What is a skattekort?

Your skattekort (tax card) is the document your employer uses to calculate how much tax to deduct from your salary each month. It contains two key figures:

Withholding rate (trækprocent): The percentage of your income deducted as tax each month. For most employees this is between 35–42%.

Monthly tax-free allowance (månedsfradrag): The amount deducted from your income before tax is calculated. The personal allowance for 2026 is 51,600 DKK per year (4,300 DKK/month), plus any other deductions such as commuting costs.

The tax card is entirely electronic — your employer receives it automatically from Skattestyrelsen. Employers can see the numbers but not the reasons behind changes.

When is it updated?

Your tax card is automatically calculated from your preliminary tax assessment (forskudsopgørelse). Changes you make in TastSelv typically take effect in your next salary payment.

What is a frikort?

If your total annual income is expected to be below 51,600 DKK (2026), you can receive a frikort — a tax-free card. Your employer deducts no tax until you exceed this threshold. Particularly relevant for students and young people in part-time work. Under-18s are also exempt from AM-bidrag (the 8% labour market contribution) from 2026 until 31 December of the year they turn 17.

What is a bikort?

If you have two jobs, your primary employer uses your main tax card (with your personal allowance), and your secondary employer uses a bikort — with no monthly allowance, meaning you pay full tax from the first krone. Using your main card at two employers by mistake is a common cause of restskat.

What is a skattepersonnummer?

If you work short-term in Denmark (under 3 months) or commute from abroad, you may receive a personal tax number (skattepersonnummer) instead of a full CPR number and tax card. It's issued by Skattestyrelsen for tax purposes only and converts to a full CPR number if you later move to Denmark.

How do you update your tax card?

Update your preliminary tax assessment (forskudsopgørelse) at skat.dk via TastSelv (log in with MitID). Your tax card updates automatically and goes directly to your employer — no need to contact them separately.