Rules for unemploy­ment benefits

Registration as a jobseeker
To obtain unemployment benefits you are required to register as unemployed in the jobcenter at www.jobnet.dk on your first day of unemployment. You must register in the category of benefits recipient.
You must be registered as a job seeker in the jobcenter throughout the entire unemployment period in order to be entitled to unemployment benefits.

The Jobnet CV
Fill out your Jobnet CV on Jobnet (www.jobnet.dk) 2 weeks after your registration as unemployed.

Your Jobnet CV must include:

• Your phone number and zip code must be visible so the employer can get in touch with you quickly under personal information.
• Your education, previous experience and qualifications
• Realistic job goals

If you want to work in an area where you do not have training or professional experience, you can specify the qualifications that enable you to take on that work.

When receiving unemployment benefits you are obliged to use the Job log at www.jobnet.dk to continuously document your job search.

The Job log helps Teknikernes A-kasse and your jobcenter to follow your progress to improve their guidance.

In addition, Teknikernes A-kasse will use the information in your Job log to assess whether you apply for enough jobs to meet the conditions of availability based on the agreed job search requirements and related guidance.

In accordance with your agreement with Teknikernes A-kasse, you must register all job search activities weekly and upload job applications to the Job log.

It is a condition of the entitlement to unemployment benefits that you are available to the labour market, including that you are actively applying for work. We are obliged to assess your availability on an ongoing basis.

To be available for the labour market, you must:

• Register as unemployed in the jobcenter from your first day of unemployment
• Create a relevant and adequate resume on Jobnet within 2 weeks of registering as unemployed the jobcenter
• Apply for jobs from the first day of unemployment, including when participating in activities, and applying for jobs every week
• Apply for fulltime jobs
• Apply for jobs with up to 3 hours of daily transportation with public transport (possibly 4 hours)
• Apply for jobs both within your professional field, and outside your professional field that you are able to do, for example after onsite training or a short training course
• Be realistic and serious in your job search
• Comply with "Job Search Requirements" that you have planned with Teknikernes A-kasse
• Continuously register your job search activities in your Joblog on Jobnet.dk
• Be able to take on relevant jobs referred to you by the jobcenter at a day's notice
• Stay and reside in Denmark
• Attend meetings, courses, and events within a day’s notice scheduled by Teknikernes A-kasse or jobcenter.

Booking of obligatory meetings

It is obligatory for all unemployed benefit recipients to self-book and attend meetings, courses and other events scheduled with with your jobcenter on www.jobnet.dk.

In addition, you also have an obligation to book 2 meetings with Teknikernes A-kasse within the first 6 months of continuous unemployment. This is done through our self-service solution Mit TL. You will be contacted when it's time to book a consultation. If there are no available times, you must contact us.

If you have not booked a meeting with us within the deadline and have not contacted us either, we are required to unsubscribe you as a job seeker in the jobcenter. The consequence is that you cannot receive benefits until you have registered again at the jobcenter.

Penalties for non-availability and self-induced unemployment

If your unemployment is considered to be self-induced, or you are not deemed available for the labour market, it may influence your right to receive unemployment benefits.

• If you do not follow the guidelines agreed with Teknikernes A-kasse, which include actively seeking employment, we may require you to complete a new work term before you can receive unemployment benefits again.To keep your unemployment benefits, you must attend meetings and activities required by Teknikernes A-kasse, jobcenter, or other actors. If you miss one, you must contact the place that summoned you to explain, or you'll lose benefits from the meeting or activity date.If you do not show up for an activity you have already started, you cannot receive a daily allowance as long as you are not participating in the offer.
• If you quit your job or turn down a job offer, you may be subject to a three-week quarantine period during which you will not receive unemployment benefits. This is because your unemployment is considered self-induced.
• If your unemployment is considered self-induced twice within 12 months, you will lose the right to receive unemployment benefits, and you have to fulfill a new term of work to be able to receive unemployment benefits again.

Employed work

If you work reduced hours, you can normally receive supplementary unemployment benefit for 30 weeks.

You must complete a form concerning your job so that we can assess what importance your part-time job has for your unemployment benefit. You must contact us before you start your part-time job.

If you are in permanent employment with a period of notice, you must have a discharge certificate to be eligible for supplementary unemployment benefits. The discharge certificate ensures that you can stop from one day to the next if you find work with longer working hours.

The discharge certificate must be received by Teknikernes A-kasse no later than five weeks after you became employed. If the certificate is not received in time, supplementary unemployment benefit will only be payable from the date we receive the certificate.

Your own business

If you run your own business part-time you can also normally receive supplementary unemployment benefit for 30 weeks. You must contact us before you start your own business.

As an unemployed person you are obliged to accept an activation offer from your jobcenter.

Activation is agreed under your "My Plan" and can consist of various types of training, upgrading of skills, practical experience or wage subsidy jobs with public and private employers. The aim is to get you quickly into work.

The content of your "My Plan" is essentially based on the needs of the labour market, but your wishes and qualifications are also taken into consideration.

When attending a mandatory activity, you must still be actively seeking work and be available for work. You may be exempted from this obligation by agreement with your jobcenter.

If you are working in Denmark, you are subject to Danish social security legislation. Therefore, you should be insured against unemployment in Denmark.

The Danish unemployment insurance system is a voluntary insurance scheme. This means that you are not automatically insured against unemployment when working in Denmark. If you want to be covered by unemployment insurance in Denmark, you must join a Danish unemployment insurance fund, also known as an 'a-kasse'.

You can become a member of an unemployment insurance fund if you are at least 18 years of age, have more than 2 years left before you reach your retirement age, and reside in Denmark or a boarder worker.

Read our guide here

As newly unemployed, you have to inform your local job centre (jobnet.dk) about your status and apply for unemployment benefits from your unemployment insurance fund – 'a-kasse'

You have to register as a job seeker at Jobnet.dk on the first day that you are unemployed. At jobnet.dk you also have to create your own CV, before your CV-meeting with your a-kasse and no later than two weeks after registered as unemployed.

To be eligible for benefits, you need to fill in and send a declaration of unemployment - once a member you will find the declaration here

You can apply for unemployment benefits when you are unemployed after a working-period (as an employee or self-employed) or you can apply as a newly graduate.

Read our guide on how to apply for unemployment benefits

You must fill in a benefit card every month in order to receive unemployment benefit. 

You must fill in the benefit card for the whole month, even if you have not been unemployed all month. Also for periods when you have not been registered with the job centre, e.g. because you have worked.

As unemployed, you are obliged to inform your “a-kasse” about everything that may affect your entitlement to unemployment benefits. On the benefit card, you must therefore provide information on any work, self-employment, illness, holiday and other things that may affect your right to unemployment benefit.

The benefit card is released one week before the end of the month. If you fill in the unemployment benefit card at this time, you will receive the payment on the last working day of the month. You must fill in your expected working hours, etc. for the last part of the month.

See the guide on how to fill in your monthly benefit card

The notice of resignation is as a general rule the current month + 1 month. You can find the notice of resignation in the a-kasse's statute.

If you start working in one of the other EU/EEA Member States, you should probably be subject to the social security legislation in that country. In this case you can terminate your membership of the Danish “a-kasse” the same day, you start working in the other country.

If you start working in a foreign country outside of EU, you can choose to continue your membership of the Danish a-kasse.

See our guide on how to terminate your membership