Unemployment benefit is provided for by law and is a right for many workers after ending their employment with a company. However, in certain cases it can be revoked. Find out more now in this article with the collaboration of .
This subsidy is intended to compensate for the loss of remuneration inherent to the worker’s work. This is a cash benefit granted to unemployed beneficiaries who involuntarily lost their job as a way of compensating for the lack of income, ensuring their subsistence.
Anyone who benefits from this Social Security support has duties and obligations to fulfill. Failure to comply may lead to loss of unemployment benefit, as well as cancellation of registration with the employment center.
Payment of unemployment benefit is suspended under the following circumstances:
- If you have access to another type of benefit, namely due to clinical risk during pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, initial parental benefit, initial parental benefit exclusively for the father, initial parental benefit exclusively for the mother, initial parental benefit benefited by one parent if the other is unable to do so, or adoption allowance.
- If you start working on green receipts or with a contract.
- If, as a beneficiary of unemployment insurance, you start working as a contractor or self-employed person during the benefit period, your unemployment insurance will be suspended, even if the amount received is less than the benefit amount. However, if the conditions for attribution are met, you may be entitled to partial unemployment benefit, and you must prove these conditions.
Other suspension circumstances:
- If you attend a professional training course, with payment of a scholarship. If the amount received for training is less than unemployment insurance, you will continue to receive it, with a deduction from the scholarship amount.
- If the former employer declares payment for untaken vacation to Social Security, unemployment insurance is suspended for the number of days corresponding to the paid vacation.
- If you leave Portugal, except for the annual period of leave or for medical treatments certified under the terms of the SNS, you must inform the Employment Service of your absence.
- If you leave Portugal for a duly proven volunteer mission, the subsidy is suspended during the mission, for a maximum of five years from the date of application.
- If you leave Portugal as a scholarship holder under a community program, promoted by another international institution, or as a research fellow, during the scholarship period, up to a maximum of five years from the date of the application.
- If you are detained in a prison or subject to other coercive measures that deprive your liberty.
- If you carry out an isolated act (for tax purposes) as part of an independent activity and report it to Social Security, the subsidy will be suspended for the period of the activity. If you do not report, the number of days of suspension is calculated by dividing the declared amount by the daily reference pay amount.
Other sanctions:
If you do not comply with your obligations towards the IEFP and Social Security, you may lose your unemployment benefit and have your registration with the employment center cancelled, in addition to being subject to other sanctions.
- In the first unjustified non-compliance with duties (such as actively searching for a job, presence on the dates and locations determined by the employment service, and acceptance of the actions provided for in the Personal Employment Plan), you will be warned.
- In the second unjustified non-compliance, unemployment benefit is lost, with loss of all rights and benefits in the first unjustified absence in the remaining duties.
You have up to five calendar days from the date of absence to justify non-compliance with the IEFP or report illness. If you do not do so, canceling your registration prevents new registration for 90 consecutive days. A fine of between 100 euros and 700 euros may also be imposed. If you work while receiving unemployment insurance, the fine can vary between 250 euros and 1000 euros, even without proof of salary received.
If you do not inform Social Security that you have started working (under a contract or with a green slip) to suspend unemployment insurance, you may be prevented from receiving unemployment insurance or unemployment insurance for up to two years.
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