Unemployment benefits
Date of update
These rules may be subject to change at the end of 2024 due to the reform of unemployment insurance in France
In the event of involuntary loss of employment (redundancy, mutual contract termination, etc.), an insuree can receive unemployment benefits on condition that they have worked for at least 6 months.
| Helpful tip: Coverage is identical in mainland France and in the overseas departments. With the shift in the social security system Mayotte, as part of its transformation into a department, the social security system was adapted to the common system. Nonetheless, some specific features remain. They are listed in our distinct fact sheet. |
The amount of job seeker’s allowance, and the length of time for which it will be paid, depend on the contributions the individual has paid into the General Social Security System and the duration for which they have done so.
From February 1, 2023, the conditions to be able to claim unemployment benefits are as follows:
- To live in France (mainland and DROM except Mayotte where the unemployment insurance rules differ).
- For foreign talent, to have a residence permit which allows them to register to France Travail.
- Not to benefit from early retirement or not to have reached the age and number of quarters required to receive a full pension.
- To have worked for at least 6 months (i.e., 130 days or 910 hours) during the last 24 months (last 36 months if the insured is at least 53 years old at the date of the end of the last employment contract).This condition can be met through one ore more contracts, with different employers.
- To have involuntarily lost their job (end of a fixed-term contract or temporary assignment, early termination at the initiative of the employer, dismissal), or following a contractual termination.
- To have registered with France Travail(public service in charge of supporting applicants in their search for a professional activity) within 12 months of losing their job.
- To be actively looking for a job or carrying out a training action.
- Not having reached the age and number of quarters required for full retirement, or not benefiting from early retirement.
Use the calculator provided by France Travail to determine your entitlements.
Resignation
As of November 1, 2019, any employee who decides to leave their job to start their own business is entitled to unemployment benefits if they can prove that they worked for their employer for at least five years. Previously, unemployment benefits were only paid to those who had been made redundant involuntarily.
Resignations that are deemed legitimate by France Travail (the national employment agency) are treated in the same manner as involuntary redundancies and therefore grant access to unemployment benefits (relocation for personal reasons and depending on circumstances, vocational training, setting up or taking over a business, etc.).
For more information, visit service-public.fr
Duration of compensation
The compensation period is calculated based on the number of calendar days between:
- The first day of the employment contract identified in the reference period (24 or 36 months) ; and
- The end date of the employment contract preceding the compensation request (ARE –Aide au Retour à l’Emploi).
Since February 1, 2023, the duration of compensation differs depending on the labor market situation. However, this cannot be less than 6 months.
- The duration is reduced by 25% if the overall unemployment rate is below 9% and it has not increased by 0.8% over a quarter.
- If the economic situation deteriorates, that is to say when unemployment exceeds 9%, or when it has increased by more than 0.8% over a quarter, an end-of-entitlement supplement extends the duration of compensation. . The duration of this supplement is equivalent to a maximum duration of 182 days.
Are not affected by these compensation terms, intermittent workers in the entertainment industry, beneficiaries of the professional security contract, fishermen, expatriates, dockworkers and residents of the DROM and COM.
A new unemployment insurance reform is expected in 2024 and could lead to changes in these rules.