ARTICLE
2 January 2025

Parameters Affected By Minimum Wage Changes

The minimum wage increase will directly affect both employees' salaries and employers' costs. Changes in the minimum wage will have a wide-ranging impact in several areas.
Turkey Employment and HR

The minimum wage increase will directly affect both employees' salaries and employers' costs. Changes in the minimum wage will have a wide-ranging impact in several areas.

Here are some critical parameters directly influenced by the minimum wage increase:

Adjustments Under Law No. 5510 on Social Insurance and General Health Insurance

1. Earning Limits Based on Insurance Premium

  • Lower and upper limits of daily and monthly earnings.

Daily Earning Lower Limit: Equal to the daily amount of the minimum wage.

Daily Earnings Upper Limit: 7.5 times the lower limit.

  • Premium earning calculations of apprentices and trainees.

Insurance premiums of apprentices and students will be calculated based on 50% of the changed minimum wage.

2. Exemptions from Prime Earnings

Exempt amounts calculated based on the minimum wage such as meal allowances, child benefits, and family allowances will change.

  • Meal Allowance: Calculated at 23.65% of the daily minimum wage.
  • Child Benefit: Calculated at 2% of the monthly gross minimum wage.
  • Family Allowance (Aid): Calculated at 10% of the monthly gross minimum wage.

3. Social Security Premiums

  • Insurance Earnings Cap for Turkish Workers Abroad.
  • Employers undertaking projects in countries without a social security agreement must base the insurance earnings cap at three times the minimum wage for employees working abroad.
  • Premium Payments for Domestic Workers.

For Those Working 10 Days or More: Calculated based on the daily earnings lower and upper limits.

For Those Working Less Than 10 Days: Work accident and occupational disease premiums are calculated at 2% of the lower limit.

4. Voluntary Insurance and Premiums

Lower and Upper Limits of Voluntary Insurance Premiums.

  • Lower Limit: The product of the daily minimum wage and 30 days, with a 32% premium rate applied.
  • Upper Limit: The product of the daily earnings upper limit and 30 days, with a 32% premium rate applied.

5. Service and Overseas Borrowings

  • Daily Lower and Upper Limits of Borrowing Amounts (e.g., Maternity or Military Service Borrowing).

Lower Limit: 32% of the minimum wage.

Upper Limit: 32% of the minimum wage multiplied by 7.5.

  • Overseas Period Borrowing Amounts.

Lower Limit: Calculated at 45% of the minimum wage.

6. Temporary Incapacity Benefits

Payments for work accidents, occupational diseases, illness, and maternity benefits will be recalculated based on the new daily minimum wage lower limit.

7. General Health Insurance Premiums

If the household income per capita is less than one-third of the gross minimum wage, premiums are covered by the state, and individuals are exempt from payments.

  • Standard Premium (Monthly): 3% of the monthly minimum wage.
  • Foreign Student Premium (Monthly): Foreign students pay 1/3 of the minimum wage as a premium.
  • Lawyer Intern Premium (Monthly): Trainee lawyers not covered by insurance pay 6% of the minimum wage as a premium.

8. Administrative Fines

Increases in administrative fines calculated based on the minimum wage.

Adjustments Under Law No. 4447 on Unemployment Insurance

  1. Unemployment Insurance Premiums:
    • Employee (1%) and employer contributions (2%) will be recalculated based on the new lower and upper limits.
  2. Unemployment Benefits:
    • Unemployment benefits cannot exceed 80% of the minimum wage. Therefore, the maximum amount will increase in line with the minimum wage.
  3. Short-Time Work Allowance and Cash Wage Support:
    • The short time work allowance cannot exceed 150% of the monthly gross minimum wage. Payments will be recalculated based on the new lower and upper limits of the minimum wage.
  4. Part-Time Work Allowance Post-Birth or Adoption:
    • The daily allowance is equal to the daily gross minimum wage. This allowance will increase with the updated minimum wage.
  5. Administrative Fines
    • Administrative fines calculated based on the minimum wage will increase.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

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