Start and termination of employment

You may be entitled to earnings-related allowance if the employment authority considers that there was an acceptable reason for your resignation. If there is no acceptable reason, the employment authority may impose a mandatory waiting period, during which you are not entitled to unemployment benefits.

The mandatory waiting period prevents the payment of earnings-related allowance for a certain period. If you meet the other conditions for receiving earnings-related allowance, you may be entitled to the benefit after the waiting period.

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Register as a job seeker with the employment authority no later than on your first day of unemployment. Submit the earnings-related allowance application and the necessary attachments to the Unemployment Fund when at least two weeks have passed since the start of your unemployment. Attach a copy of the employment contract for the job that ended and the notice of termination to your first application.

If you have wage claims, submit a copy of the salary security application.

If it is part-time work (the working hours agreed in the employment contract are no more than 80 % of the maximum working hours in the sector), you can apply for an adjusted earnings-related allowance for the work period. Remember that in order to be eligible for the benefit, you must be a registered job seeker also during part-time work. Fill the working hours to the allowance application and submit a copy of the employment contract to the Unemployment Fund.

If it is full-time work lasting more than two weeks (the working hours in the employment contract are more than 80 % of the maximum working hours in the sector), you are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for the period of employment. You can apply for earnings-related allowance until the last day of unemployment. Remember to notify the employment authority about the new job.

If you receive compensation when your employment ends that is not based on legislation or a collective agreement, but instead on your employer’s voluntary decision or a mutual agreement, it is usually treated as income subject to periodization. Examples include severance pay, a support package, or a so-called "golden handshake".

Income subject to periodization postpones the payment of the earnings-related allowance. You are not entitled to earnings-related allowance for the period for which the compensation is periodized. In addition, no waiting period accrues during this time.

Periodization means that the compensation paid to you is divided by your average daily wage. This calculation shows how many days of pay the compensation corresponds to. The number of days determines the period during which you are not entitled to the earnings-related allowance.

For example, if you receive compensation corresponding to one month’s salary, it will prevent payment of the unemployment benefit for approximately one month. Only weekdays are taken into account in the periodization, up to a maximum of five days per week.

Compensation paid at the end of employment that is subject to periodization does not affect the amount of the earnings-related allowance.