In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the deadline for mandatory registration in the Public Sector Partner Registry has been extended pursuant to an approved amendment to the law. These changes apply to entities involved in the "First Aid" or "First Aid+" projects.
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We informed you in a previous article about the requirement for employers to fulfill their obligation to register in the Public Sector Partner Register in accordance with currently applicable legislation.
In light of the continuously worsening epidemiological situation regarding COVID-19 in the Slovak Republic and the resulting adverse economic situation faced by many entities (businesses or citizens) requiring financial assistance, the Government of the Slovak Republic approved a government bill amending and supplementing certain laws in connection with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. This draft law was subsequently approved by the National Council of the Slovak Republic on January 14, 2021 (hereinafter also referred to as the “Act”).
In addition to other legal regulations, the Act also amended Act No. 5/2004 Coll. on Employment Services and on Amendments to Certain Acts (hereinafter also referred to as the “Employment Services Act”) by adding a new provision, as follows:
Ҥ 72aq
(1) During the duration of an emergency, a state of emergency, or a state of exception declared in connection with the COVID-19, a citizen may apply for registration as a job seeker also on the basis of a request submitted in paper form and delivered by mail.
(2) An employer who receives a grant under projects pursuant to Section 54(1)(e) and who must be registered in the register of public sector partners, the obligation to register in the register of public sector partners shall be deemed fulfilled until December 31, 2021. The provision of the first sentence shall also apply to the entire month of January 2021.”
The purpose of this amendment to the Employment Services Act is, in view of the introduction of measures concerning the closure or restriction of the activities of certain facilities, as well as restrictions on the mobility of citizens, for the purpose of implementing projects to support the maintenance of employment pursuant to Section 54(1)(e) of the Employment Services Act (First Aid+), to extend the exemption from the obligation to register in the public sector partners registry pursuant to Act No. 315/2016 Coll. on the Register of Public Sector Partners and on Amendments to Certain Acts (hereinafter also referred to as the “Act on the Register of Public Sector Partners”), until no later than the end of 2021 (for more details, see the Explanatory Memorandum to the Act).
It follows from the above that employers who have received (and will receive) a financial contribution under the Employment Services Act as part of the “First Aid” or “First Aid+” projects and who meet the financial thresholds (or other conditions) for the obligation to register in the Public Sector Partners Register under the Public Sector Partners Register Act, the exemption from the obligation to register in the Public Sector Partners Register has been extended, until December 31, 2021.
This means that employers who have participated or will participate in the aforementioned projects and have applied for or are applying for a financial contribution (or have already received one) are not required to be registered in the Public Sector Partners Register, or are considered automatically registered, until December 31, 2021.
