Unpaid leave in Estonia looks simple when an employee asks for October away after using annual holiday. The manager agrees and payroll records zero salary. That does not finish the month: a full-month absence changes the employment-register entry, the social-tax calculation and the employee's annual-leave balance. Missing any one of those creates a correction later.
In my accounting work at AccRes, I ask for the agreed dates and the employee's status before payroll closes. This guide deals with an ordinary mutually agreed unpaid absence under an employment contract. Statutory parental, study and sick leave have different rules; do not copy this treatment to them. The example uses a full October 2026 with no wage payment and no minimum-social-tax exception.
Agree the absence before changing payroll
Tööelu explains that ordinary unpaid leave is available only by agreement. Neither side can impose it alone, and the law sets no fixed maximum duration. Record the first and last day, expected return, and whether any work or payment will occur in the period.
Keep the written agreement with the employee's request and payroll record. A company with no work available cannot simply rename that situation unpaid leave; the agreement must be genuine. A long absence also deserves a discussion of whether continuing the employment contract is the right arrangement, because the employer's monthly tax duty may continue.
This is an employment-contract case. Do not treat a board member's unpaid role or a statutory leave entitlement as the same transaction.
Mark a full calendar month in the employment register
Under EMTA employment-register guidance, unpaid leave must be entered as a suspension when it lasts a whole calendar month or longer. The entry matters because unemployment-insurance contributions are not made for that period and it is not counted as an unemployment-insurance period.
If the employee works even one day in a calendar month and is paid for it, EMTA says the unpaid-leave suspension does not have to be marked for that month. A shorter agreed absence still belongs in payroll's absence record. Check the dates month by month instead of assuming that a three-week and a full-month absence have identical register treatment.
A register suspension does not itself erase the social-tax obligation. The tax decision is a separate check.
A zero salary can still mean EUR 292.38 social tax
The 2026 EMTA social-tax base is EUR 886 per month. At 33%, the minimum is EUR 292.38. EMTA's unpaid-leave TSD example shows a full month with no wage payment where the employer declares and pays that amount. The absence of wages does not by itself remove the minimum.
Suppose an ordinary employee is on agreed unpaid leave from 1 to 31 October 2026, receives no payment in October and has no applicable exception. October salary paid: EUR 0. Employer social tax for October: EUR 886 × 33% = EUR 292.38. Declare it in TSD Annex 1 by 10 November. Check any payments actually made in the month separately; the calculation is based on payroll facts, not only on the leave label.
| October 2026 example | Amount or action |
|---|---|
| Wages paid during October | EUR 0 |
| 2026 minimum social-tax base | EUR 886 |
| Employer social tax at 33% | EUR 292.38 |
| TSD for October | Due by 10 November 2026 |
EMTA lists statutory exceptions, including some pension, work-ability, child-care and student situations. Confirm a person's actual eligibility before reducing the minimum; a colleague's tax treatment is not proof of this employee's status.
Adjust annual-leave accrual and the month-end file
Tööelu states that agreed unpaid-leave time does not count toward ordinary annual-leave entitlement. A full October away therefore reduces the leave earned for that year; it does not cancel leave already earned in earlier months. Recalculate the balance for the actual dates and keep the calculation available for the next holiday payment or final settlement.
For month-end, give the accountant the signed dates, register status, payment ledger, any evidence of a social-tax exception and the revised leave balance. Reconcile TSD Annex 1 to the zero-wage month rather than assuming there is no declaration to make. When the employee returns, verify the suspension end date and ordinary payroll again.
The precise leave balance depends on the contract's annual entitlement and other absences, so use the employee's own calendar rather than a generic round number.
I separate three questions in the payroll file: did the parties agree to the absence, does the register require a full-month suspension, and does a documented exception alter minimum social tax? A zero on the payslip answers none of them.
Unpaid leave is a legitimate arrangement, but it changes several records at once. Agree the dates, handle any full-month register suspension, calculate social tax even if pay is zero, and update annual-leave accrual. This gives the employer a defensible October TSD and a correct balance when the employee returns.
If a leave period crosses months or the employee may qualify for an exception, send the dates and payroll facts through the AccRes contact form before TSD closes.