Can children earn money before they turn 18? It is absolutely possible! However, there are certain laws and regulations that say what you may or may not work with and at what age. There is also work that is adapted to children and young people.
How to earn money as a child? It depends, to begin with, you need to be aware of laws and rules that apply to you who want to work before you turn 18.
Work under the age of 13
Before you turn 13, you may not take a job with someone outside the family. Many people this age can earn extra money by helping with household chores, such as mowing the lawn or emptying the dishwasher. You can also engage in easier work for short periods, such as selling newspapers.
Work between 13-15 years
When you turn 13, you can apply for simple jobs, such as assisting in a kiosk during the summer. However, you may not work alone or with responsibility for money or the cash register. You who are aged 13-15 may not work with physically demanding tasks or other tasks that can be dangerous: such as working with machines or chemicals. If you are under the age of 16, a certificate from one of your parents is required that they approve of you working.
Work between the ages of 16-18
Between the ages of 16 and 18, you can take any type of work, except those that are directly dangerous, such as working on an oil rig. You must not work alone if there is cash in the workplace.
Working hours for children and teenagers
Minors, i.e. those under the age of 18, may by law never work between midnight and five in the morning. As a minor, you must also have a half-hour break for every four and a half hours of work, i.e. once in the morning and once in the afternoon if you work a full day. As a minor, you are also entitled to coffee breaks.
For those of you who work at the same time as you go to school, and have not turned 18, it is also not permitted to work after 8 p.m. or before 6 a.m. It is the law that you must be free from school and work 14 hours a day. This means that you may work a maximum of 2 hours per school day or 7 hours per non-school day. If you work extra after school or on weekends, you can work a maximum of 12 hours per school week, and during school holidays of at least one week, this is 7 hours per day and a maximum of 35 hours per week.
If you plan to work in the summer, it is important to remember that if the summer vacation is ten weeks, you may work a maximum of six weeks.
Common household tasks for children and teenagers
For younger children, i.e. those under the age of 13, we recommend starting by helping out at home, or with family friends, to earn money. For the youngest, under 10, it is strongly recommended to keep this within the family.
With the Gimi app, kids and parents can set up chores around the house that you can do to earn extra money at home.
Recommended household chores for children under 7 years old
- Collect dirty laundry and place in the laundry basket
- Pick up food in the fridge
- Put toys back in shelves or drawers
Recommended household chores for children between 8-10 years
- Help with dinner
- Fold clean laundry
- Unload the dishwasher
Recommended household chores for children between 11-13 years
- Go for a walk with the dog
- Tuck in younger siblings at night
- Vacuum the entire home
Work with the neighbour from the age of 14
From the age of 14 it is common to start helping in the local area, for example you can work extra from the age of 14 mowing the lawn for a neighbour or relative.
Common jobs for children and teenagers
- Help neighbours or family friends
- Most have neighbours who need help, for example with shovelling snow in the winter, or mowing the lawn in the summer. It is important that you check with your parents that it is okay before you start your lawn mowing business!
Work as a babysitter
Maybe you have little cousins or other small children in your vicinity that you can babysit for? Working as a babysitter is a fun job that you can do on weekends. It is important that you check with your parents that it is okay and that they are allowed to meet the parents of the child.
Dog sitting
Maybe the world’s funnest job, dog sitter? Dogs are both sociable and need to rest for a while. If you have a dog that you go out with, the neighbours are probably open to letting you take care of their dog too. Talk to your parents about things that may be important to consider before starting as a dog sitter.
Sell stuff you don’t use anymore
Do you have a lot of old toys and clothes lying around at home? Good! It could be a gold mine! Because maybe there is someone else who needs them? Check with your parents if they also have stuff they want to get rid of. Either you can sell the items on websites such as Ebay, or perhaps you can set up a table at a flea market.
