Employment Termination Calculation in Brazil 2025
Complete guide to calculate severance pay in Brazil. Learn your rights, compensation amounts, and deadlines. Free termination calculator included.
Employment termination is the moment when the employment contract between employee and employer ends. This is when the worker receives all amounts owed by the company, including salary balance, vacation pay, proportional 13th salary bonus, and other rights provided by CLT (Brazilian labor law).
Correctly calculating termination amounts is essential to ensure you receive everything you’re entitled to. Each type of dismissal generates different rights, and knowing these rules prevents financial losses.
What is employment termination
Types of termination
Employment termination can happen in five main ways, each with specific rights:
- Dismissal without just cause: employer dismisses the employee
- Dismissal for just cause: dismissal due to employee’s serious misconduct
- Resignation: employee requests to leave
- Indirect termination: equivalent to employer’s just cause
- Mutual agreement: modality created by labor reform
Worker’s rights
In dismissal without just cause, the worker is entitled to all severance benefits:
- Salary balance for days worked
- Prior notice (30 days + 3 days per year worked)
- Earned and proportional vacation with 1/3 constitutional bonus
- Proportional 13th salary
- FGTS (severance fund) with 40% penalty
- Unemployment insurance
In resignation, the worker loses the right to prior notice, FGTS penalty and unemployment insurance, but keeps other benefits.
Important: In mutual agreement, the worker receives 50% of prior notice, 20% FGTS penalty and can withdraw 80% of the FGTS balance.
Severance benefits
Salary balance
The salary balance corresponds to days actually worked in the termination month. The calculation is proportional based on monthly salary.
Formula: (Salary ÷ 30) × days worked
Example: Salary of R$ 2,400, working 15 days in the month → R$ 2,400 ÷ 30 × 15 = R$ 1,200
Proportional vacation
Proportional vacation is calculated considering complete months worked in the current acquisition period (up to 11 months).
Formula: (Salary ÷ 12) × months worked × 1.33 (with 1/3 constitutional bonus)
Each period of 15 days or more counts as a complete month for calculation.
Proportional 13th salary
The proportional 13th considers months worked in the year of termination. Periods of 15 days or more count as a complete month.
Formula: (Salary ÷ 12) × months worked in the year
Example: Salary R$ 2,400, working 8 months → R$ 2,400 ÷ 12 × 8 = R$ 1,600
Prior notice
Prior notice has a minimum duration of 30 days, plus 3 days for each year worked at the company, limited to 90 total days.
Period calculation: 30 + (3 × years worked) = total days
The amount corresponds to the full salary multiplied by the proportion of days over 30.
FGTS and penalty
FGTS withdrawal
In dismissal without just cause, the worker can withdraw the entire FGTS balance deposited during the contract, including amounts from previous jobs.
40% penalty
The company must pay a 40% penalty on all FGTS deposits made during the contract. This penalty doesn’t apply to withdrawals from previous contracts.
Example: Accumulated FGTS R$ 8,000 → penalty of R$ 3,200 (40% of R$ 8,000)
In mutual agreement, the penalty is reduced to 20% and the worker can withdraw 80% of the total balance.
How to calculate each benefit
Step-by-step calculation
To correctly calculate your termination, follow this sequence:
- Gather basic data: salary, admission date, termination date
- Calculate salary balance: days worked in the month
- Determine vacation: earned + proportional with 1/3
- Calculate proportional 13th: months worked in the year
- Determine prior notice: 30 days + 3 per year worked
- Add everything and apply deductions: INSS (social security) and IRPF (income tax) on each benefit
Mandatory deductions
Severance benefits are subject to INSS and IRPF deductions according to current tables:
- INSS: rates from 7.5% to 14% according to salary bracket
- IRPF: progressive rates after INSS deduction
- Indemnified prior notice: exempt from INSS and IRPF
- FGTS and penalty: completely exempt
Use our termination calculator to get the complete calculation automatically.
Complete practical example
Hypothetical situation
Employee data:
- Salary: R$ 3,000.00
- Admission: 03/01/2022
- Dismissal without just cause: 08/15/2025
- Time worked: 3 years, 5 months and 14 days
Detailed calculation
| Benefit | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Salary balance | (R$ 3,000 ÷ 30) × 15 days | R$ 1,500.00 |
| Proportional vacation | (R$ 3,000 ÷ 12) × 5 months × 1.33 | R$ 1,662.50 |
| Proportional 13th | (R$ 3,000 ÷ 12) × 8 months | R$ 2,000.00 |
| Prior notice | 30 + (3 × 3 years) = 39 days | R$ 3,900.00 |
Gross total: R$ 9,062.50
Applied deductions
- INSS: R$ 817.07 (applied to each benefit)
- IRPF: R$ 156.38 (after INSS deduction)
- Net total: R$ 8,089.05
When to receive
Legal deadlines
The company has specific deadlines to pay termination:
- Worked prior notice: until the 1st business day following the end
- Indemnified prior notice: until the 10th calendar day from dismissal
Required documents
To receive termination, you need to present:
- Work card
- Personal documents (ID, CPF)
- Bank details for deposit
- Exit medical exams (if required)
Late payment penalty
Late payment generates a penalty equivalent to your salary, regardless of the amount owed or days of delay.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I withdraw FGTS if dismissed for just cause?
No. In dismissal for just cause you lose the right to FGTS withdrawal and the 40% penalty. The balance remains blocked until age 70 or other situations provided by law.
How does prior notice work in mutual agreement?
In mutual agreement, you receive only 50% of the indemnified prior notice amount. If your notice is worth R$ 3,000, you’ll receive R$ 1,500. The period remains 30 days + 3 per year worked.
Do earned vacation days expire upon termination?
They don’t expire. All earned and unused vacation must be paid upon termination, regardless of when they were acquired. Labor statute of limitations is 5 years after contract termination.
Can I receive unemployment insurance in mutual agreement?
No. Mutual agreement doesn’t generate the right to unemployment insurance. Only dismissal without just cause, indirect termination and end of temporary contract guarantee this benefit.
What to do if the company doesn’t pay termination?
Contact your category union or file a lawsuit in Labor Court. You have up to 2 years after termination to legally claim owed amounts, which will accrue interest and monetary correction.
How to calculate intermittent contract termination?
In intermittent work, termination follows the same rules, but calculated on the average of amounts received in the last 12 months or period worked, whichever is shorter.
Can I negotiate different amounts in termination?
No. Severance amounts are rights guaranteed by law and cannot be reduced by agreement. Any negotiation that diminishes your rights is considered null by Labor Court.