From the machine room of TDF: artist social security (KSK)

Hello,

as initiative for more transparency, I would like to share more from “the machine room” of TDF. Many things at TDF happen silently in the background, but frequently take a lot of time (and money), and I think our members and the community deserve a better understanding what is required to run a foundation.

Contrary to what sometimes is assumed, many of these regulations are not specific to TDF, or to a not-for-profit organization, or even to Germany. Several regulations apply for not-for-profits and commercial entities all over Europe, sometimes even worldwide, so I hope these postings will help also other FLOSS projects as part of their work.

Much of what I write is also relevant for board members to understand their responsibilities and duties, because ultimately, the board is in charge, responsible and liable for the proper operation of TDF and must be in a position to oversee that all is happening properly.

These postings are not to be considered legal advice. They might be wrong, incomplete, outdated or contain glitches and errors, or for better understanding might sometimes shorten the explanation. They might also get outdated over the course of time, with changing regulations. They should provide an initial overview, but are provided “as-is”, to be used at your own risk.

In this posting of the series I would like to present the so-called

artist social security (Künstlersozialkasse - KSK)

While for sure every once in a while, there is drama in an open source project, the artist social security is something different… :wink:

It is part of the regular social security filings, similar to e.g. pension fund. The artist social security is audited at least ever four years together with the other social security aspects, and it is relevant for both non-profits as well as for-profit entities.

The artist social security is for people who work in one of the area of arts. People there are often freelancing, but at the same time also sort of dependent. One classical example is the freelance journalist, who mostly works for one publisher. As freelancers, they normally would not enjoy the benefits any regular employee enjoys, in particular payment of 50% for health insurance, social security and pension, while at the same time not enjoying the full flexibility of actual independence.

To remedy this unfair situation, freelancers who fulfil certain criteria can get a similar coverage by being insured with the artist social security (“Künstlersozialkasse” - KSK). As there is no employer who pays the fees, the way to finance this is to ask any company who sources a service that falls under certain categories to pay a certain percentage of the respective invoice sum to the artist social security. As of 2025, this is 5%.

While only German freelancers can actually benefit from being insured via the KSK, payments need to be made when a service is applicable, independent from the freelancer’s country. There are a few details regarding sole entrepreneurs vs. registered companies, so the annual filing usually also involves evaluating which legal form your business partner in the respective country has, to determine if artist social security is applicable or not.

The field of “artist” is wider than one might assume. It e.g. also includes audio designers, designers, public relations, marketing, advertisement, movie or picture editors, photographers, graphic designers, illustrators, influencers, layouters, media designers, certain categories of translators, web designers and others. There are some further details, but the above should give a good overview.

The deadline for filing is every year by March 31. As this is all about social security, regulations are strict.

Florian