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Unemployment insurance benefit

The unemployment insurance benefit is granted to those who meet the unemployment insurance period requirement and who did not leave their previous job of their own initiative, on agreement with their employer or through their own fault. For the first 100 days, the benefit is 60% of the person’s average wages for one calendar day; thereafter it is 40%.

You are entitled to the unemployment insurance benefit if:

  • you are registered as unemployed and have applied for unemployment insurance benefit;
  • you were unemployed for at least 12 months during the three years prior to you registering as unemployed;
  • you left your job on grounds that make you eligible for the unemployment insurance benefit, e.g.
    • you were made redundant;
    • the company or agency you worked for was liquidated;
    • your fixed-term employment contract has ended;
    • your employment or service relationship ended during your probationary period;
    • your employer terminated your employment contract because your capacity to work decreased due to the state of your health (clause 88 (1) 1) of the Employment Contracts Act); or
    • your contract for services or other contract under the law of obligations has ended.

You are not entitled to the unemployment insurance benefit if:

  • you left your job of your own initiative. By way of exception, you are entitled to the unemployment insurance benefit if:
    • you had to terminate your employment contract because your employer had no work to offer you and reduced your wages (subsection 37 (5) of the Employment Contracts Act);
    • you had to terminate your employment contract because your employer fundamentally breached their obligations, particularly in relation to respectful treatment, timely payment of wages or placing you in actual danger (subsection 91 (2) of the Employment Contracts Act);
    • your employment contract was terminated or you were dismissed from your job but a court or labour dispute committee deemed this unlawful (subsection 107 (2) of the Employment Contracts Act and subsections 105 (1) and (2) of the Civil Service Act);
  • you terminated your employment contract on agreement with your employer (section 79 of the Employment Contracts Act);
  • your employer terminated your employment contract on the grounds of misconduct because you disobeyed their reasonable instructions, breached your work duties, were drunk at work, committed theft or fraud, caused a third party to lose their trust in you, caused damage to or endangered the employer's property or violated the obligation to maintain confidentiality or not work for competitors (sections 88 (1) 3)-8) of the Employment Contracts Act), or you were dismissed for disciplinary offences (section 94 of the Civil Service Act);
  • you have reached pensionable age (sections 7 and 71 of the State Pension Insurance Act) or been awarded an early or flexible old-age pension (section 6121 and 91 of the State Pension Insurance Act), including where payment of the flexible old-age pension has been suspended; or

  • you are applying for the benefit on the basis of temporarily working while registered as unemployed.

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