Social contributions
The definition of the term “social contributions” is not given anywhere in a precise manner. We can say that, usually, it refers to payments made by the employer and in particular those that are made in addition to the salary itself. Working relationships indeed represent more than a strict exchange of services (work in exchange for a salary).
In the past, the payment of salary in the event of illness and injury, military service or other events that prevented employees from working, severance allowances, family benefits, holiday leave and payment of overtime were considered to be social contributions. At that time, the employer and worker decided freely on “social contributions”. The legislator merely issued some minimal directives. Since then, these benefits have become compulsory and stipulated in legislation on employment and social insurance.
Today we can consequently state that social contributions, in the strictest sense of the word, refer to the contributions that are paid by the employer to social insurance (as opposed to “social insurance deductions”) and in a wider sense of the word refer to the contributions that exceed the legal minimum requirements, excluding the salary.
