Losing my job
In short
In Denmark there are two different sources of money for the time without work. [[dagpenge|Dagpenge]] is paid by your — but only if you are a member. [[kontanthjaelp|Kontanthjælp]] is paid by the kommune — that is the last line, and there they look at the income and the property of the whole family.
They have one thing in common: it all starts with registering on [[jobnet|Jobnet]], and you have to do it on your very first day without work. For the days before you register, dagpenge is not paid at all.
registering on Jobnet does not give you money by itself — it is only the first of two steps
Does this apply to me?
Yes, if you lost your job or received an . A permit under gives you the right to work without a separate permit — and so to be a member of an A-kasse on ordinary terms.
Steps
Register on jobnet.dk the same day
Go to jobnet.dk, click "Meld dig ledig" and log in with . If you have no MitID, Borgerservice or your A-kasse will register you.
The green frame marks what to click.
The same day — to your A-kasse
Registering on Jobnet puts you on the register, but it does not award any money. The money is awarded by the A-kasse: you have to apply for dagpenge separately (ledighedserklæring).
To get dagpenge you need two things together: membership of an A-kasse for at least a year and enough income over the last 3 years. For 2026 that is 286 632 kr. for full insurance (191 088 kr. for part-time), and no more than 23 886 kr. counts for any one month.
the year of membership counts from the date you joined the fund, not from your first working day
No A-kasse — then it is the kommune
If the year of membership or the income does not add up, what is left is kontanthjælp from the kommune. That is not handed out just like that either: they look at your savings, your property and your husband's or wife's income.
The amount depends on how many years you have lived in Denmark legally and how much you have worked here. Anyone who does not meet those requirements gets mindstesats, the minimum rate.
from 1 July 2025 selvforsørgelses- og hjemrejseydelse was abolished — now it is kontanthjælp
A CV on Jobnet — within 2 weeks
Within two weeks of registering on Jobnet your CV has to be filled in and approved, with at least one job target (jobmål) in it. You get a message when the CV is approved.
a CV that is filled in but not approved does not count — check the status
Record every application in Joblog
Every application you send has to be recorded in Joblog on Jobnet — that is the main proof that you are looking for work. What is not in the joblog did not happen as far as the system is concerned, however many letters you really sent.
What joblog is — on jobnet.dk →Be available and confirm you are searching
While you are on the register you have to be ready to start work at one day's notice and to go to meetings — first with the A-kasse, then with the .
From time to time Jobnet asks you to confirm that you are still looking for work. If you do not confirm, you are taken off the register automatically, and the payments stop.
holiday, moving, illness — report all of it in advance, not after the fact
What you will need
- MitID on your phone
- Opsigelse or the dismissal letter
- Lønsedler for the last few months
- Your A-kasse membership number, if you are a member
- Your employment contract
Danish words you will see
- Dagpenge
- Unemployment benefit from your A-kasse. Only for members of the fund.
- A-kasse
- An unemployment insurance fund. Membership is voluntary and you pay for it.
- Jobnet
- The state job-search portal. You register as unemployed there and keep your joblog.
- Jobcenter
- Your kommune's employment service. Support for people who are not in an A-kasse goes through it.
- Kontanthjælp
- Support from the kommune for people with nothing to live on who do not get dagpenge.
- Opsigelse
- A dismissal, or your own notice of resignation. The notice period is written in your contract.
Common mistakes
- Registering on Jobnet a few days later. Those days simply are not paid — whatever the reason for the delay.
- Registering on Jobnet and waiting for the money. You apply for dagpenge separately, at your own A-kasse.
- Thinking the year of membership counts from your first job. It counts from the date you joined the fund. It is worth joining while you are still working.
- Not recording applications in the joblog. As far as the system is concerned you were not looking for work — and that is grounds to stop the payments.
- Thinking that a permit under Særloven keeps you out of an A-kasse. It does not: the permit gives you the right to work without a separate arbejdstilladelse.
Need to talk to a human?
If you are a member of a trade union or an A-kasse, the lawyer there is free, and that is the fastest help there is with a dismissal. About kontanthjælp, talk to the jobcenter in your kommune.
Where to turn and what to say →Where this information comes from
- Checked against sources: 21.09.2026
- Sources: borger.dk — Arbejdsløshedsdagpenge, lifeindenmark.dk — Unemployment benefits, borger.dk — Kontanthjælp, jobnet.dk — Joblog
This is an explanation in plain words, not legal advice. The final word always belongs to the authority. How we check
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