Expatries Network
Country profile

Payroll in Hungary: a restricted activity

The network covers Hungary within the Central Europe region. Payslips there are drawn up in HUF, and dealings with a local firm are conducted in Hungarian.

The business centres where the network is looking for a correspondent as a priority are Budapest, Debrecen, Szeged, Miskolc.

The country is a member of the European Union. An employee posted from another member state remains attached to the scheme of origin under the conditions set by the European coordination regulations, and the A1 certificate issued by the institution of the sending country is the proof of this. That document is called for during on-site inspections: it is applied for before departure, never afterwards.

Region
Central Europe
Payroll currency
HUF
Working languages
Hungarian
European status
European Union member state
Capital
Budapest
Dialling code
+36
Country code
HU / HUN

Who may run payroll in Hungary

The answer to this question changes everything: it determines to whom you may entrust your payslips locally, and what you must ask for before signing. It has been verified country by country with the local authorities.

In Hungary, running payroll on behalf of third parties is a regulated activity. It is carried on under the title of Regisztrált mérlegképes könyvelő, and a registration in force must be produced to you before any engagement.

Local title
Regisztrált mérlegképes könyvelő
Professional body or supervisory authority
Pénzügyminisztérium (registre des prestataires de services comptables) ; Magyar Könyvvizsgálói Kamara pour l'audit légal

Consult the official register

What to check on the ground

La « könyvviteli szolgáltatás » (tenue de comptabilité et établissement des comptes annuels) est une activité réglementée : l'article 151 de la loi comptable (2000. évi C. törvény) et le décret gouvernemental 93/2002 (V.5.) imposent l'inscription au registre du ministère des Finances et la détention d'une qualification de mérlegképes könyvelő ou d'okleveles könyvvizsgáló. La paie prise isolément n'est pas explicitement visée par ce registre : en pratique, un cabinet hongrois qui traite paie ET comptabilité doit disposer d'un mérlegképes könyvelő inscrit.

Payroll in Hungary in practice

Hungary belongs to the European Union but has kept its own currency: salaries are settled in forint (HUF), so any pay policy framed in euros has to address exchange. Coordination with French schemes falls under the European regulations, with the usual posting and aggregation mechanisms.

Hungarian administration has merged its collection channels. Since the tax and customs authorities were brought together, the Nemzeti Adó- és Vámhivatal (NAV, the national tax and customs administration) collects income tax and social contributions alike: no separate social institution exists from which a second certificate could be obtained.

Contracts and payslips are drawn up in Hungarian. On the professional side, bookkeeping for third parties is regulated: it requires entry in the register of accounting service providers held by the Ministry of Finance and a mérlegképes könyvelő qualification. Payroll taken on its own is not expressly covered, which leaves room for firms specialising in payroll alone.

Employing staff in Hungary

The employer reports each employee to NAV before work begins. This prior notification is the first act of the relationship, ahead of the first payroll run, and failure to make it is directly penalised.

The form of presence is chosen beforehand: a Hungarian company, a branch, or registration of a foreign entity as employer. Each affects representation and access to the electronic filing systems, which rely on credentials issued to named individuals.

The munkaszerződés, the Hungarian employment contract, is written and must at minimum state the role and the base salary, other terms falling back on the labour code where the parties are silent. Bilingual versions are common for foreign employees, with the Hungarian text prevailing.

The employee receives a monthly payslip. Income tax is withheld at source, as is the employee's social contribution, while the employer's social contribution tax is settled by the company. All of it is carried in a single monthly return to NAV that serves as both tax filing and individual social reporting.

Termination rests on regulated grounds, a notice period and, depending on length of service, statutory severance. Employing a foreign national requires a residence and work authorisation, or, for citizens of the Union, a simple registration formality.

Hungary

The documents required of a partner in Hungary

The network asks 9 documents of any firm wishing to represent it in Hungary. The table gives, for each of them, the exact wording in use locally, the body that issues it and the period during which it remains admissible. These are the terms to use in an application to the local administration.

Of these 9 documents, 6 are required of every applicant and 5 have a limited period of validity, the shortest being 1 months. 1 of these documents exist only in Hungary and have no equivalent in the common core of the network.

Local wordingIssuing bodyValiditySource
Hiteles cégkivonatCertified company extract

Le cégkivonat donne la situation en vigueur ; le cégmásolat en donne l'historique complet. Une consultation gratuite est possible sur e-cegjegyzek.hu, mais l'extrait certifié (hiteles) s'obtient auprès du Céginformációs Szolgálat ou d'un notaire.

Céginformációs és az Elektronikus Cégeljárásban Közreműködő Szolgálat — Igazságügyi Minisztérium3 months
Required
Official website
Adószám és közösségi adószámTax number and EU VAT number

L'adószám à 11 chiffres figure déjà sur le cégkivonat. Contrôler surtout qu'il n'est ni suspendu (felfüggesztett) ni radié (törölt) : la NAV publie ces listes.

Nemzeti Adó- és Vámhivatal (NAV)No expiry
Required
Official website
Együttes adóigazolás, vagy szereplés a köztartozásmentes adózói adatbázisban (KOMA)Joint tax certificate, or listing in the public database of debt-free taxpayers

L'együttes adóigazolás se demande avec le formulaire IGAZOL et vaut 30 jours. Alternative plus commode : l'inscription à la köztartozásmentes adózói adatbázis (KOMA), publique, gratuite et mise à jour mensuellement, qui dispense de produire l'attestation.

Nemzeti Adó- és Vámhivatal (NAV)1 month
Required
Official website
Együttes adóigazolás (a járulékokra is kiterjed)Joint tax certificate (also covering social contributions)

Il n'y a pas d'attestation sociale séparée en Hongrie : depuis la fusion de l'APEH et de la VPOP en 2011, la NAV recouvre à la fois les impôts et les cotisations sociales (szociális hozzájárulási adó, TB-járulék). L'együttes adóigazolás couvre donc les deux volets — ne pas réclamer un second document.

Nemzeti Adó- és Vámhivatal (NAV)1 month
Required
Official website
Szakmai felelősségbiztosításProfessional indemnity insurance

Pas d'obligation légale pour un könyvelő ou un bérszámfejtő ; elle est en revanche obligatoire pour les commissaires aux comptes inscrits à la chambre. Exigence contractuelle recommandée dans notre réseau.

Assureur privé ; obligatoire pour les könyvvizsgáló (Magyar Könyvvizsgálói Kamara, 2007. évi LXXV. törvény)12 months
Where applicable
Official website
Regisztrált mérlegképes könyvelői igazolvány (könyvviteli szolgáltatást végzők nyilvántartása)Registered chartered bookkeeper certificate (register of accounting service providers)

Toute personne qui établit ou signe les comptes annuels doit être inscrite au registre tenu par le ministère des Finances et titulaire d'une qualification de mérlegképes könyvelő ou de commissaire aux comptes. L'inscription est vérifiable dans l'annuaire public ; la formation continue annuelle conditionne son maintien.

Pénzügyminisztérium — nyilvántartás a 2000. évi C. törvény (Szt.) 151. §-a és a 93/2002. (V.5.) Korm. rendelet alapján12 months
Required
Official website
Bérügyintéző / társadalombiztosítási és bérügyi szakelőadó szakképesítésPayroll administrator / social security and payroll specialist qualification

POINT À VÉRIFIER AU CAS PAR CAS : le registre du ministère des Finances vise la « könyvviteli szolgáltatás » (tenue de comptabilité et établissement des comptes). Je n'ai pas trouvé de source officielle établissant que la seule bérszámfejtés (paie) y soit soumise. Un cabinet purement paie peut donc être légitime sans mérlegképes könyvelő ; demander alors la qualification de bérügyintéző de ses collaborateurs.

Formation professionnelle d'État (OKJ / szakmajegyzék)No expiry
Where applicable
Official website
Személyazonosító igazolvány vagy útlevél és aláírási címpéldány (aláírás-minta)Managing director's ID or passport and certified specimen signature

Spécificité hongroise à ne pas oublier : l'aláírási címpéldány est le document notarié qui atteste la signature du gérant, systématiquement demandé pour tout engagement contractuel. Le nom du gérant (ügyvezető) et son mode de représentation figurent sur le cégkivonat.

Notaire hongrois (közjegyző) pour l'aláírási címpéldány ; avocat pour l'aláírás-mintaNo expiry
Required
Official website
Adatkezelési tevékenységek nyilvántartása és adatvédelmi tisztviselő adatai (GDPR / 2011. évi CXII. törvény)Record of processing activities and DPO details (GDPR / Act CXII of 2011)

L'ancien adatvédelmi nyilvántartás de la NAIH a été supprimé en 2018 avec le RGPD : il n'existe plus d'attestation d'enregistrement. Demander le registre des traitements et le contrat de sous-traitance article 28.

Nemzeti Adatvédelmi és Információszabadság Hatóság (NAIH)No expiry
Where applicable
Official website

What sets Hungary apart

The single counter is the most useful point to retain. One certificate, the együttes adóigazolás, covers taxes and contributions together, and the public database of taxpayers free of public debt can remove the need for it altogether. Asking for a separate social certificate means asking for a document that does not exist.

Signature formalism is the second surprise. The aláírási címpéldány, a specimen signature executed before a notary, is what any Hungarian counterparty expects before treating a contract as properly signed.

Non-cash benefits occupy a structured place in Hungary: the leisure card and comparable benefits follow a tax regime of their own and feature in hiring negotiations, which means building them into payroll configuration rather than handling them as expense claims. Budgeting a Hungarian hire without them understates the package a candidate will actually compare.

Points to watch in Hungary

Ne pas demander deux attestations de régularité : depuis 2011 la NAV recouvre à la fois l'impôt et les cotisations sociales, et l'együttes adóigazolás couvre les deux, pour 30 jours seulement. Plus pratique encore, la köztartozásmentes adózói adatbázis (KOMA) est une base publique consultable en ligne qui remplace l'attestation. Ne pas oublier non plus l'aláírási címpéldány, pièce notariée typiquement hongroise sans laquelle aucun contrat n'est considéré comme correctement signé. Enfin, contrôler l'inscription du signataire au registre des prestataires comptables du ministère des Finances : c'est la seule véritable barrière à l'entrée du marché hongrois.

The network in Hungary

The network opens 3 partner slots in Hungary, not one more. No firm is listed there yet: all 3 slots therefore remain open to applications.

Listed firms in Hungary

No listed partner in Hungary has asked to appear in the public directory. The contact details of a firm are passed on to the client only when an assignment is awarded.

Filing an application does not amount to admission: every request is reviewed one by one. There is no minimum turnover requirement, and the partner selected invoices its fees directly.

You run payroll in Hungary

Submit an application: we review your file, we check the documents required on the ground and we give you an answer, whether it is positive or not.

From a Hungarian firm we ask for the certified commercial register extract, the együttes adóigazolás or evidence of entry in the public database of taxpayers free of public debt, and the managing director's aláírási címpéldány.

The distinguishing document remains the signatory's entry in the Ministry of Finance register of accounting service providers, with the regisztrált mérlegképes könyvelő qualification. For a firm dedicated exclusively to payroll, we look instead at the bérügyintéző qualifications held by the staff assigned to the file.

Submit an application

You employ staff in Hungary

Describe your requirement. No firm is listed in Hungary yet: we review the request, then entrust it to a local firm that the network identifies and vets, or to the partner of a neighbouring country covering this territory. Your contact details are passed on to the selected firm alone.

Request a provider in Hungary

The other countries in the Central Europe region

Mobility is rarely arranged one country at a time. The neighbouring profiles follow the same outline.

The twenty leading countries of the network

These countries account for most of the requests received: each one has, in addition to its profile, six pages devoted to a single aspect of local payroll.

See the 120 countries of the network

Sources of this profile

The information gathered on this page comes from the registers, administrations and bodies listed below, consulted when the reference base was compiled. It is given for guidance and does not replace the advice of a professional established in Hungary.