Social Security Contribution Rates by Country
Headline income-tax rates routinely understate the true cost of labour by 20-40 percentage points. This matrix covers the employer, employee, and self-employed contribution rates plus contribution-base ceilings across major destinations — the numbers that matter for founders evaluating salary loadings, freelancers structuring rates, and HNWIs weighing tax- residency choices. Companion to the totalization-treaties matrix.
Last reviewed: 2026-05-13. Rates change with national budgets — UK employer NIC 13.8%→15% (April 2025), Australia superannuation 11%→12% (July 2025), Spain autónomos sliding-scale reform (2023) are recent examples.
| Country | Employer | Employee | Self-employed | Contribution-base cap / notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | ~26% (sliding scale by sector) | 17% (11% pension + 3% PAMI + 3% health) | 27% (Monotributo simplified for small earners) | Variable |
| Australia | 11.5% Superannuation Guarantee (rising to 12% from July 2025) | 0% (Medicare Levy 2% via PIT but not contribution) | 0% mandatory (voluntary super contributions) | Superannuation cap AUD 235,680 quarterly maximum contribution base Australia's super is technically employer-funded retirement savings, not classic SSC. SG rising from 11% to 12% by 2025-26. |
| Austria | ~21% | ~18% | ~27.7% (SVS - Sozialversicherungsanstalt der Selbstständigen) | Höchstbeitragsgrundlage €6,060/month (~€73k/yr) |
| Belgium | ~25% (down from 32.4% via 2018 reforms) | 13.07% | ~20.5% on net professional income (INASTI/RSVZ) | Self-employed cap ~€88,361/yr; employee no cap on most components |
| Brazil | ~28-37% (INSS 20% + RAT + Sistema S + FGTS 8%) | 7.5%-14% INSS sliding scale | 5%-20% INSS depending on regime + ISS municipal | Employee cap BRL 7,786/month; employer no cap |
| Bulgaria | ~19% | ~13.78% | ~28% | Monthly cap BGN 3,750 (~€1,920) |
| Canada | 5.95% CPP + 2.282% EI = ~8.2% | 5.95% CPP + 1.63% EI = ~7.6% | 11.9% CPP (employee + employer portions); EI optional | CPP $68,500 (2024); QPP separate in Quebec; EI $63,200 Quebec operates separate QPP at 6.4% / 12.8% self-employed. |
| Czech Republic | 33.8% (social 24.8% + health 9%) | 11% (6.5% social + 4.5% health) | 29.2% combined | Social-security base cap CZK 1,935,552 (~$83k) for 2024 |
| Denmark | Negligible (~0.5%) — labour-market contributions are funded differently | 8% AM-bidrag (gross-wage levy) | 8% AM-bidrag on net profit | No cap on AM-bidrag Denmark's system is tax-financed rather than contribution-financed — labour costs are deceptively low. |
| Estonia | 33% social tax + 0.8% unemployment | 1.6% unemployment + 2% mandatory pension (optional) | 33% social tax on declared income | No cap Employer-heavy; total SSC ~34% borne by employer almost entirely. |
| Finland | ~19% | ~10% | ~24% YEL (Yrittäjän eläkevakuutus) | YEL income range €9,010-€204,625 |
| France | ~42% (sliding scale, top tier ~45%) | ~21-23% | ~45% on net (URSSAF + RSI) | No global cap; specific brackets for old-age pension (PASS €46,368) Highest employer social-security burden in the OECD. CSG/CRDS adds 9.7% on most income. |
| Germany | ~20% (split with employee) | ~20% | Optional unless specific profession; ~14-19% if private health insurance + voluntary state pension | Pension cap €90,600/yr (west) / €89,400 (east); health cap €62,100/yr Statutory health insurance (KV) + pension (RV) + unemployment (AV) + nursing care (PV). |
| Greece | ~22% | ~14% | ~21.7-30% (sliding scale EFKA tiers) | EFKA cap €7,373/month |
| Hong Kong | 5% MPF (Mandatory Provident Fund) | 5% MPF | 5% MPF | Cap HKD 30,000/month Extremely low SSC compared to Western countries; combined with no PIT-progressive-burden makes HK attractive for high earners. |
| Hungary | 13% (social-contribution tax) | 18.5% (combined health + pension + employee contribution) | 37.5% effective | No cap on employer side; standard contribution-base minimums apply |
| Ireland | 8.8% (lower band) / 11.05% (above €410/week) | 4% PRSI | 4% Class S PRSI + USC | PRSI no cap on most contributions USC (Universal Social Charge) up to 8% adds to total burden. |
| Israel | ~7.6% | ~12% (combined National Insurance + Health Tax) | ~16% (National Insurance + Health Tax) | Cap ₪47,465/month |
| Italy | ~30-32% | ~9.5-10% | ~25-26% (Gestione Separata) or 24% for INPS-registered tradespeople | INPS cap €119,650/yr for new entrants INPS administers the bulk; gestione separata for self-employed without trade association. |
| Japan | ~15-16% | ~15-16% | ~13.5% (National Health Insurance + National Pension) | Health Insurance cap ¥1.39M/month; Pension cap ¥650k/month |
| Latvia | 23.59% | 10.5% | 31.07% as patent / mikro / standard self-employed regimes | Cap €78,100/yr |
| Lithuania | 1.77% | 19.5% (15.5% Sodra + 4% health insurance from employee gross) | Variable | Cap on selected components Lithuania's 2019 tax-shift moved most SSC from employer to employee. |
| Malaysia | 12-13% EPF + 1.75% SOCSO + 0.2% EIS | 11% EPF + 0.5% SOCSO + 0.2% EIS | Optional EPF; SOCSO mandatory for some self-employed categories | EPF wage cap MYR 30,000/month for above-60 contributors |
| Mexico | ~25% (IMSS + INFONAVIT + retirement) | ~3% | Optional voluntary IMSS contribution | IMSS cap 25× minimum wage daily |
| Netherlands | ~20% (varies by sector) | 27.65% (folded into PIT brackets) | Required to pay AOW + ZVW healthcare contributions; not full SSC | AOW cap €38,098/yr; ZVW cap €71,628/yr SSC functionally integrated into Dutch PIT system in box 1. |
| New Zealand | 0% mandatory (KiwiSaver 3-10% if opted in) | 0% (KiwiSaver 3-10% if opted in) | 0% | N/A — fully tax-funded social services NZ has no payroll social-security tax. Healthcare and unemployment are funded from general taxation. |
| Norway | 14.1% (varies by region — lower in Northern Norway) | 8.2% | 11.4% | No cap on either side |
| Poland | ~20% | ~22% (including 9% health) | ~30% (depending on tax regime chosen) | ZUS cap PLN 234,720/yr (~$58k) for retirement+disability portion |
| Portugal | 23.75% | 11% | 21.4% (with several adjustment scales for declared revenue) | No cap for general regime — applied to full salary |
| Romania | 2.25% (insurance contribution) | 35% (25% CAS pension + 10% CASS health) | 35% on declared income above minimum thresholds | Cap on selected components only Major 2018 reform shifted nearly all SSC burden from employer to employee. |
| Saudi Arabia | 9% GOSI (Saudi national employees); 2% unemployment-insurance contribution for Saudi employees | 9% GOSI; 0.75% unemployment (Saudi only) | Variable | SAR 45,000/month for Saudi nationals Foreign workers exempt from GOSI except for occupational hazard insurance (~2%). |
| Singapore | 17% CPF (for citizens/PRs only) — rising for older workers | 20% CPF (for citizens/PRs only) | Self-employed Medisave only (~8-10.5%) | CPF wage ceiling SGD 6,800/month (raised in 2024) Foreign workers on EP/S-Pass: 0% CPF contribution (huge structural difference vs citizens/PRs). |
| Slovakia | 35.2% | 13.4% | 33.15% on assessment base | Most components capped at 7x average wage (~€10,580/month) |
| South Korea | ~11.5% | ~9% | Variable | National Pension cap ₩5.9M/month; Health Insurance cap ₩8.3M/month |
| Spain | ~30% | 6.35% | Sliding scale RETA based on declared income — 245€-590€/month for 2024 (was previously flat €290) | Cap €4,720/month for general regime employees Major 2023 reform replaced flat autonomos rate with income-based sliding scale. |
| Sweden | 31.42% | 7% (pension contribution only) | 28.97% | Pension cap SEK 599,250 (~$55k); above which only general payroll tax |
| Switzerland | ~6.4% | ~6.4% | ~10% | AHV no cap; mandatory occupational pension BVG cap CHF 88,200 Mandatory health insurance (LAMal) ~CHF 350-600/month is NOT a contribution — paid privately. |
| Thailand | 5% Social Security Fund | 5% Social Security Fund | Variable / optional Article 39/40 | Cap THB 15,000/month wages base |
| United Arab Emirates | 12.5% (Emirati employees only); 0% for foreign workers | 5% (Emirati only); 0% for foreign workers | 0% | AED 50,000/month for Emirati nationals Foreign workers (~90% of UAE workforce) pay zero social-security contributions — major structural advantage. |
| United Kingdom | 15% (Class 1 secondary — raised from 13.8% from April 2025) | 8% (Class 1 primary on PRT — £12,570 to £50,270); 2% above | 6% Class 4 NIC + £3.45/week Class 2 (£3,450 small profits threshold) | Upper Earnings Limit £50,270 (employee primary rate); secondary employer NIC no upper cap April 2025 NIC reforms raised employer rate from 13.8% to 15% and lowered threshold to £5,000. |
| United States | 7.65% (6.2% SS + 1.45% Medicare) | 7.65% (6.2% SS + 1.45% Medicare) | 15.3% SE tax (12.4% SS + 2.9% Medicare) + 0.9% additional Medicare above thresholds | Social Security wage base $168,600 (2024); $176,100 (2025); Medicare uncapped Plus state-level unemployment (SUTA) ~1-7% employer-only. No federal-level unemployment contribution. |
Reading this matrix
- France has the OECD's highest employer burden at ~42-45% — meaning a €100,000 net salary costs the employer ~€145,000 plus mandatory benefits.
- Tax-financed vs contribution-financed. Denmark and New Zealand fund welfare from general taxation rather than payroll contributions, making their employer payroll burden artificially low — but PIT correspondingly higher.
- Contribution caps materially shift effective marginal rates. Most systems cap contributions above a threshold (€90k-€170k) so high earners face lower effective SSC marginal rates than middle earners.
- Foreign-worker exemptions are major. UAE 0% for non-Emiratis, Saudi Arabia almost 0% for foreign workers, Singapore 0% CPF for EP/S-Pass holders — structural advantages that don't show in headline rates.
- Self-employed rates often higher than combined employer+employee because the self-employed pays both portions. UK Class 4 + Class 2 NIC is unusually low; US 15.3% SE tax is close to combined employer+employee.
- Totalization treaties allow detached workers to remain on home-country social-security contributions for the first 3-5 years abroad — see totalization treaties matrix.
See also: Totalization treaties · Top PIT matrix.