Your employment
First steps towards your first employment with Smart
- Before employment
- Employment categories
- Employment categories Smart eG
- Employment categories Smart Bildungswerk
- Social security contributions
- Gross, Net and Turnover
- Managing your employment
Before employment
Employment conditions
You will receive an employment contract for a job at Smart. The prerequisites for this are membership of the cooperative and orders that cover your employment costs. Of course, formal employment law conditions must also be met.
Your membership of Smart does not mean that you are automatically employed by Smart. You must actively inform Smart of your employment request and submit orders. Your employment is only confirmed once you have received the employment contract from us by e-mail and then signed this contract and sent it back to us by e-mail.
Requirements for employment
- Ordinary residence in Germany
- You must have orders that can be invoiced by Smart.
- For employment subject to social security contributions, your income must be at least €760 net on average per month.
- The standard duration of a first employment contract is four months.
- To be covered by health insurance through employment with Smart, the income from employment with Smart must make up the majority of your total income (if you are self-employed at the same time)
- Non-EU nationals must have a valid residence permit that allows employment (gainful employment).
- An employment contract has to start on the 1st day of the month.
Deadline
Any request regarding an employment contract for the following month must be communicated to us by the last day of the current month at the latest. For example, if you want to change your salary for February, you must let us know by January 31st.
Are you interested in a Minijob? Please read more here.
Submit an employment request in the Smart Portal
Would you like to be employed by Smart and you already have orders? Then go ahead and submit a new employment request in the Smart Portal.
Do you already have a contract with Smart and want to prolong it or make a change? Then read further how to request a change.
1) Select the budget for your employment. Here you can choose between the Smart eG and the Smart Bildungswerk, depending on the acitivities you are processing.
Please note that your budget will be generated only after first order has been confirmed through Smart. Only afterwards will it be possible to create an employment request. You can find out more about creating an order here.
Smart eG and Smart Bildungswerk are two separate legal entities. Orders processed via one entitity can only be used to be employed by that company. If you process some orders via Smart eG and other via Smart Bildungswerk, you can request two separate employment contracts to pay out your budget.
2) Choose the start and end date of your employment.
3) Describe the job title as it should appear in your employment contract.
4) Choose a service category that comes closest to your profession.
5) Choose an employment category. Here you can see the name of the employment category and the total employment costs per month.
6) The working hours per week is a maximum value to guarantee the minimum wage. Make sure that you do not exceed the weekly number of hours. If your working hours per week differ, you can enter this in the comments.
Send your employment request. You will receive a notification by e-mail as soon as we have processed your request.
Employment categories
Employment categories Smart eG
Here you will find the salary categories that can be selected for the employment contract with Smart eG. If you are employed by Smart Bildungswerk, please refer to the employment categories of Smart Bildungswerk.
*Important: All amounts in the table are rounded in € and refer to calculations based on the following: Year of validity 2026, tax class 1, without church tax, without child allowance, health insurance contribution 17,29% (Techniker Krankenkasse), pension insurance exemption for Minijob.
As your personal characteristics may differ from this calculation, the exact total cost of employment will be adjusted monthly in your budget. Minor differences are possible.
In the Smart Portal, you can select the employment category in the employment form. In the dropdown list you will be able to see the category number and the total employment costs including social security contributions and tax.
1. Employment categories with access to social security system
In the table below you can find further information on the gross wage and number of working hours that will be shown in your employment contract, projected net salary as well as the minimum turnover needed to request the category.
|
Cat. |
Total employment costs incl. Taxes and contributions |
|
Gross Wage amount in your employment contract in € |
|
Net sum to be transferred to your bank account* in € |
|
Required monthly net turnover (Total employment costs + Smart Fee) in € |
|
1 |
776 |
|
605 |
|
601 |
|
852 |
|
2 |
788 |
|
615 |
|
608 |
|
866 |
|
3 |
877 |
|
690 |
|
660 |
|
964 |
|
4 |
966 |
|
765 |
|
712 |
|
1.062 |
|
5 |
1.061 |
|
845 |
|
768 |
|
1.166 |
|
6 |
1.150 |
|
920 |
|
819 |
|
1.264 |
|
7 |
1.245 |
|
1.000 |
|
875 |
|
1.368 |
|
8 |
1.334 |
|
1.075 |
|
927 |
|
1.466 |
|
9 |
1.424 |
|
1.150 |
|
979 |
|
1.565 |
|
10 |
1.516 |
|
1.228 |
|
1.033 |
|
1.666 |
|
11 |
1.608 |
|
1.305 |
|
1.086 |
|
1.767 |
|
12 |
1.697 |
|
1.380 |
|
1.138 |
|
1.865 |
|
13 |
1.792 |
|
1.460 |
|
1.189 |
|
1.969 |
|
14 |
1.881 |
|
1.535 |
|
1.231 |
|
2.067 |
|
15 |
1.975 |
|
1.615 |
|
1.277 |
|
2.170 |
|
16 |
2.065 |
|
1.690 |
|
1.317 |
|
2.269 |
|
17 |
2.154 |
|
1.765 |
|
1.357 |
|
2.367 |
|
18 |
2.249 |
|
1.845 |
|
1.400 |
|
2.471 |
|
19 |
2.338 |
|
1.920 |
|
1.438 |
|
2.569 |
|
20 |
2.427 |
|
1.995 |
|
1.475 |
|
2.667 |
|
21 |
2.524 |
|
2.075 |
|
1.522 |
|
2.774 |
|
22 |
2.616 |
|
2.150 |
|
1.566 |
|
2.875 |
|
23 |
2.707 |
|
2.225 |
|
1.610 |
|
2.975 |
|
24 |
2.804 |
|
2.305 |
|
1.657 |
|
3.081 |
|
25 |
3.035 |
|
2.495 |
|
1.767 |
|
3.335 |
|
26 |
3.266 |
|
2.685 |
|
1.877 |
|
3.589 |
|
27 |
3.504 |
|
2.880 |
|
1.988 |
|
3.851 |
|
28 |
3.735 |
|
3.070 |
|
2.096 |
|
4.104 |
|
29 |
3.954 |
|
3.250 |
|
2.197 |
|
4.345 |
|
30 |
4.203 |
|
3.455 |
|
2.310 |
|
4.619 |
|
31 |
4.671 |
|
3.840 |
|
2.521 |
|
5.133 |
|
32 |
4.866 |
|
4.000 |
|
2.608 |
|
5.347 |
|
33 |
5.170 |
|
4.250 |
|
2.742 |
|
5.681 |
|
34 |
5.474 |
|
4.500 |
|
2.874 |
|
6.015 |
|
35 |
5.626 |
|
4.625 |
|
2.939 |
|
6.182 |
|
36 |
5.778 |
|
4.750 |
|
3.004 |
|
6.349 |
| 37 |
6.082 |
|
5.000 |
|
3.133 |
|
6.684 |
|
38 |
6.484 |
|
5.330 |
|
3.300 |
|
7.125 |
|
39 |
6.603 |
|
5.428 |
|
3.350 |
|
7.256 |
|
40 |
6.980 |
|
5.738 |
|
3.504 |
|
7.670 |
|
41 |
7.146 |
|
5.880 |
|
3.578 |
|
7.853 |
|
42 |
7.279 |
|
6.000 |
|
3.645 |
|
8.000 |
|
43 |
7.648 |
|
6.332 |
|
3.827 |
|
8.404 |
|
44 |
8.032 |
|
6.677 |
|
4.013 |
|
8.826 |
|
45 |
8.151 |
|
6.784 |
|
4.069 |
|
8.957 |
|
46 |
8.391 |
|
7.000 |
|
4.183 |
|
9.221 |
|
47 |
8.653 |
|
7.236 |
|
4.305 |
|
9.509 |
|
48 |
8.947 |
|
7.500 |
|
4.440 |
|
9.832 |
|
49 |
9.174 |
|
7.703 |
|
4.544 |
|
10.081 |
|
50 |
9.333 |
|
7.847 |
|
4.611 |
|
10.256 |
|
51 |
9503 |
|
8.000 |
|
4.683 |
|
10.443 |
|
52 |
9.729 |
|
8.203 |
|
4.778 |
|
10.691 |
|
53 |
10.033 |
|
8.480 |
|
4.909 |
|
11.025 |
|
54 |
10.256 |
|
8.703 |
|
5.027 |
|
11.270 |
|
55 |
10.633 |
|
9.080 |
|
5.227 |
|
11.685 |
| 56 | 11.053 |
9.500 |
5.450 |
12.146 |
|||
| 57 |
11.553 |
10.000 |
5.715 |
12.696 |
|||
| 58 |
14.053 |
12.500 | 7.074 | 15.443 | |||
| 59 | 16.580 |
15.027 |
8.481 |
18.220 |
|||
| 60 | 21.553 |
20.000 |
11.251 |
23.685 |
|||
| 61 |
26.553 |
25.000 | 14.025 | 29.179 | |||
|
100 |
0 |
|
0 |
|
0 |
|
0 |
2. Minijob categories (without access to health and unemployment insurance)
The calculations of the total costs are based on a Minijob that is exempt from pension insurance. If no exemption is desired, the net payment amount is reduced. You can find out more about exemption and Minijobs here.
You can choose the Minijob category as well as set the pension insurance preference in the employment form:
|
Category |
Total employment costs incl. Taxes and contributions |
|
Gross Wage amount in your employment contract in € |
|
Netto- sum to be transferred to your bank account* in € |
|
Required monthly net turnover (Total employment costs + Smart Fee) in € |
|
M1 |
93 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
|
102 |
|
M2 |
131 |
|
100 |
|
100 |
|
144 |
|
M3 |
215 |
|
165 |
|
165 |
|
236 |
|
M4 |
280 |
|
215 |
|
215 |
|
308 |
|
M5 |
373 |
|
286 |
|
286 |
|
410 |
|
M6 |
467 |
|
358 |
|
358 |
|
513 |
|
M7 |
560 |
|
430 |
|
430 |
|
615 |
|
M8 |
587 |
|
450 |
|
450 |
|
645 |
|
M9 |
622 |
|
480 |
|
480 |
|
684 |
|
M10 |
678 |
|
520 |
|
520 |
|
745 |
|
M11 |
704 |
|
540 |
|
540 |
|
774 |
|
M12 |
757 |
|
580 |
|
580 |
|
832 |
|
M13 |
787 |
|
603 |
|
603 |
|
865 |
Employment categories Smart Bildungswerk
Here you will find the salary categories that can be selected for the employment contract with Smart Bildungswerk.
*Important: All amounts in the table are rounded in € and refer to calculations based on the following: Year of validity 2026, tax class 1, without church tax, without child allowance, health insurance contribution 17,29% (Techniker Krankenkasse), pension insurance exemption for Minijob.
As your personal characteristics may differ from this calculation, the exact total cost of employment will be adjusted monthly in your budget. Minor differences are possible.
In the Smart Portal, you can select the employment category in the employment form. In the dropdown list you will be able to see the category number and the total employment costs including social security contributions and tax.
1. Employment categories with access to social security system
In the table below you can find further information on the gross wage and number of working hours that will be shown in your employment contract, projected net salary as well as the minimum turnover needed to request the category.
|
Category |
Total employment costs incl. Taxes and contributions |
|
Gross Wage amount in your employment contract in € |
|
Net- sum transferred to your bank account* in € |
|
Required monthly net turnover (Total employment costs + Smart Fee) in € |
|
1 |
787 |
|
605 |
|
601 |
|
865 |
|
2 |
799 |
|
615 |
|
608 |
|
878 |
|
3 |
890 |
|
690 |
|
660 |
|
978 |
|
4 |
980 |
|
765 |
|
712 |
|
1.077 |
|
5 |
1.077 |
|
845 |
|
768 |
|
1.183 |
|
6 |
1.167 |
|
920 |
|
819 |
|
1.282 |
|
7 |
1.264 |
|
1.000 |
|
875 |
|
1.388 |
|
8 |
1.354 |
|
1.075 |
|
927 |
|
1.488 |
|
9 |
1.445 |
|
1.150 |
|
979 |
|
1.588 |
|
10 |
1.539 |
|
1.228 |
|
1.033 |
|
1.691 |
|
11 |
1.632 |
|
1.305 |
|
1.086 |
|
1.794 |
|
12 |
1.723 |
|
1.380 |
|
1.138 |
|
1.893 |
|
13 |
1.819 |
|
1.460 |
|
1.189 |
|
2.000 |
|
14 |
1.909 |
|
1.535 |
|
1.231 |
|
2.098 |
|
15 |
2.005 |
|
1.615 |
|
1.277 |
|
2.203 |
|
16 |
2.096 |
|
1.690 |
|
1.317 |
|
2.304 |
|
17 |
2.187 |
|
1.765 |
|
1.357 |
|
2.403 |
|
18 |
2.283 |
|
1.845 |
|
1.400 |
|
2.509 |
|
19 |
2.374 |
|
1.920 |
|
1.438 |
|
2.608 |
|
20 |
2.464 |
|
1.995 |
|
1.475 |
|
2.708 |
|
21 |
2.562 |
|
2.075 |
|
1.522 |
|
2.816 |
|
22 |
2.656 |
|
2.150 |
|
1.566 |
|
2.918 |
|
23 |
2.748 |
|
2.225 |
|
1.610 |
|
3.020 |
|
24 |
2.847 |
|
2.305 |
|
1.657 |
|
3.128 |
|
25 |
3.081 |
|
2.495 |
|
1.767 |
|
3.386 |
|
26 |
3.316 |
|
2.685 |
|
1.877 |
|
3.644 |
|
27 |
3.557 |
|
2.880 |
|
1.989 |
|
3.909 |
|
28 |
3.792 |
|
3.070 |
|
2.096 |
|
4.167 |
|
29 |
4.014 |
|
3.250 |
|
2.197 |
|
4.411 |
|
30 |
4.267 |
|
3.455 |
|
2.310 |
|
4.689 |
|
31 |
4.742 |
|
3.840 |
|
2.521 |
|
5.211 |
|
32 |
4.940 |
|
4.000 |
|
2.608 |
|
5.429 |
|
33 |
5.249 |
|
4.250 |
|
2.742 |
|
5.768 |
|
34 |
5.557 |
|
4.500 |
|
2.874 |
|
6.107 |
|
35 |
5.712 |
|
4.625 |
|
2.939 |
|
6.276 |
|
36 |
5.866 |
|
4.750 |
|
3.004 |
|
6.446 |
|
37 |
6.175 |
|
5.000 |
|
3.133 |
|
6.785 |
|
38 |
6.583 |
|
5.330 |
|
3.301 |
|
7.234 |
|
39 |
6.703 |
|
5.428 |
|
3.350 |
|
7.366 |
|
40 |
7.086 |
|
5.738 |
|
3.504 |
|
7.787 |
|
41 |
7.255 |
|
5.880 |
|
3.578 |
|
7.972 |
|
42 |
7.390 |
|
6.000 |
|
3.645 |
|
8.121 |
|
43 |
7.765 |
|
6.332 |
|
3.827 |
|
8.533 |
|
44 |
8.156 |
|
6.677 |
|
4.013 |
|
8.962 |
|
45 |
8.277 |
|
6.784 |
|
4.069 |
|
9.095 |
|
46 |
8.521 |
|
7.000 |
|
4.183 |
|
9.363 |
|
47 |
8.787 |
|
7.236 |
|
4.305 |
|
9.656 |
|
48 |
9.086 |
|
7.500 |
|
4.440 |
|
9.984 |
|
49 |
9.317 | 7.704 | 4.544 | 10.238 | |||
|
50 |
9.478 | 7.847 | 4.611 | 10.416 | |||
|
51 |
9.651 | 8.000 | 4.683 | 10.605 | |||
|
52 |
9.881 | 8.203 | 4.778 | 10.858 | |||
|
53 |
10.190 | 8.480 | 4.909 | 11.198 | |||
|
54 |
10.417 | 8.703 | 5.027 | 11.447 | |||
|
55 |
10.801 | 9.080 | 5.227 | 11.869 | |||
|
56 |
11.229 | 9.500 | 5.450 | 12.339 | |||
|
57 |
11.738 | 10.000 | 5.715 | 12.899 | |||
|
58 |
14.284 | 12.500 | 7.074 | 15.697 | |||
|
59 |
16.858 | 15.027 | 8.481 | 18.525 | |||
|
60 |
21.923 | 20.000 | 11.251 | 24.091 | |||
|
61 |
27.016 | 25.000 | 14.025 | 29.687 | |||
|
100 |
0 |
|
0 |
|
0 |
|
0 |
2. Minijob categories (without access to health and unemployment insurance)
The calculations of the total costs are based on a Minijob that is exempt from pension insurance. If no exemption is desired, the net payment amount is reduced. You can find out more about exemption and Minijobs here.
You can choose the Minijob category as well as set the pension insurance preference in the employment form:
|
Category |
Total employment costs incl. Taxes and contributions BW |
|
Gross Wage amount in your employment contract in € |
|
Net- sum transferred to your bank account* in € |
|
Required monthly net turnover (Total employment costs + Smart Fee) in € |
|
M1 |
93 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
|
102 |
|
M2 |
131 |
|
100 |
|
100 |
|
144 |
|
M3 |
215 |
|
165 |
|
165 |
|
236 |
|
M4 |
280 |
|
215 |
|
215 |
|
308 |
|
M5 |
373 |
|
286 |
|
286 |
|
410 |
|
M6 |
467 |
|
358 |
|
358 |
|
513 |
|
M7 |
560 |
|
430 |
|
430 |
|
615 |
|
M8 |
587 |
|
450 |
|
450 |
|
645 |
|
M9 |
622 |
|
480 |
|
480 |
|
684 |
|
M10 |
685 |
|
520 |
|
520 |
|
745 |
|
M11 |
704 |
|
540 |
|
540 |
|
774 |
|
M12 |
760 |
|
580 |
|
580 |
|
835 |
|
M13 |
790 |
|
603 |
|
603 |
|
868 |
Social security contributions
If you are employed (for the duration of the employment contract), social security contributions and income tax will be deducted from your earnings and paid by the cooperative. Both the employer and employee contributions are paid by the member.
How much income per month is invested in an employment can be freely decided on the basis of employment categories.
The social security contributions are made up as follows:
| Public health insurance | 14.6% plus additional contribution |
| Long-term care insurance | 3.05 - 3.4%, with/ without child |
| Pension insurance | 18.6% |
| Unemployment insurance | 2.4% |
| Additional employer costs | contributions variable between 0.5% and 3.5% |
| Income tax | progressive, depending on income |
The basic tax-free allowance for income tax (Grundfreibetrag) changes every year and depends on your personal characteristics. Use the income tax calculator on the website of the Ministry of Finance to accurately calculate how much income tax you may need to pay.
Gross, Net and Turnover
When you are employed as a member at Smart, you encounter different figures: net salary, gross salary, employer gross, and turnover.
Net turnover: This is the amount Smart invoices to your clients. From this amount, the 9% Smart fee is also deducted. What remains goes into your budget.
Employer gross (total employment costs): Also called employment costs or total costs. This is the total amount needed to finance your employment for one month in your chosen category. This amount includes your net salary, social security contributions, and income tax.
From the employer gross, a first part of the social security contributions is deducted, resulting in the gross salary.
Gross salary (employee gross): This is the amount stated in your employment contract. It is calculated as the employer gross minus a portion of the social security contributions (at least half).
From the gross salary, the second part of the social security contributions as well as the wage tax are deducted, resulting in the net salary.
Net salary (employee net): This is the amount you receive in your bank account at the end of the month. It is calculated as the gross salary minus the remaining social security contributions and income tax.
Managing your employment
View your employment and find documents
List of employments
In the list of employments you will see all your current and past employment contracts with Smart.
View of employment and documents
An employment can be opened from the employment list. The overview shows the start and end date of the employment, the employment category, the profession as given in the contract and the weekly working hours.
Your current contract, your pay slips and all other relevant documents regarding this employment can be found under Documents. Please choose the correct category from the drop-down list.
If you have several employments at Smart (e.g. at Smart eG and Smart Bildungswerk, or if you had a longer break between two jobs, you will find the relevant documents in the respective contract period in the list)
Employment contract
- after you sign your employment contract it will appear here
- you can view a template of an employment contract with Smart here.
For legal reasons the employment contract is only available in German.
Addendum
- Amendments to the employment contract
After the Smart confirmation of your employment change, you can find and download your addendum in the portal:
You can upload the signed contract directly in the portal:
Pay slips
- Monthly pay slips
- Correction statements, if applicable
Payslips are official documents stating your income. Please find out more under Payroll.
Requesting changes
If you would like to make changes to your employment contract, you can do so by clicking on the "Request change" button in the employment detail view.
Click the checkmark in front of the respective change type to enter the desired data. Finally, you must send the form to the Smart Team by clicking the "Send" button. If the change is approved, you will receive an updated payslip with the corresponding changes with the next monthly payslip. The payslip is considered delivered when it is uploaded to the portal. You can view the adjusted changes in your budget overview immediately after confirmation.
You can make following requests:
Prolong employment contract or change end date
Choose the new end date and you will receive an addendum to your contract after confirmation by Smart.
Please always prolong your contract via the Portal BEFORE it's end date.
Change salary / employment category
Once you have selected the category, please write in the comment field, when you would like to introduce this change. Please note that changes for the next month are only possible until the last day of the previous month.
You can find the employment categories here: Employment categories
Register a leave
Following interruptions in your employment are possible. Please remeber to submit a relevant proof.
Add special payment
A special payment will be paid out with the next payroll, provided there is enough budget available.
If you choose the 'Sachbezug' benefit (e.g. Urban Sports membership or Jobticket), then please write in the comment from when the benefit should be settled.
Request correction to a previous month
Ending your employment
If you want to terminate your contract (for example, because there is no budget or you have another job), a formal notice of termination with the following details is required:
- Date of the letter (at least two weeks before the end of the desired contract end date)
- Sentence "I hereby terminate my employment contract with effect from" (date: the last day of the last month of employment)
- Your registration address, first and last name and membership number
- Address of the cooperative: SMartDe eG or Smart Bildungswerk gGmbH, Franz-Mehring-Platz 1, 10243 Berlin
- Signature (digital or original)
The original signed notice of termination can be sent to us by post plus e-mail or only by e-mail. The date of termination must be before the desired termination date.
Example: The employment contract runs until March 31. The employment contract is to be terminated in February. The notice of termination must be submitted two weeks before February 1. If your employment with Smart ends, you must ensure that you continue to have health insurance yourself. If you have any questions, you can of course contact us.
Don't have any new orders? Contact us, we will try to find an individual solution. For example, we can reduce your salary or offer you unpaid leave.
Do you still have budget left after payment of the last salary? Please let us know in time, if you want to get your total budget out till the end of your employment.
Terminating your employment contract does not mean terminating your membership with Smart. We recommend that you retain your membership of the cooperative so that you have the flexibility to resume your employment when you need to.