The new laws governing taxes in Hungary in 2025 has just been published. In our first article on this topic, you can discover the 2025 changes most relevant to HR and payroll, how to calculate taxes, and what benefits you can offer to your employees at your Hungarian company.
Minimum wage increased again
Starting from 1 January 2025, the minimum wage is increased to HUF 290,800, while the guaranteed minimum salary is increased to HUF 348,800. All benefits and other limits based on the minimum wage will increase accordingly.
If you have any employees whose salaries must be raised in line with this, make sure to also update their labor contracts so it reflects the change. If you are our client, ask your account manager for our HR support service to get assistance with this.
We will discuss the 2025 minimum wage in detail in a separate article.
Family tax benefit doubled
The family tax benefit is the child benefit most important to employers when they calculate the net salaries and the taxes payable after their employees, because it decreases the tax base of the parent. Over the next year or so, the family tax benefit will be doubled in two stages:
From 1 July 2025, the benefit will reduce the parent’s tax base every month by
- HUF 100,000 after 1 child, leaving up to HUF 15,000 with the family (instead of the current HUF 10,000)
- HUF 200,000 after 2 children, leaving up to HUF 60,000 with the family (instead of the current 40,000)
- HUF 330,000 after 3 or more children, leaving up to HUF 148,500 with the family (instead of the current HUF 99,000)
Then the family tax benefit will be increased again from 1 January 2026, decreasing the monthly tax base by:
- HUF 133,340 after 1 child, leaving up to HUF 20,000 with the family
- HUF 266,660 after 2 children, leaving up to HUF 80,000 with the family
- HUF 440,000 after 3 or more children, leaving up to HUF 198,000 with the family
Fringe benefits
SZÉP Card
The SZÉP Card is the most popular fringe benefit in Hungary. A new “pocket” called “Active Hungarians” will be added to it starting from 1 January 2025, and money allocated there can be spent on services related to doing sports. Employers can allocate for this purpose HUF 10,000 / month or HUF 120,000 / year.
This will of course increase the limit of the sum an employer can allocate on the SZÉP Card over the course of the year from HUF 450,000 to HUF 570,000.
At the same time, up to 50% of the funds available on the SZÉP Card may be spent on home renovation, more specifically on:
- Ironmongery, construction materials, glass, paint
- Furniture, lamps, dishes, cutlery
- Additional hardware
New housing allowance
Employers will have a new form of fringe benefit to offer employees under 35: a housing allowance, the sum of which may be up to HUF 150,000 / month or HUF 1.8 million / year. The allowance may be spent either on rent or on the repayment of a housing loan.
The allowance will be taxed the same way as the SZÉP Card, offering a tax benefit to employers.
Entrance tickets
Employers can provide tickets to sporting events or cultural services (e.g. theater, museum) without paying any taxes on it; the yearly limit for this is the monthly minimum wage. Starting from 2025, this fringe benefit may also involve zoo entrance tickets.
TEÁOR updated
TEÁOR, the system for classifying the types of work gets an update in 2025. This will be most relevant to your HR and payroll professionals, but it might also be relevant when you need a new work permit for one of your employees.
Other tax changes relevant to private individuals
Even though not strictly relevant to HR and payroll, you or your employees might want to keep in mind the following:
Long-term investment accounts
Long-term investment accounts (or TBSZ accounts in Hungarian) are popular for savings because of the tax benefits they offer. Account holders are not required to pay the personal income tax if they leave their money on the account for at least 5 years, and can avoid paying the social contribution tax altogether.
Starting from 2025, however, the social contribution tax must be paid too if the sum in the account is taken out before maturity.
Voluntary pension funds may be used for housing
Starting from 2025, sums accumulated in voluntary pension funds may be used tax free for housing purposes (otherwise you would be required to pay taxes on the interests). The approved purposes include financing the building, buying, or renovation, taking out a loan for those, or repaying at least part of an existing loan.
Helpers Finance at your service
The latest changes relevant for HR and payroll heavily favor housing purposes. The increase of the family tax benefit is also a significant change for families raising children.
If you need help with the HR and payroll administration for your Hungarian employees, Helpers Finance is at your service. We offer not only precise bookkeeping and accounting services to foreign-owned small and medium-sized businesses in Hungary, but also payroll administration, complete with HR support as necessary. Let us help you with the financial administration, so you can focus on making your business a success in Hungary.
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