In certain situations, you are entitled to aggregate insurance periods from another EU/EEA country, Switzerland or United Kingdom – hereinafter collectively referred to as "EU/EEA country" – to meet the requirement of having been a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund, referred to as an "a-kasse" in Danish, for at least 1 year before being entitled to unemployment benefits.
It is a requirement that you are a citizen of an EU/EEA country, a stateless citizen or a refugee, and that you reside in Denmark to be able to aggregate insurance periods from another EU/EEA country.
Third country citizens residing in Denmark are only able to aggregate insurance periods completed within the Nordic countries, namely the Faroe Islands, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland.
If you have been a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund within the last 5 years, you are entitled to aggregate periods from another EU/EEA country if you meet the following conditions within 8 weeks after the end of your insurance period in the other EU/EEA country:
- Take up residence in Denmark
- Become a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund
If you have not been a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund within the last 5 years, you have to meet the following conditions within 8 weeks after the end of your insurance period in the other EU/EEA country in order to be entitled to aggregate periods:
- Take up residence in Denmark
- Become a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund
- Gain employment in Denmark
Furthermore, when you have started working in Denmark, you have to work at least 296 payable hours within a period of 12 weeks/3 months, if you are full-time insured. If you are part-time insured, you have to work at least 148 payable hours within a period of 12 weeks/3 months.
If you have worked as a cross border worker with residence in Denmark, you are entitled to aggregate periods from another EU/EEA country if you become a member of a Danish unemployment insurance fund within 8 weeks after the end of your insurance period in the other EU/EEA country.
It is possible to extend the deadline of 8 weeks in all three cases, for example if you have been ill or on maternity leave.
Your Danish unemployment insurance fund can only aggregate periods stated in a PD U1 document or in documents equivalent to document PD U1.
You can apply for a document PD U1 in the EU/EEA country in which the insurance period was completed, or the unemployment insurance fund can – when you become a member of the fund and state that you were previously insured in another EU/EEA country – request information on your insurance period from the EU/EEA country concerned.