Unemployment Benefits In Portugal
If you are unlucky enough to lose your work, the following information will provide you with information on the laws and regulations governing unemployment payments in Portugal.
If you worked in Portugal and were laid off, you can apply for unemployment benefits in Portugal.
Unemployment Insurance
Involuntary employment may entitle the employee to the following benefits:
- Unemployment benefit
- Social unemployment benefit
- Partial unemployment benefit
Working professionals who are covered by the welfare system are eligible to receive unemployment benefits. To be eligible for unemployment benefits, you must register with the Job Center before 90 days pass after becoming jobless.
You can apply for the benefit on the enrolment form, in person at a Job Centre, or online through the Social Security Portal. You are eligible for unemployment compensation if you worked 450 days in the two years before you became unemployed.
Social Unemployment Benefit
If you have worked 180 days in the year preceding your unemployment, you are eligible for the initial social unemployment compensation. The benefit is also provided later to people who remain unemployed after the unemployment benefit has expired.
Only workers whose family income per capita does not exceed 80% of the IAS Social Support Index are eligible for the benefit. This is a reference value that is updated on a yearly basis.
If a worker is receiving unemployment benefits and starts working part-time, the wage from that job must be less than the unemployment benefit. Working hours must be between 20% and 75% of conventional full-time hours.
Unemployment payments are offered for a period ranging from nine to 38 months. This is determined by the employee’s age and the number of years of contributions made.
Except when it follows unemployment benefits, social unemployment benefits can be provided for the same period. In such circumstances, it is cut in half.
Partial Unemployment Benefit
The partial unemployment benefit is paid from the start of the part-time work to the conclusion of the first unemployment benefit.
The subsidio de desemprego (unemployment benefit) is equal to 65% of the preceding year’s average daily wage. It begins the second month before the month in which you became jobless and includes benefits paid for official holidays and Christmas. It cannot, however, be less than the Indexante dos Apoios Sociais – IAS (Social Assistance Index) unless the payments are less than this amount or more than three times the IAS.
The social unemployment compensation (subsidio social de desemprego) may be 80% (without any dependents) or 100% (with dependents) of the IAS. Nevertheless, if the benefit exceeds the reference pay (average wage in the six months before the second month of unemployment), just the value of that payment is granted.
The subsidio de desemprego parcial (partial unemployment benefit) is the difference between the employee’s previous unemployment benefit plus 35% and the income for the new part-time work.
How To Get Unemployment Benefits In Portugal?
If you lose your work in a foreign country, you may have difficulty dealing with the administrative process to obtain unemployment benefits. Eligibility, benefits, and what to do? Here’s all you need to know about your rights as an unemployed person in Portugal.
Even though the employment market is flooded with options, you may lose your job. As a result, you may be eligible for unemployment benefits or subsidio de desemprego in Portuguese, which are monthly payments to compensate for your upcoming loss of wages.
What Do You Need To Be Eligible For Unemployment Benefits In Portugal?
Requirements
Unemployment insurance is only available to Portuguese employees and a few freelancers. To make use of it, you must meet many requirements:
- Possess a residency permit in Portugal.
- Register as a job seeker at your nearest employment center (centro de emprego in Portuguese).
- Have worked for 360 days in the last 24 months prior to the start of the unemployment period.
- You did not leave your job on purpose, nor did you terminate your contract due to wage arrears.
- You must be able and willing to work.
- Be protected by the general social security system.
- Actively seek employment.
Amount Of Compensations
Your payments are based on the Indexing Reference of Social Support (IAS) and amount to 65% of your previous average daily salary calculated over a 30-day period. If your reference remuneration is less than IAS, you will receive €435.76 (100% of IAS) and no more than €1089.40. (2.5 times IAS).
Administrative Procedure
To receive unemployment benefits, you must apply in the centro de emprego you joined within 90 days of the start of your unemployment period.
You must present the following documents to fulfill your demand:
- A demand for unemployment benefits that must be filled online;
- A declaration of unemployment can be filled out in the centro de emprego or, at the employer’s request, by the social security (Segurança Social Direta), with prior authorization from the employee. The employer must provide the appropriate proof to the employee.
All required forms are available online or at any Segurança Social office.
Request The Unemployment Benefit
The unemployment benefit is a cash payment made to unemployed people to compensate for the loss of earnings caused by an involuntary job loss.
Individuals who are involuntarily unemployed and meet the remaining assignment conditions are the only ones who are eligible for unemployment benefits.
Service Channels
Learn where you can provide the service and what the benefits of each channel are.
Who Can Request Unemployment Benefits?
- Individuals who meet the following assignment conditions are eligible for unemployment benefits:
- Employees covered by the general social security plan who had an employment contract and became jobless or whose employment contract was suspended owing to salary arrears.
- Domestic service workers, if the tax base corresponds to a remuneration effectively earned on a full-time monthly employment contract regime
- Invalidity pensioners under the general social security scheme who have been deemed fit for work by an invalidity review exam and are currently unemployed
- Employees in the customs sector
- Teachers of primary and secondary school
- Former soldiers on a contract/voluntary basis
- Agricultural workers who signed up for Segurança Social (Social Security) on January 1, 2011
- Unclassified agricultural workers enrolled in Segurança Social (Social Security) as of December 1, 2010, if their contributions were calculated using the real wage
- Workers assigned to management positions must have been hired by the company for at least a year prior to the date of the assignment and be covered by the general social security scheme for dependent employees.
- Employees hired who are collectively managers, members or not, of a non-profit organization, as long as they do not get any sort of payment for carrying out their activities.
When Can You Request The Unemployment Benefit?
The unemployment benefit must be applied for within 90 days of the date of unemployment.
The submission of the request after the 90-day period but within the legal concession period of the benefit implies a reduction in the concession period for the time corresponding to the observed delay.
What Documents And Requirements Are Needed To Apply For Unemployment Benefits?
- Consult the Social Security Portal for more information on the conditions for receiving unemployment benefits.
- If you do not meet the requirements for unemployment benefits, you may be eligible for social unemployment benefits.
How Do You Request Unemployment Benefits?
The unemployment benefit is applied for at the nearest job center to your home.
Before requesting it, the unemployed person must be registered for employment at that job center.
If they are unable to work for 90 days after being laid off due to illness, the registration may be completed by a representative.
Additional Information
For more information, go to the Social Security Portal.