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Working in Denmark – no minimum wage law, unions, A-kasse and five weeks' paid holiday

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

Working in Denmark means living with the Danish model: no law sets your wage, and unemployment insurance is something you must choose to join. Here is how collective agreements, unions, A-kasse, holiday pay and recognition of your qualifications work in practice.

Two women in a meeting in a modern office
Photo: Jacob Lund/Adobe Stock

Working in Denmark runs on collective agreements, and from 1 January 2027 the permit system is due to lean on them too. SIRI (the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration) says a new Pay Limit Scheme based on a collective agreement is due to take effect then; companies will need a separate certification, as Fast-track certification does not give access. For everyone already working here, the 2026 rates for unemployment benefit through an A-kasse (unemployment insurance fund) are the figures to know.

EU/EEA and Swiss citizens may start work on arrival without a work permit, and Nordic citizens need no permit either. Others need a residence and work permit – for example under the Pay Limit Scheme, which requires a salary of at least DKK 552,000 a year for applications from 1 January 2026. Since 1 July 2024, students with a part-time work permit may work 90 hours a month from September to May and full-time in June, July and August; students in non-state-approved programmes who applied on or after 2 May 2025 may not work at all. Part 2 covers permits.

Is there a minimum wage in Denmark?

No. According to Workindenmark, run by STAR (the Danish Agency for Labour Market and Recruitment), there is no legislation regulating wages in Denmark. Pay is set in overenskomster (collective agreements) negotiated by trade unions and employer associations at company or sector level, and in most cases the same agreements settle working hours and notice.

Not every job is covered. Where no collective agreement applies, you have contract freedom and negotiate your terms directly with your employer – so it helps to know what people earn.

Earnings, all sectors (2024, latest available)DKK
Average standardised monthly earnings50,651.77
Average standardised hourly earnings315.92
Median standardised hourly earnings286.63

Source: Statistics Denmark (StatBank table LONS20), read 23 September 2026.

Whatever your terms, get them in writing. Your employer must give you an employment contract if the job lasts at least 1 month and averages more than 8 hours a week. For job hunting, Jobnet, the public employment service's job site, has about 15,000 vacancies nationwide, most of them in Danish. Workindenmark, part of the EURES network, lists 2,000 to 3,000 vacancies in English, most of which do not require Danish.

Should I join a trade union and an A-kasse in Denmark?

Almost 70 per cent of the Danish workforce belongs to a trade union, but membership is not required by law. The union negotiates the collective agreements; the A-kasse is the fund that pays unemployment benefit if you lose your job. A-kasser are most often linked to a union, but you can join one without joining the union.

Unlike all other social security in Denmark, unemployment insurance is voluntary. You are not insured automatically when you work here – you have to join one of the country's 21 A-kasser, which are run privately rather than by the state, under the so-called Ghent system.

You can join if you are at least 18, have at least 2 years left before state pension age, and live in Denmark – or live in another EU/EEA country and work here. Under-18s who have completed a vocational education of at least 18 months can join too.

Unemployment benefit (dagpenge) in 2026

Condition or rateFull-time insuredPart-time insured
Membership before you can claimAt least 1 yearAt least 1 year
Income over the past 3 yearsAt least DKK 286,632At least DKK 191,088
Maximum benefit per monthDKK 22,041DKK 14,694
Increased rate, if you qualifyUp to DKK 26,198Up to DKK 17,465

Source: Life in Denmark, read 23 September 2026.

Benefit can never exceed 90 per cent of your previous salary, and the increased rate – 118.86 per cent of the maximum – applies only under certain conditions. You can receive benefit for 2 years within a 3-year period, counted as 3,848 hours; unused hours lapse when the period ends.

If you lose your job, register as a jobseeker on Jobnet on your first day out of work – nothing is paid for the time before you register – and have a complete, approved CV no later than 2 weeks after registering.

New graduates can get benefit 1 month after finishing, for 1 year within 2 years (1,924 hours), if they apply to join an A-kasse within 2 weeks of completing their education. They must also have passed Prøve i Dansk 2 with at least grade 02, or have had at least 600 paid hours (400 if part-time insured) over 12 months within the last 24 months.

Arriving from another EU/EEA country with unemployment rights? International House Copenhagen handles the U2 form for transferring unemployment benefit, and STAR's line for EEA unemployment insurance is +45 72 21 74 03, Monday to Friday 9am–3pm.

How much paid holiday do you get in Denmark?

Every employee is entitled to five weeks of paid holiday a year. Under samtidighedsferie (concurrent holiday), the Holiday Act lets you take holiday as soon as the month after you have earned it.

Holiday ruleWhat applies
Paid holiday5 weeks a year, earned at 2.08 days per month employed
Holiday allowanceIn general 12.5 per cent of your salary
Jobs shorter than a month0.07 days of holiday per day employed
Earning periodSeptember to August (12 months)
When you can use itSeptember to the end of the following December (16 months)
Holiday you could not take by 31 DecemberUp to 4 weeks can move to the next holiday period if you were prevented, for example by sickness or parental leave – a heavy workload or a job change does not count
Payout outside a collective holiday schemeFerieKonto pays about four working days after you apply, at the earliest one month before your holiday, into your NemKonto

Source: Workindenmark and Life in Denmark, read 23 September 2026.

How do I get my qualifications recognised in Denmark?

Denmark has more than 100 regulated professions – among them doctor, nurse, municipal schoolteacher and fork lift truck driver – and for each you contact the relevant competent authority. For a general assessment of what your foreign education corresponds to, go to Uddannelses- og Forskningsstyrelsen (the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science). Its guidance was last updated on 12 June 2026.

You are…Go toGood to know
Anyone wanting a foreign qualification assessedUddannelses- og ForskningsstyrelsenFree; normally 1 to 2 months; no appeal against the content of the assessment
In a regulated professionThe competent authority for that professionMore than 100 professions are regulated
A doctor, nurse, dentist, midwife, physiotherapist, psychologist or in another health profession on its listStyrelsen for Patientsikkerhed (the Danish Patient Safety Authority), +45 7228 6600Doctors need Danish authorisation; the right to practise medicine expires at 75
A health professional working here only temporarilyThe same authorityRegister as a service provider, for a limited period, instead of full authorisation
Refused a study place or credit transferThe educational institution (admission) or the Qualifications Board (credit transfer)Your appeal must reach the institution within 2 weeks; complain to the board within 4 weeks

Source: Life in Denmark, the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science and the Danish Patient Safety Authority, read 23 September 2026.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Ask whether the job is covered by a collective agreement, and get a written contractBefore you sign
2Decide on a union, and join an A-kasseWhen you start – benefit needs at least 1 year's membership
3Register your NemKonto, so holiday allowance can reach you (part 4)Before your first holiday
4Check whether your profession is regulated, and apply for recognition or authorisationBefore you apply for jobs in it
5If you lose your job: register on Jobnet and complete your CVOn day one; CV within 2 weeks
6Questions about unemployment insurance: STAR, +45 72 21 74 00Monday to Friday, 9am–3pm

Source: Workindenmark, Life in Denmark and STAR, read 23 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.