Wrong salary in Denmark?How to find the error.

What is a pay error?

A pay error is when your payslip does not match what you are entitled to under your contract, your collective agreement (overenskomst) or Danish law. Most often you are paid too little. Sometimes too much (both guides in Danish).

Most pay errors are not fraud. They are a rate that was not updated, a supplement that stood still, or hours that dropped out. On their own the amounts are small. But the error comes back every month until someone spots it.

The most common pay errors

We check payslips line by line against the collective agreement. These are the errors we find most often:

1. The rate was not adjusted. The collective agreements raise the rates on fixed dates. If the payroll system is not updated, you get the old rate. See the dates in the rate change calendar (in Danish).
2. The percentage did not keep up. Pension and the free choice account (fritvalg) are percentages of your pay, and the percentages go up too. The amount looks reasonable, so the error is hard to see.
3. The supplement has the old rate or the wrong time window. Evening, night and weekend supplements (tillæg) must have the right rate and start at the right time. If the supplement starts an hour too late, hours drop out.
4. Overtime is paid as ordinary hours. Hours beyond your normal working hours often have to be paid with an overtime supplement under the collective agreement. See what to do when overtime is not paid (in Danish).
5. Hours are missing. The hours on the payslip do not match the rota (vagtplan) or the timesheet (timeseddel).
6. The apprentice is on the wrong step. Apprentice pay rises with the training step, and the step change comes on a different date from the rate change. Check your apprentice pay (in Danish).
7. Holiday pay (feriepenge) is calculated on too small a basis. For example without supplements or overtime. Check your holiday pay (in Danish).

See five of the errors with clause and amount in Five common pay errors, and how to find them (in Danish).

How to check your payslip

You need three things: your contract, your collective agreement and your rota or timesheet. You can get the collective agreement from your trade union (fagforening) or your shop steward (tillidsrepræsentant). The full walk-through is in the guide to checking your payslip in Denmark.

1. The hours. Do the hours on the payslip match the rota? Count evenings, nights and weekends separately.
2. The rate. Is the hourly or monthly pay at least what the collective agreement gives for the period? The rates change on fixed dates.
3. The supplements. Does each supplement have the right rate, and does it cover the right hours?
4. The percentages. Are pension, free choice account and holiday pay calculated with the right percentage of the right basis?
5. The deductions. The labour market contribution (AM-bidrag) is 8%. Income tax (A-skat) must follow the withholding rate (trækprocent) and allowance on your tax card (skattekort). ATP depends on your hours.
6. Last month. Put the payslip next to last month's. What has changed, and why?

Want to practise? In Find fejlen (Spot the error, in Danish) you get five payslips covering Commerce, Industry, Nurses and IT. Click the lines you think are wrong, and see the answer with clause and amount.

Found an error? Here is what to do

1. Gather the paperwork. The payslips, the contract, the rota and your own notes on your hours.
2. Write to your employer. Send an email to the payroll office or your manager. Say which line is wrong, for which months, and what the amount should have been. Ask them to correct the error and pay what you are owed with your next pay. See what the claim should include (in Danish).
3. Contact your trade union. If your employer does not correct the error, the union can take the case. If you are covered by a collective agreement, the union can raise it through the industrial relations system (fagretligt).
4. Do not wait. The longer the error runs, the more months have to be recalculated. And a pay claim becomes time-barred.

If you are not a member of a trade union, you can get help from a lawyer or a legal aid service (retshjælp).

How far back can you claim unpaid wages?

As a rule, a pay claim becomes time-barred 3 years after the pay should have been paid (§ 3(1), cf. § 2(1), of the Danish Limitation Act, forældelsesloven). If money is missing from your pay for January 2024, you can, as a rule, claim it until January 2027.

Some collective agreements and the industrial relations system require you to act sooner. So contact your trade union as soon as you see the error.

How PayTjek helps

PayTjek checks every line of the payslip against the Danish collective agreement and Danish law. For each error we show the clause, the verbatim quote and the amount in kroner.

Trade unions use PayTjek in member cases. The union consultant uploads the contract and two years of payslips and gets one combined claim for the whole period. Payroll bureaus use PayTjek to find the error before the pay goes out.

If you are an employee and think your pay is wrong, start with your employer and your trade union. Our free tools below (in Danish) help you check it yourself.

Questions and answers

What do I do if my salary is wrong?

Write to the payroll office or your manager, and describe the line, the period and the amount. Ask them to correct the error and pay what you are owed with your next pay. If that does not happen, contact your trade union.

How far back can I claim unpaid wages?

As a rule, 3 years from when the pay should have been paid. Some collective agreements require you to act sooner.

How do I know if my payslip is correct?

Compare the hours with the rota, the rate and supplements with the collective agreement, and the percentages for pension, free choice account and holiday pay with the basis. Put it next to last month's payslip, and see what has changed.

What are the most common errors on a payslip?

A rate that was not adjusted, a percentage that did not keep up, a supplement with the old rate or the wrong time window, overtime paid as ordinary hours, and missing hours.

What if I have been paid too much?

Then you will not necessarily have to pay it all back. It depends mainly on whether you could see the error. See what applies when you have been paid too much (in Danish).

Where do I find my collective agreement?

Ask your trade union or your shop steward. Many unions publish the collective agreement on their website. See also the collective agreements PayTjek checks (in Danish).