This article shows how much Assistants in grade AST 3 step 1 can expect to earn in the European Commission. The information directly applies also to the European Parliament, European Council, EU agencies and all other EU institutions. The article presents the full remuneration package: not only the basic salary, but also allowances and other benefits. It also shows the impact of location and the Correction Coefficient on your take-home pay.
Basic salary vs. full remuneration package
The monthly ‘basic salary’ for assistants AST3 in the European Commission and other EU institutions ranges from EUR 3914 to 4429. The starting basic salary will always be the lower number, but you can get ‘reclassified’ or get promoted.
‘Reclassification‘ is the automatic advancement through the European Commission salary scales by one step every two years (see table below to assess the financial impact on your basic salary). ‘Promotion‘ based on good professional performance in the EU context means that you not only get a good evaluation in the annual ‘appraisal’ process, but are also made to skip several salary scale steps or even a grade at once. Promotion has the most significant impact on your income, if you remain in the same job.
At the same time, knowing your ‘basic salary’ in most cases does not tell you much about your final take-home pay. There are two reasons for this.
Firstly, the basic salary in most cases constitutes between 50-100% of your total remuneration package depending on whether you entitled to the various allowances. This is especially so if you have children, a spouse or/and are an expat.
Secondly, the country you are employed in has a significant impact on your total salary due to the ‘Correction Coefficient‘. Brussels is used as reference and there the Correction Coefficient is 100% of basic salary as quoted below. If you work for an EU agency in Scandinavia, your salary and allowances will upped by 18-31% to compensate for higher living costs. Conversely, if you will work for the EU in Bulgaria, you will get only 55% of what your Brussels colleague doing the same job gets.
Assistants’ remuneration by family and residence status
Below is a sample salary and take-home pay calculation of an Assistant in grade AST5 step 1 for four common scenarios in Brussels, Belgium.
| Situation 1 | Situation 2 | Situation 3 | Situation 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single Belgian national with no children | Married Belgian national with two children | Single Italian national with no children | Married Italian national with two children |
| Assistants AST 3 |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Pay | 3914 | 3914 | 3914 | 3914 |
| Household allowance | 0 | 275 | 0 | 275 |
| Dependent child allowance | 0 | 858 | 0 | 858 |
| Expatriation allowance | 0 | 0 | 808 | 808 |
| Pension contribution | -395 | -395 | -395 | -395 |
| Health insurance contribution (JSIS coverage) | -67 | -67 | -67 | -67 |
| Accident insurance contribution | -4 | -4 | -4 | -4 |
| Tax | -97 | -97 | -97 | -97 |
| Special levy | -8 | -8 | -8 | -8 |
| Correction coefficient | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| TOTAL REMUNERATION if employed in Brussels | 3343 | 4476 | 4151 | 5284 |
N.B. These calculations are only indicative as they are based on public sources. Only your institution’s HR department will be able to calculate a 100% accurate figure once you provide all necessary documents.
On top of the above, any children would either be guaranteed a place in the local European School, or an Education Allowance for each child. The expat family would also get around 1000 EUR annually per family member as a Travel Grant considering the distance to Rome.
European Commission 2022 salary scale for Assistants AST3
| Grade | Step 1 | Step 2 | Step 3 | Step 4 | Step 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 4 428,64 | 4 614,72 | 4 808,64 | 4 942,43 | 5 010,72 |
| 3 | 3 914,15 | 4 078,65 | 4 250,05 | 4 368,27 | 4 428,64 |
| 2 | 3 459,47 | 3 604,83 | 3 756,32 | 3 860,83 | 3 914,15 |
Impact of Correction Coefficient on Assistants basic pay
The below table shows you the actual Assistants AST 3 basic pay according to the correction coefficient by location of your institution. You should also read a dedicated article about the Correction Coefficient to understand the details.
| Location | EU institution | Correction Coefficient | Adjusted basic salary EUR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam, Netherlands | EMA | 111.4 | 4360 |
| Barcelona, Spain | F4E | 96.3 | 3769 |
| Berlin, Germany | EU Delegation | 101.4 | 3969 |
| Bilbao, Spain | EU-OSHA | 96.3 | 3769 |
| Bratislava, Slovakia | ELA | 79.9 | 3127 |
| Brussels, Belgium | European Commission, European Parliament, European Council, EDA, SRB | 100 | 3914 |
| Bucharest, Romania | ECITRCC | 68.5 | 2681 |
| Budapest, Hungary | CEPOL, EIT | 76.1 | 2979 |
| Cologne, Germany | EASA | 96.9 | 3793 |
| Copenhagen, Denmark | EEA | 134.2 | 5253 |
| Dublin, Ireland | EUROFOUND | 133.6 | 5229 |
| Frankfurt am Main, Germany | ECB, EIOPA | 96.9 | 3793 |
| Hague, Netherlands | Eurojust, Europol | 111.4 | 4360 |
| Helsinki, Finland | ECHA | 118.6 | 4642 |
| Heraklion, Greece | ENISA | 85.2 | 3335 |
| Karlsruhe, Germany | JRC | 96.9 | 3793 |
| Lefkosia, Cyprus | EU Delegation | 82.2 | 3217 |
| Lisbon, Portugal | EMSA, EMCDDA | 91.4 | 3577 |
| Ljubljana, Slovenia | ACER | 84.9 | 3323 |
| Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | European Commission, Eurostat, CDT, Court of Auditors | 100 | 3914 |
| Madrid, Spain | EU Delegation | 96.3 | 3769 |
| Munich, Germany | n/a | 113.4 | 4438 |
| Parma, Italy | EFSA | 91.2 | 3570 |
| Paris, France | EBA, ESMA | 119.9 | 4693 |
| Prague, Czechia | EGSA | 88.1 | 3448 |
| Riga, Latvia | BEREC | 80 | 3131 |
| Rome, Italy | EU Delegation | 95.2 | 3726 |
| Sofia, Bulgaria | EU Delegation | 61.7 | 2415 |
| Stockholm, Sweden | ECDC | 130.3 | 5100 |
| Tallinn, Estonia | eu-LISA | 86.3 | 3378 |
| Thessaloniki, Greece | CEDEFOP | 85.2 | 3335 |
| Turin, Italy | ETF | 91.2 | 3570 |
| Valletta, Malta | EUAA | 94 | 3679 |
| Varese, Italy | n/a | 91.2 | 3570 |
| Valenciennes and Lille, France | ERA | 119.9 | 4693 |
| Vienna, Austria | FRA | 109.6 | 4290 |
| Vigo, Spain | EFCA | 96.3 | 3769 |
| Vilnius, Lithuania | EIGE | 80.1 | 3135 |
| Warsaw, Poland | Frontex | 70.6 | 2763 |
| Zagreb, Croatia | EU Delegation | 78.3 | 3065 |
Take into account that your allowances will also be adjusted by the Correction Coefficient. If you will work not in Brussels, but in another EU location, you should multiply the grand total values in the “scenarios table” to get the actual approximate figure.
Required work experience
For assistants grades AST1, AST2, AST3, and AST4 are considered ‘entry grades’. Each assistants’ grade requires the following work experience length:
- AST1 requires 0 years of previous professional experience.
- AST2 requires 3 years of previous professional experience.
- AST3 requires 6 years of previous professional experience.
- AST4 requires 9 years of previous professional experience.
RELATED ARTICLES:
* Salary of Assistants AST 1
* Salary of Assistants AST 2
* Salary of Assistants AST 4
* Salary of Assistants AST 5
* Salary of Assistants AST 6
* Salary of Assistants AST 7
* Salary of Assistants AST 8
* Salary of Assistants AST 9
* Salary of Assistants AST 10
* Salary of Assistants AST 11
Allowances and other benefits for EU institutions staff
Several allowances and other benefits can quite significantly boost an EU official’s income. This largely depends on whether the person is an expat and has a spouse and/or children. When considering a job at an EU institution, people too often do not take these benefits into account. Important – these benefits are available to Administrators in grades AD 5-16, Assistants in grades AST 1-11, Secretaries and Clerks in grades AST/SC 1-6, and Contract Agents in grades FG I-IV.
- Travel costs on taking up duties
- Daily subsistence allowance (during probation period)
- Installation allowance and coverage of removal costs (one-time payments)
- Expatriation allowance or Foreign Residence allowance
- Household allowance
- Dependent child allowance
- European School enrollment for children or Education allowance if there is no local EU school
- Healthcare costs reimbursement to a level of 80-85% through the EU’s Joint Sickness Insurance Scheme (JSIS) for the employee and any direct family members and dependents. 100% reimbursement of costs in case of a serious illness
- Accident insurance
- Annual travel compensation
- Birth grant
- Parental leave
- Unemployment allowance
- Removal expenses when leaving your home country and again when leaving your EU institution
- EU pension, survivors and orphan’s pensions, invalidity allowance
- Lump sum payments in case of permanent invalidity or death
- Lump sum funeral expenses, up to EUR 2350
Sources
This article is based on the European Commission Staff Regulations and other publicly available information such as EU institutions’ vacancy announcements. As the EU legal documents and even information on the various websites is hard to understand, this article is one from a series that tries to make information about employment in the European Commission and other EU institutions more accessible.
Do you have question or suggestion for this article? Please share in a comment below and let’s make this resource better for you and other readers!
10 responses to “Salary of Assistants in grade AST 3”
Hello, I am considered for a job at the Commission in Luxembourg as a TA. I have told that I was successful, but I have not been present the contract (which is in the workings). The VN says AST 1 to AST9, how does HR calculate the grade that it will be offered? Is there a rule? I am currently working for another EU AGency and I have 16 years of related work experience. Any ideas?
Many thanks and have a nice day.
Kind regards
Roberto, temporary agents are a bit of terra incognita for me. AST1-9 is quite a range.
If this is an internal mobility scheme (allows staff to move more freely between EU institutions) vacancy, then you will keep the same grade as you have currently if you are an AST already.
If this is not an internal mobility vacancy, then only the institutions’ HR can tell you what grade you’ll be offered.
The length of work experience sometimes influences in which step you are place – step 1 or step 2 in the advertised grade. But this not a major issue as the salary difference is about 100-150 eur monthly.
Hi All,
I’m currently in the reservation list as permanent Official AST3.
I do not now my destination, but I Would like to understand something more about these two topics:
1. community tax in service: how much is for Official AST3
2. Pension fee, after retirement: is it under community tax or any other tax? or is it totally net?
Thank you
Hi! What you ask about is shown as “pension contribution” and “tax” in the green table above.
Hello,
I’m currently in the recruitment process for AST3 position in the EP. I would like to know if it would be possible to start at step 2, and what the conditions are (how much previous work experience is needed).
Thank you for your help!
Marko, hi! I tried to look at more than 10 AST3 vacancy announcements, but, indeed, none of them list how many work experience years are required to be placed in step 2.
This is a valid question that you can send to the institution to which you are applying (the address should be included in the vacancy announcement).
That being said, difference between step 1 and 2 is not that big, around 100-150 euros, so it shouldn’t be a deal breaker.
Hello I would like to ask a question regarding to Assistants AST3 positions benefits and allowances. It is not mentioned anywhere if they are entitled to a tax-free car and special licence plates for the cars that they drive. Also do they have exemptions of paying road taxes in the country which they live in?(Belgium) And the last question do they receive fuel allowances?
Hi! If you passed the recent AST3 exam, congratulations!
Short answer – Assistants of all grades from AST1 to AST11 are entitled to the same benefits as Administrators AD5-AD16 and Contract Agents FGI-FGIV.
Hence, they have the same tax benefits for car purchases as other EU institutions staff. I’m not certain about licence plates, you’d have to ask someone who currently works in Brussels.
I have not heard about any special fuel allowances, nor exemptions from road taxes… I believe there are no such benefits. However, as you read in the article, you are paying no national taxes, which is a nice benefit.
Hi,
I would like to have a clarification regarding AST 3 salary for the scenario 3 “Single Italian national with no children”.
the expatriation allowance is 16% of the basic salary so it means around 626.24 euro. Why do you put 808 euro?
Hi! I’ve indicated that these are approximate calculations from what I’ve gathered from the Staff Regulation and the various intitutions’ vacancy announcements. It’s possible that some of the numbers differ from what HR of your institution calculates based on your circumstances. However, in general the figures should give a good idea of the final take-home pay.