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Euro is the official currency of Estonia. Its currency symbol is EUR.
Estimated at 33.8% of employees salary
Estonian is the official language of Estonia.
The population of Estonia is 1.3 Million
Employees are paid monthly
To start growing your team in Estonia, you must establish a local entity – including an account with a local bank, a local office and an address registered as a subsidiary. This allows you to manage payroll, tax, benefits and compliance for your employees, but can take several months. Emerald can hire and payroll your workers quickly and compliantly with their ‘ready to go’ entity. Make growing your team simple with Emerald as a global partner.
Emerald can hire and payroll your workers, quickly and compliantly with their ready to go entity. Make growing your team simple with Emerald as a global partner.
Hiring employees in Estonia offers several notable advantages due to the country’s strong educational and technological landscape. Estonia boasts a highly trained workforce, with 86% of employees proficient in at least one foreign language, facilitating smooth communication and integration in global teams. As one of the most technologically advanced countries worldwide, Estonia provides an employer access to a highly educated, tech-savvy, and innovative talent pool. Additionally, Estonia’s progressive visa regulations make it easier for international talent to work in the country, thanks to a relatively relaxed process, especially for EU Citizens for whom work permits are easy to obtain. However, potential challenges include higher salary expectations due to the country’s strong educational background and the potential cultural and time zone differences when managing remote teams. Overall, the benefits of Estonia’s skilled workforce and favourable visa policies make it an attractive option for hiring, despite the few challenges.
Employers should consider hiring remotely in Estonia for several compelling reasons. The country offers a workforce that is not only highly educated but also adept at leveraging advanced technology, ensuring efficient and productive remote work. Estonia’s strong emphasis on innovation means that employees bring creative solutions and cutting-edge skills to the table. Additionally, Estonia’s streamlined administrative processes make it easier to onboard international talent, reducing the complexity and time involved in hiring remote workers. Overall, Estonia provides a robust and efficient environment for remote employment, combining expertise with ease of integration.
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| Pension | 20% |
| Health Insurance | 13% |
| Unemployment Insurance | 0.8% |
Health allowance
Car allowance
Phone allowance
The probationary period in Estonia is limited to a maximum of four months.
Emerald Technology can onboard employees in Estonia within 48 hours.
The Health Insurance Fund ensures residents have access to essential healthcare services and it is funded by employers’ social tax contributions, and it covers employees in which employers pays their social tax on their behalf, self-employed persons, if they make their own contributions to the fund and qualifying residents, such as dependents and students.
Social security contributions are widely covered by the employer, with contributions to health insurance, pensions and unemployment insurance. The employer is responsible for paying 33% of the employee’s gross salary as the social tax payment, which is made on top of the employee’s salary. However, 2% of their gross salary is automatically deducted for the mandatory funded pension scheme.
Female employees are entitled to 70 days leave before birth, and 100 days post-birth. During the 70-day period, maternity benefit is paid by the Social Insurance Board.
Fathers are entitled to 30 days paternal leave which can be used up until the child is 3. The pay they received is reflective of their social tax paid.
Both parents are entitled to take paternal leave up until the child is three years old, benefits will be paid for a maximum of 475 days.
Employees are entitled to a maximum of 182 days sick leave per annum, days 1 to 3 of sick leave will be unpaid, with 4-8 receiving 70% of the salary from the Health Insurance Fund. From the ninth day of sick leave and beyond, employees receive 70% of their average salary from the Health Insurance Fund for as long as the sick leave extends. The Health Insurance Fund continues to cover sick leave compensation for longer periods. However, employees must provide a medical certificate from a healthcare provider to validate their sick leave and claim compensation from the Health Insurance Fund.
As the legal employer, Emerald Technology requires the following employee documents to ensure complete compliance:
When an employer dismisses an employee it must be with just cause and they must give them notice. The notice period starts from the day after the employer notifies the employee of the termination. Notice must be given in accordance with the following schedule at a minimum:
| Length of service | Notice Period |
| > 1 year | 15 days minimum |
| 1-5 years | 30 days minimum |
| 5-10 years | 60 days minimum |
| 10+ years | 90 days minimum |
If an employee is made redundant, they are entitled to a payment based on years of continuous service.
| In the event of employment termination due to redundancy, the employer is required to pay compensation equivalent to one month's average wage, calculated based on the employee's earnings over the previous six months. | If a fixed-term contract is cancelled due to redundancy, the employer must compensate the employee an amount corresponding to the wages they would have earned until the contract’s expiry date. |
| No compensation should be paid if the contract ends via ‘force majeure’ or unforeseen circumstances |
Employees are entitled to 28 days of annual leave
Public Holidays
New Year’s Day
Independence Day
Good Friday
Easter Sunday
Spring Day
Whit Sunday
Victory Day
Midsummer Day
Independence Restoration Day
Christmas Eve
Christmas Day
2nd Day of Christmas
Employees are entitled to 820 EUR/ month
The typical working week in Estonia is 40 hours per week 8 hours a day for 5 days a week
Overtime hours and payments are typically decided contractually
Employees are ususally paid on a monthly cycle
It is not mandatory for employers to provide a 13th month salary, but performance-based bonuses are commonplace.
Up to 14,400 EUR 0%
Above 14,400 EUR 20%
Basic Exemption: Up to €6,000 of annual income is exempt from tax. For income between €14,400 and €25,200, the basic exemption gradually decreases, becoming €0 at an annual income of €25,200.
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