Not included: benefits and currency conversion fees.
Vendor fees used
Atlas HXM from $599, Deel from $599, G-P from $599, Multiplier from $459, Oyster $699, Pebl (Velocity Global) $399, RemoFirst from $199, Remote from $599, Remundo from $498, Rivermate from $349, Skuad from $199, Slasify from $250, Teamed from $599. Not published: Rippling.
Where these numbers come from
- Unemployment insurance on tk.de read
- Each vendor's own pricing page, linked from its name above.