From 1 January 2026, there will be massive tightening of the possibilities for additional earnings during unemployment: In order to (continue to) be permitted to work in marginal employment in addition to receiving unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance, one of the statutory „exceptional cases“ pursuant to Section 12 para. 2 AlVG must be fulfilled. If this is not the case, the possibility of earning a small amount in addition to receiving AMS benefits will no longer apply from 1 January 2026.
Practical tip: Even if it is in principle the responsibility of the unemployed person to observe the requirements for receiving unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance, from a company perspective it still seems necessary to actively draw the attention of the affected groups of people (new entrants or those already employed) to the new additional earnings restriction in § 12 Para. 2 AlVG.
The following five case constellations are exempt from the new ban on additional earnings, whereby a distinction must be made between exceptional cases with no time limit and those with a time limit. The following explanations apply both to the receipt of unemployment benefit and unemployment assistance.
Unlimited exercise or continuation of marginal employment:
Case constellation 1: If you have been in marginal employment for a period of at least 26 weeks alongside fully insured employment and the fully insured employment ends, you can continue in marginal employment while receiving unemployment benefit without this ending your unemployment. However, if the marginal employment is interrupted for even just one day, the „exceptional case“ is no longer applicable and a resumption of employment is detrimental to the receipt of unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance.
Case constellation 2: Long-term unemployed persons who have received unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance for a period of at least 365 days may carry out marginal employment for an unlimited period if they either
- have already reached the age of 50,
- are beneficially disabled or
- have a disability pass.
Interruptions in unemployment of up to 62 days are harmless. The main reason for this is that the status of „long-term unemployed“ should not be lost due to attempts at work or employment that are terminated within the trial period (i.e. the 365-day count does not start again from the beginning in this case).
Temporary exercise or continuation of marginal employment:
Case constellation 3: Long-term unemployed persons who have received unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance for at least 365 days and do not fulfil any of the additional requirements mentioned in case constellation 2 may also engage in marginal employment, but only for a limited period of up to 26 weeks. Here too, interruptions of up to 62 days in connection with taking up work or falling ill do not end the required „long-term unemployment“.
Case constellation 4: Unemployed persons who have received sickness benefit, rehabilitation benefit or retraining allowance for a period of at least 52 weeks may also take up marginal employment for a maximum of 26 weeks.
Case constellation 5: Persons who, while receiving unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance, complete retraining or further training on behalf of the labour market service that lasts at least four months and comprises at least 25 hours per week should be allowed to continue to work in marginal employment (initiative motion in the National Council of 20 November 2025).
Transitional cases: Transitional periods apply to marginal employment that started before 1 January 2026 (Section 81 (20) AlVG):
- Persons who are permitted to work in marginal employment for an unlimited period of time on the basis of the exemption provisions (case constellations 1 and 2) may continue to do so unchanged from 1 January 2026 - in addition to receiving unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance.
- Persons who are only permitted to work in marginal part-time employment for a limited period of 26 weeks due to the exemption provisions (case constellations 3 and 4) must end their marginal part-time employment by 30 June 2026 at the latest in order to continue to receive unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance.
- Case constellation 5 can also be used for transitional cases (for the remaining duration of the training programme).
- Employees in marginal employment to whom none of the exceptions apply must end their marginal employment by 31 January 2026 at the latest („tolerance month“), otherwise they will lose their entitlement to unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance.
From 1 January 2026, new marginal employment is only permitted in accordance with the new provisions (no „tolerance month“).
Please note: The statutory restriction on the possibility of earning marginal additional income also includes occasional employment, whereby in this case - unless one of the five exceptional cases applies - the unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance is not interrupted for the entire month, but only for the days of marginal employment. If the marginal earnings threshold is exceeded, the consequences can be even more „drastic“, as the income earned will be offset against the remaining monthly AMS benefits. In any case, the employee is obliged to report each day of employment to the AMS and to register as unemployed again on the following day.
Details of the new regulations can also be found on the AMS homepage at: https://www.ams.at/arbeitsuchende/arbeitslos-wastun/arbeitslos-geringfuegig-beschaeftigt
Created: 04.12.2025
Source: Template portal
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