The Ministry of Labor submitted a bill to the Parliament that amends the existing Social Security Law, extending certain benefits to self-employed workers for the first time.

Specifically, the proposed changes enable self-employed workers, insured under the Social Security Fund, to qualify for paid parental leave, aligning their rights with those of salaried employees. It is important to note that since 16/21/2022, employees have been entitled to up to 8 weeks of paid parental leave for children up to the age of 8 years.

Additionally, self-employed individuals will also be eligible for benefits relating to work-related injuries and occupational diseases, which they currently do not qualify for.

Although initially planned, the inclusion of unemployment benefits for self-employed workers was ultimately not added to the proposal. However, this matter is expected to be reconsidered at a later stage.

The bill is part of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. According to the actuarial study conducted, the proposal is not expected to affect the sustainability of the social security fund.

To be eligible for parental leave benefits, self-employed workers must have paid their social security contributions for the previous two quarters. They are also exempt from periods such as statutory rest leaves and suspensions of operations when calculating eligibility for parental leave benefits.

A self-employed individual is ineligible for parental leave benefits if the leave coincides with a period during which their business operations are legally suspended, by custom, collective agreement, or other forms of agreement.

To exercise their right to parental leave, self-employed workers must notify the Social Security Services three weeks before the commencement date, informing them of the start and end dates and the reason for the leave.

In special cases requiring immediate parental leave, the Social Security Department may accept shorter notice periods.

Regarding benefits for occupational accidents, self-employed workers must also have paid their contributions for the last two quarters. Additionally, under the amendments, they must have been registered as self-employed on the date of the accident, have worked for at least 13 weeks in the relevant insurance category, and the accident must be reported to the Labor Inspection Department in accordance with the provisions of the relevant law.

It is understood that the accident must occur during the exercise of the profession for which the self-employed person is insured.

Reminder of the social security contributions applicable from 1/1/2024:

For employees:

22.8%, of which 8.8% is paid by the employee, 8.8% by the employer, and 5.2% by the State’s Permanent Fund.

For self-employed workers:

21.8%, of which 16.6% is paid by the self-employed individual, and 5.2% by the State’s Permanent Fund.