Algarve Local Reference INFOrmation
Information for a worker in Portugal who loses their job, is fired or retrenched. Details on where to go, how to register for unemployment benefits and job seeking.
Portugal has a number of state run institutions dealing with employment (emprego) and unemployment (disemprego) principally aimed at helping Portuguese speaking job seekers. These include government sponsored labour exchanges (Centros de Emprego) and a number of Internet sites offering handy tips on looking for work.
UnemploymentPortugal has agreements with EU countries and 14 non-EU countries whereby non-Portuguese citizens can remain on their home country social security scheme for a limited period depending on the nature of benefits and country involved. Check before departure. There are many forms of unemployment benefit in Portugal and what a person may be entitled to depends how long the employee has been working in Portugal and whether they have been working in the public or private sector, part-time or full-time. Generally if the person is self-employed or has their own business and the business fails they are not entitled to unemployment benefit even though they have made national insurance contributions. There is no Income Support system in Portugal, although there is incapacity and invalidity benefit for the sick, infirm and disabled. In 2010 the time period for access to unemployment benefit was changed, raising the time period of obligatory contributions necessary to access unemployment benefit from 365 to 450 working days under contract to a third party. In order to get ordinary unemployment benefit (Subsídio de Desemprego) a person must have worked at least a year or made voluntary contributions for two years. An applicant may apply for reduced benefits (Subsídio de Desemprego Parcial) if they have worked for 78 days out of the past 12 months (including public holidays) of if they have made voluntary contributions for two years. This benefit is calculated at 30 percent of average net earnings over the previous three months. Unemployed benefit for full time employees made redundant is calculated at around 65 percent of average net earnings over the previous three months prior to unemployment. Apart from unemployment benefit (Subsídio de Desemprego) there is also Social Subsidy Benefit (Subsídio Social de Desemprego) and Partial Unemployment Benefit (Subsídio de Desemprego Parcial). The second two are to compensate the employee for lack of remuneration or reduction by agreement from a full time to a part time job. Those not eligible for unemployment benefit may be able to apply for Social Insertion Income (Rendimento Social de Inserção) which is mainly available to families suffering hardship in areas of high unemployment.
EU citizens in PortugalAn unemployed EU citizen who has been receiving unemployment benefit for more than four weeks can have the same rate of unemployment benefit paid in Portugal for three months while looking for work. People who have paid contributions in another EU state for two years before coming to Portugal are eligible to receive benefits for a capped period. To benefit from this a person should have Form 303 from the social security services in their home country. This form must then be taken to the nearest Employment Ministry (Ministério de Emprego) and Social Security Office (Segurança Social).
How to Claim Unemployment BenefitThe following forms must be completed:
The forms have to be submitted within 90 days at the local Social Security Office. Who can claim Unemployment Benefit?
Conditions for receiving Unemployment BenefitThe claimant must:
Unemployed status will be checked periodically and the profile will be matched against possible employment opportunities from a database. The first interview will take place with an employment advisor on registration and follow up interviews will be made every three months. Within six months a training scheme will be proposed for people wishing and able to return to work. If a training opportunity or job offer within a certain radius from the person's residence is refused, unemployment status will be cancelled. However, if annual income is less than the minimum wage unemployment status is maintained. People who have never worked in Portugal or who resign from their job are not entitled to unemployment benefit. Special AllowancesSpecial benefits can be made to people who have been made redundant from agriculture or construction industries. Contributions made in other EU countries can be taken into account when applying for benefits. Job SeekingUnemployment is high in Portugal, and many Portuguese seek work outside the country where opportunities are better and wages higher. Job seekers looking for work in Portugal can register their CV (in Portuguese and English) with one of the many multinational and national employment agencies, or look in the job sections of the Portuguese press. Recruitment agencies are split into executive, head hunting agencies and temporary or other work agencies. They can also contact the Portuguese Public Employment Service (Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional). NewspapersThere are two main English language newspapers which run recruitment adverts in their advertising sections, both papers are based in Lagoa, the Algarve: Websites for jobseekers in Portugal
Further Information
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