Payroll in Hungary 2026: SZJA, contributions and minimum wage

In Hungary the employer withholds a flat 15% personal income tax (SZJA) and an 18.5% social security contribution from each salary, then pays a 13% social contribution tax (szocho) on top. Family, mothers' and under-25 allowances can reduce the tax. Everything is reported on the monthly 08 return and paid to the tax authority (NAV) by the 12th.

Payroll in Hungary at a glance

Social security contributions

Hungary has one combined employee contribution and one employer tax, both collected by NAV rather than a separate social security agency.

One employee contribution. Since 1 July 2020 the employee pays a single 18.5% contribution instead of the former separate pension, health and labour-market contributions. A separate 10% pension contribution applies only in special cases, such as people receiving jobseeker's allowance.

Szocho. The employer's social contribution tax has been 13% since 1 January 2022 (it was 15.5% before). Employers can reduce it with targeted allowances when the conditions are met, for example for long-term jobseekers or employees returning from childcare benefits.

Income tax on salaries

Personal income tax (személyi jövedelemadó, SZJA) is a flat 15% and has been since 2016. For employees it is charged on gross pay; the 18.5% contribution does not reduce the tax base. The employer deducts a monthly tax advance and the employee settles the year in the annual personal income tax return.

Allowances claimed through the employer. Employees claim allowances on a tax advance declaration (adóelőleg-nyilatkozat) given to the employer, or online through NAV's ONYA application:

• Family allowance (családi kedvezmény). From 1 January 2026 the allowance doubled compared with early 2025: HUF 20,000 net a month for one child, HUF 40,000 per child with two children and HUF 66,000 per child with three or more, plus HUF 20,000 a month for a dependant who is long-term ill or severely disabled. If the tax is not enough, the rest can reduce the 18.5% contribution (családi járulékkedvezmény).
• Workers under 25. The allowance for young people under 25 is applied automatically by the employer unless the employee asks for it not to be.
• Mothers under 30. From 1 January 2026 all mothers who turn 30 after 31 December 2025 are exempt on their full income from work, no longer only up to the average wage, until the end of the year they turn 30.
• Mothers of two, three or more children. Mothers raising three, four or more children are exempt on their income from work regardless of their age. From 1 January 2026 mothers of two children under 40 joined with a lifetime exemption; the age limit rises to 50 in 2027 and 60 in 2028, and from 2029 all mothers of two qualify.

Since 2026 the mothers' allowances, the first-married couples' allowance and the personal allowance can be given on a continuing declaration that stays valid until the employee changes it; the family allowance and the under-30 mothers' allowance still need a new declaration every year.

There is no regional or municipal income tax on salaries in Hungary.

Minimum wage, working time and mandatory pay

Minimum wage. From 1 January 2026 the minimum wage (minimálbér) is HUF 322,800 a month for full-time work, up from HUF 290,800 in 2025.

Guaranteed wage minimum. Employees in jobs that require at least secondary education or a secondary vocational qualification must receive the guaranteed wage minimum (garantált bérminimum) of HUF 373,200 a month from 1 January 2026, up from HUF 348,800.

Thirteenth salary. Hungarian law does not require a 13th salary for private-sector employees.

Monthly payroll calendar and filings

1. 1Collect tax advance declarations at the start of employment and of each year, so allowances are applied from the first payslip.
2. 2Pay salaries and calculate the SZJA advance, the 18.5% contribution and the 13% szocho for each employee.
3. 3File return 2608 (havi bevallás a kifizetésekkel, juttatásokkal összefüggő adóról, járulékokról és egyéb adatokról), the monthly return on taxes, contributions and other data related to payments, by the 12th of the following month.
4. 4Pay the szocho, the withheld SZJA advance, the social security contribution and any pension contribution by the same 12th. In November 2026, for example, the October return and payments are due on 12 November.

Worked example: HUF 600,000 a month

A single employee aged 30 or over, without children and without other allowances, earns HUF 600,000 gross a month.

For a mother of two aged under 40 in 2026 the HUF 90,000 tax would not be withheld from pay for work. For a parent of one child the family allowance of HUF 20,000 net a month would reduce the deductions by that amount.

Common mistakes

1. 1Reducing the SZJA base by the 18.5% contribution. Both are calculated on gross pay.
2. 2Missing the 12th: the 2608 return and all payments share that deadline.
3. 3Applying an allowance without a declaration. Except for the under-25 allowance, the employee must ask for it in writing or on ONYA.
4. 4Paying the minimum wage in a job that requires secondary qualifications, where the guaranteed wage minimum of HUF 373,200 applies.
5. 5Using 2025 family allowance amounts: from January 2026 they are twice the early 2025 level.
6. 6Forgetting to renew the family allowance and under-30 mothers' declarations each year.

How Clientlly helps

Clientlly does not ship a built-in payroll profile for Hungary. An administrator enters the Hungarian payroll rates once in the payroll tax settings: the income-tax bands, the personal allowance, the employee and employer contribution rates and the minimum wage. Clientlly then calculates gross to net and the employer contributions and produces payslips. Check the Hungarian specifics for each employee: family and mothers' allowances, the under-25 allowance and any szocho allowances the employer claims.

Alongside payroll, the human resources module handles leave requests and approvals with a leave calendar and keeps HR documents, and attendance and time tracking records working hours and overtime. Our guide to employee attendance tracking explains how to set it up.