Unemployment insurance for cross-border workers in Denmark
If you live in Sweden and work in Denmark, the country where you should be insured depends on your employment situation. Find out when to join a Danish a-kasse and what to do if you become fully or partially unemployed.
Join a Danish a-kasse when you start working in Denmark
If you live in Sweden and start working in Denmark, you should join a Danish unemployment insurance fund, a-kasse, if you want unemployment insurance.
Membership is voluntary in both Denmark and Sweden. However, if you want to qualify for income-related unemployment benefits, you need to be a member of an a-kasse.
If you only work in Denmark, you should join a Danish a-kasse on your first working day, even if you are already a member of a Swedish a-kasse. This is important to avoid a gap in your membership when you change from the Swedish to the Danish system.
If you work in more than one country, different rules may apply. Contact the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, Försäkringskassan, to find out which country’s social security legislation applies to you.
If you become fully unemployed after working in Denmark
If you live in Sweden and become fully unemployed after working in Denmark, you must apply for unemployment benefits through a Swedish a-kassa under EU rules. Register as a jobseeker with the Swedish Public Employment Service, Arbetsförmedlingen, on your first day of unemployment.
To receive income-related unemployment benefits, you must apply for membership of a Swedish a-kassa. Your application must reach the a-kassa no later than the month from which you want your membership to start.
It is important to avoid a gap in your membership when you change from a Danish a-kasse to a Swedish a-kassa. In your application, state that you have been a cross-border worker, gränsarbetare.
Read about unemployment benefits at Sveriges a-kassor
If you become partially unemployed
If your working hours in Denmark are reduced and you continue to work part-time, different rules apply. Contact your Danish a-kasse and a Danish job centre, Jobcenter, for information about unemployment benefits.
Register as unemployed at lifeindenmark.dk
Choose the right Swedish a-kassa
You should apply for membership of the Swedish a-kassa that corresponds to the type of work you most recently did in Denmark. The exception is Alfa-kassan, which is open to all professions.
If you are unsure which a-kassa to join, contact a Swedish a-kassa and ask which one is right for you.
Find Swedish a-kassor at Sveriges a-kassor
Get a PD U1 certificate for your Danish insurance periods
To document your insurance periods in Denmark, you need a PD U1 certificate. Your Danish a-kasse issues the certificate.
You can find more information and the application form on the website of the Danish Agency for Labour Market and Recruitment, Styrelsen for Arbejdsmarked og Rekruttering (STAR).
Read about PD U1 and find the application form at STAR
More information
If you are a cross-border commuter and contact a Danish a-kasse or Swedish a-kassa, ask to speak to their EU caseworker, EU-sagsbehandler.
If you have questions about unemployment insurance when you live and work in the Öresund Region, feel free to contact Øresunddirekt’s information centre for guidance.
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