How to Apply for an A1 Certificate: Where, When, Which Data and How Long It Takes

Today Article 15(1) asks for the information whenever possible in advance, and from 2 November 2028 the notification must precede the start of the activity. The institution checks the facts behind its legislation before it issues the A1, six States run six different channels, and the application follows six steps. The 2028 rules are written here for EU Member States; the EEA and Swiss take-over is pending as of 5 November 2026.

The A1 shows which State's social security legislation applies to a worker abroad; the labour-law posting rules run on a separate track. The rules below apply to every employer of posted workers in the EU.

Who Applies for the A1 and to Which Institution?

The employer applies for an employee it sends abroad, a self-employed person applies for themselves, and both apply to the institution of the State whose legislation is to apply, which for a posting is the sending State (Article 15(1) and Article 19(2) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009).

Four situations decide who files and where the request goes.

The issuing body differs by State: the table in the where-to-apply section names it for six States, and the consolidated text of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 on EUR-Lex holds both articles. All 32 States are listed under who issues the A1 certificate.

When to Apply: Today and from 2 November 2028

Today Article 15(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 asks for the information whenever possible in advance, and from 2 November 2028 the replaced Article 15(1) requires it before the activity starts, together with the A1 request.

Regulation (EU) 2026/2359 of 7 October 2026 was published in the Official Journal on 27 October 2026 and entered into force on 1 November 2026; its posting rules apply from 2 November 2028, never from 1 November 2028.

Article 15 Today: Information Whenever Possible in Advance

Until 1 November 2028 Article 15(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 asks the employer or self-employed person to inform the institution whenever possible in advance, and nothing more in that sentence. Since 1 November 2026 the institution issues the A1 in a standardised format and after a proper assessment of the facts (Article 19(2) and (3)), so complete facts at the start give it less to query.

An A1 can be issued during or after the period it covers. In C-527/16 Alpenrind (judgment of 6 September 2018) the Court of Justice held that an A1 issued late may bind retroactively; the detail sits under A1 certificate validity and retroactive issue.

From 2 November 2028: Notification Before the Start and an Acknowledgement of Receipt

From 2 November 2028 the employer, or the self-employed person, informs the competent institution before the activity starts and requests the A1 at the same time (Article 15(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 as replaced by Regulation (EU) 2026/2359).

Where the A1 is not issued immediately, the institution issues an automatic acknowledgement of receipt that is evidence of notification (Article 15(1a)). Where no A1 has been issued, the employer shows the acknowledgement or evidence of an exemption at the request of the host-State institution (Article 15(1c)).

Business trips and activities of no more than three consecutive days of work within 30 consecutive days are exempt from prior notification, except the construction activities in Annex 6 (Article 15(1b)). The exemption concerns notification only; the definition of a business trip is explained under A1 certificate for business trips.

Member States may take proportionate measures against an employer that does not notify in advance (recital 13c of Regulation (EU) 2026/2359), and a missing notification does not by itself change the applicable legislation; no EU fine amount exists. Persons sent before 2 November 2028 keep the old Article 12 (Article 87b(4) of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004). The take-over of the regulation by Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland is pending as of 5 November 2026.

What the Institution Checks Before It Issues the A1

The institution checks the facts that make its legislation applicable, because the A1 attests that the legislation applies and states until what date and under what conditions (Article 19(2) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009), and since 1 November 2026 it must carry out a proper assessment of the facts and confirm that the information is correct (Article 19(3)).

For a posted employee the application shows the facts of Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004: an employer that normally carries out its activities in the sending State, an anticipated duration of not more than 24 months, and no replacement of another posted person. Decision No A2 of the Administrative Commission indicates prior affiliation of at least one month for a person recruited to be posted, and two months between postings. From 2 November 2028 at least three months of prior affiliation are required immediately before the start of employment (Article 14(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 as amended). The 24 months are the social security clock, not the labour-law threshold of 12 months, or 18 on a motivated notification.

Forms and logins differ by institution, as the next section shows. The legal weight of the A1 itself is explained under what the A1 certificate proves.

Where to Apply and How Long It Takes in Six Countries

Each State runs its own channel, and only some publish a time: Germany sets three working days in law, the Dutch SVB states six to eight weeks, Ireland asks for the request at least four weeks before the start and the ÖGK names one hour in the ideal case.

Six States are shown, with details as of 5 November 2026.

Self-employed persons covered by German law must also apply electronically, through a guided form (§ 106a(1) and § 95a(1) SGB IV), and the A1 is available within three working days once German law is found to apply (§ 106a(1) SGB IV). For France and the United Kingdom the table states no time, because this page gives a time only where an institution or statute does.

How to Apply for an A1 Step by Step

Apply in six steps, starting before the work abroad begins: today because Article 15(1) asks for the information whenever possible in advance, and from 2 November 2028 because the request must precede the start.

The A1 is one item among the obligations of a posting, and the posting compliance checklist lists them in order.

1. Establish the situation: posting, work in two or more States, or a stay beyond 24 months (first table).
2. Identify the competent institution of the State whose legislation applies.
3. Gather the facts the institution assesses: dates, host State, the employer's activity in the sending State and prior affiliation.
4. File through the institution's channel before the start (second table).
5. Keep the A1, or from 2 November 2028 the acknowledgement of receipt, for a host-State request, and check the national rules on documents for posted workers.
6. File the labour-law posting declaration separately, at the latest at the commencement of the service provision under Article 9(1)(a) of Directive 2014/67/EU (see posting declarations).

A new posting after an A1 has expired, or a longer stay, is a new assessment under Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, and staying beyond 24 months in the sending State's system needs an exception agreement under Article 16(1) of the same Regulation.

After the Application: Validity, Short Trips and Labour-Law Notifications

Five neighbouring questions decide what else applies once the A1 is requested.

• Validity: the A1 states until what date the legislation applies, and documents bind other institutions as long as the issuing State has not withdrawn or declared them invalid (Article 5(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009).
• Business trips: Article 1(2)(eb) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 has defined the business trip since 1 November 2026.
• Labour-law clock: long-term posting after 12 months, or 18 on a motivated notification, under Article 3(1a) of Directive 96/71/EC, runs separately from the 24 months.
• Revision: Regulation (EU) 2026/2359 amends further articles of Regulations (EC) No 883/2004 and No 987/2009, set out under what the 2026 revision changes.
• Digital A1: the Commission proposed it on 15 September 2026 (COM(2026) 980, procedure 2026/0271(COD)); it is pending as of 5 November 2026 and referred to the EMPL committee; the hub describes the digital A1 proposal.

Questions on Applying for an A1

Four questions come up most often when an A1 is requested.

Can an employee apply for the A1 instead of the employer?

Yes: under Article 19(2) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 the institution issues the A1 at the request of the person concerned or of the employer. Under Article 15(1) it is the employer that informs the institution of a posting, so in practice the employer files.

How long does it take to get an A1 certificate?

It depends on the issuing State: in Germany the institution transmits the A1 data within three working days once German law is found to apply (§ 106(1) SGB IV), and the Dutch SVB states six to eight weeks. Ireland asks for the request at least four weeks before the start; the ÖGK names one hour in the ideal case.

Can the A1 be requested after the work abroad has started?

Today yes: Article 15(1) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009 asks for the information only whenever possible in advance, and in C-527/16 Alpenrind the Court of Justice held that an A1 may be issued after the period concerned. In the EU, from 2 November 2028 the notification and request must precede the start, except for business trips and work of up to three consecutive days within 30 consecutive days outside the construction activities in Annex 6 (Article 15(1b)).

How do civil servants, seafarers and air crew obtain an A1?

Their legislation follows special rules of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004: Article 11(3)(b) for civil servants, Article 11(4) for seafarers and Article 11(5), the home base, for flight and cabin crew. The A1 then comes from the institution of the State those rules designate (Article 19(2) of Regulation (EC) No 987/2009), as explained under social security for posted workers.