Unemployment insurance fund (A-kasse) and unemployment benefits for the self-employed

Receiving a salary and being self-employed at the same time

Some choose to be self-employed part-time, self-employed as a side job or self-employed and salaried at the same time. Starting up as a freelancer can be done at different paces. Many choose to start full-time right away, but there are just as many who choose to be salaried and self-employed at the same time.

You can choose to become self-employed alongside a salaried job, and you can also choose to start up as self-employed and get supplementary daily allowance on the side. However, both parts may require approval from your employer or from your unemployment insurance fund, respectively.

For most people, it is completely uncomplicated to start a business alongside the salaried job. However, there are still some things you should be aware of if you have chosen this solution. Firstly, you now have to juggle two different working lives.

It requires self-discipline and a good structure of the week to look after two different jobs. And when one job is your own business, you must be extra aware that it does not take a disproportionately large share of your time and thus takes time from your salaried job or from your private life.

Second, always ensure that you maintain loyalty to your salaried job. It is natural to start your own business in an area that you already work with, but here there may be some competition or customer clauses that must be observed. And as a self-employed person, you typically have to ask your employer for permission before you start your own independent business as an employee.

Daily allowance when you are self-employed on a part-time basis

If you want to become self-employed as a side job, you can get supplementary daily allowance on the side. However, it requires that you meet some conditions.

At Akademikernes A-kasse, you can get supplementary daily allowance if you are self-employed as a part-time worker. This means that you run a business in your spare time. in addition, there are other conditions that must be met. If you are in doubt, always contact Akademikernes A-kasse or other relevant a-kasse to find out how you are in your exact situation.

Part-time holidays

If you are employed part-time in an salaried job because you are self-employed on the side, you accrue the same number of holiday days as a full-time employee. This means 25 holiday days corresponding to 5 weeks' holiday per holiday year.

When you take a 1-week holiday, you use 5 holiday days, so that a normal working week with both working days and days off is included in the holiday with a proportional number.

Example: You work 30 hours a week on Monday-Thursday and have Friday off. When taking a holiday, the non-working days must be included in the holiday proportionately. Out of the 25 holiday days, 20 days must therefore be kept on working days and 5 days on non-working days.

Member of an A-kasse (unemployment insurance fund)

IDA recommends that you become or remain a member of Akademikernes A-kasse. You can also read more about the rules for A-kasse and unemployment benefits for the self-employed here, as well as the membership services offered by Akademikernes A-kasse.

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