Private-sector employees will see higher net earnings today, provided that companies proceed with payroll payments within the day and do not shift payments to Monday. With the new payroll credited to bank accounts, changes to the tax scale and reduced tax withholding on salaries come into effect. This is the first practical implementation of the tax reform passed last November and directly changes the amount of tax deducted each month from employees’ earnings.

Net increases range from approximately €7 to €378 per month, depending on income level, age, and number of dependent children, while on an annual basis the benefit may reach up to €4,800. The largest benefits are recorded for employees up to 30 years old and for wage earners with dependent children, provided their annual income exceeds €10,000. By contrast, for low-paid workers without children, the benefit remains limited, as a large part of their income is already covered by the tax-free threshold.

Indicatively, an employee in an accounting office with two children and net earnings of €1,776 will see an increase of approximately €86 per month, with a total annual benefit close to €1,200. A 25-year-old worker in food service with a net salary of €1,250 will see a €177 monthly increase, i.e. about €2,480 per year. An employee with three children and net earnings of €1,291 will have a monthly increase of approximately €93, or about €1,300 annually. A large-family employee with net earnings close to €1,800 will see an increase of almost €293 per month, with a total benefit of about €4,100 per year.

On the other hand, an employee over 30 years old, without dependent children, and net earnings of €980 will have an annual benefit of approximately €100, i.e. around €7 per month.

See detailed examples:

• Private-sector employee, 25 years old, with a monthly net salary of €980
  As the tax due is now eliminated, from January her salary will increase by €91 and will reach €1,071 net. Given that 14 salaries are paid in the private sector, the annual net benefit will be €1,283, meaning she gains almost 1.3 salaries.
• Private-sector employee, 28 years old, with a net salary of €1,500
  Will now be taxed at 9% instead of 22%. This means that from January he will have a €100 monthly increase and will receive €1,600. Calculated over 14 salaries, the annual benefit will be €1,400, meaning he gains almost one salary.
• Couple of private-sector employees with three children
  Thanks to both parents moving into the 9% tax bracket for the first €20,000, the couple will see a significant increase in net income.
  If one spouse earns €1,540 net, they will see a €121 monthly increase.
  The other spouse has a net salary of €1,290 and their earnings will increase by €93 per month.
  Therefore, the couple with three children will have €214 more per month, equivalent to €3,000 annually, i.e. they gain more than one month’s salary.
• Large-family private-sector employee with a net salary of €1,809
  From January, he will see an increase of €293, meaning he will be paid €2,102, as tax is eliminated for income up to €20,000. The annual benefit will be €4,100, equivalent to approximately two salaries.
  If his spouse works in the public sector with a net salary of €1,527, her earnings will increase by €140, with an annual benefit of €1,680.
  The total annual gain for the couple is €5,780.
• Private-sector employee with two children and a net salary of €1,526
  From January, she will receive an increase of €64, thanks to a 2-point reduction in tax rates plus an additional 4 points for income up to €30,000 for two children, raising her salary to €1,590. On an annual basis, the tax reduction amounts to €900. If her spouse also works, the benefit is higher, as they will also have separate tax benefits.
• Private-sector employee without children, with a monthly net income of €1,251
  From January, she will have an annual increase of €200, thanks to the horizontal reduction of tax rates by 2 points. If this is a couple and the spouse also works with similar earnings, the annual benefit doubles to €400.

It is recalled that the first to see increases due to the restructuring of the tax scale were pensioners, who received the advance payment of January pensions in December, while in the previous period public-sector employees also received increased pay.

The increase does not concern nominal salary increases, but rather less tax being deducted each month.

In practice, employees receive higher net pay automatically, without any action required on their part. Public-sector employees and pensioners have already seen the increases, as their earnings are prepaid, while today’s payroll is the first to incorporate the changes for private-sector employees.

The interventions mainly concern incomes from €10,000 to €40,000, where tax rates are reduced by 2 percentage points. Specifically:

• from €10,000 to €20,000: 20% (from 22%)
• from €20,000 to €30,000: 26% (from 28%)
• from €30,000 to €40,000: 34% (from 36%)

At the same time, an intermediate rate of 39% is introduced for incomes from €40,000 to €60,000, while the top rate of 44% is maintained for incomes above €60,000.

For families with children, additional reductions are provided. The rate for the first €20,000 is reduced to:

• 18% for one child
• 16% for two children
• 9% for three children
• 0% for large families with four or more dependent children

Corresponding reductions also apply to the next income bracket, further increasing the benefit for families with more children.

Special provisions also apply to young workers.
For those up to 25 years old, tax rates from €0 to €20,000 are eliminated, leading to full tax exemption for low and middle incomes.
For workers aged 26 to 30, the rate for the first €20,000 is reduced to 9%, further boosting net earnings.

Overall, around 2 million taxpayers benefit from the changes, including private- and public-sector employees, pensioners, freelancers, and farmers who currently pay income tax. For sole proprietors and farmers, the benefit will be reflected with the submission of 2026 tax returns in spring 2027, while for employees the result is already incorporated into payroll through the automatic adjustment of tax withholding.