Unemployment Benefits in France

1. Registration with France Travail (Pôle emploi)
2. Export of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
3. Business Start-Up Support
4. Rules on Unemployment Benefit

4. Rules on Unemployment Benefit

Unemployment benefit in France is called l’allocation d’aide au retour à l’emploi (ARE), or, less formally, allocation chômage.

I. Conditions of Entitlement

Since November 2019, both salaried persons and business owners are entitled to unemployment benefit, although the latter under strict rules of entitlement, which we consider separately at Unemployment Benefits for Business Owners.

As a salaried employee, if you lose your job you do not automatically have a right to unemployment benefit. You will need to meet certain conditions.

Those conditions are that:

• You did not leave your job voluntarily;
• You have worked for at least six months over the past 24 months;
• Be registered as a job seeker with France Travail (Pôle emploi);
• Be physically capable of work;
• Be actively searching for work;
• Not be in receipt of a full State retirement pension.

There are situations where those who have resigned can still retain a right to unemployment benefit. A summary is given below, but detailed conditions apply.

• Spouse gets a job in another region of the country;
• Marriage or civil partnership, in which the new couple change their place of residence, which must take place within two months of each other;
• Having lost a job, another job immediately found, from which the person resigns within 91 days;
• Resigns from one job to take another, which employer ends within 91 days (provided three years paying unemployment contributions);
• Where the person had at least 5 years employment with their last employer and they resign to start a business;
• Other unspecified legitimate reason.

Those whose contract is terminated or naturally comes to an end, and who receive a lump sum severance payment, must wait 6 months before they can be entitled to unemployment benefit. A rule that concerns primarily senior managers.

II. Duration of Benefits

The right to unemployment benefit is based the amount of time you have been employed.

The following table shows the minimal period of period of employment, and the maximum period of cover.

From 1st April 2025, you must be at least 55 years old (instead of 53 years) before the working periods taken into account when determining your unemployment benefit are the last 36 months before the end of your employment contract. For other job seekers, periods of work to receive compensation are the last 24 months of the end of the employment contract.

In addition, as of 1 April 2025, the maximum compensation periods will be:

• 22 and a half months - if you are 55 or 56 years old at the end of your employment contract (until then, you can benefit from this period of compensation if you are 53 or 54 years old at the end of your employment contract);
• 27 months - if you are at least 57 years old at the end of your employment contract (until then you can benefit from this period of compensation if you are at least 55 years old at the end of your employment contract).

For other job-seekers, the maximum duration of compensation is 18 months.

The duration of benefits for those aged 53-54 increases to 36 months if the applicant undergoes a training course.

The minimum six-month period of employment need not be continuous.

Since 1st Feb 2023, for new duration of cover is related to the rate of unemployment in France.

• Under 9% national rate of unemployment over three quarters of a year, or an increase less than 0.8% over the same period, the duration of cover is reduced by 25%.

• When the rate goes over 9% or increases by 0.8% in one quarter, full benefits are reinstated.

Thus, a jobseeker who would have had 24 months of unemployment under the old rules has his or her entitlement reduced to 18 months; one who had 20 months would have their entitlement reduced to 15 months. And so on.

Nevertheless, the rules provide for a minimum level of cover of 6 months.

You can read more in a France Insider article at Reform of Unemployment Benefits.

It is also possible to 'roll-over' unused entitlement if you obtain employment prior to using current entitlement, but then subsequently find yourself unemployed. It is called droits rechargeables. To benefit from a recharge, you must have worked a minimum of six months since your last period of unemployment.

If you are a seasonal worker, from 1st April 2025 you are entitled to unemployment benefit provided you have worked at least 5 months in the last 24 months; until that date, it is necessary to have worked at least 6 months in the last 24 months to benefit from it. In correlation, from 1st April 2025 the minimum compensation period is set at 5 months for seasonal worker

III. Level of Benefit

The level of unemployment benefit you receive is calculated with reference to your previous salary. It is based on the previous 24 months salary, although for those over 53 years of age the previous 36 months.

Broadly speaking, your benefit entitlement is a percentage of a reference daily rate, called salaire journalier de référence (SJR). The SJR is calculated from your previous salary, excluding any redundancy payment or other indemnities you may have received.

Thus, if you were under 53 years of age and earned €50,000 in the previous 24 months, then the SJR would be €50,000/751 days = €68.40 per day.

You would then be entitled to either 40.4% SJR + €13.11 per day, or 57% of the SJR, whichever was produced the larger amount.

So in our example the result of that is: 40,4 % x €68,40 + €13,11 = €40,74 or 57 % x €68,40 = €38,99.

The minimum amount payable is €31.97 per day and the maximum amount cannot be greater than 75% SJR. The maximum amount of benefit is €274.80 per day.

However, if you are on a training course prescribed by Pôle emploi there is a small increase on the minimum. .

If the monthly gross rate was less than €1,276.80 you are entitled to unemployment benefit equal to 75% of your previous gross salary.

Those under 57 years with a salary greater than €4,858 gross per month have their benefit reduced by 30% from the 7th month.

Those who become unemployed as a result of redundancy are entitled to enhanced benefits, and there are also particular rules for seasonal workers and those in the entertainment industry.

In addition, an unemployed person who takes part-time work or a contract of short duration can continue to be entitled to receive some of their benefit.

These figures are for 2024.

IV. Other Benefits

In the event that your unemployment benefit does not reach a minimum level, then it is possible to obtain entitlement to other benefits, such as Revenu de Solidarité Active (RSA), as well as housing benefits.

There is also entitlement to free health cover through the Complémentaire Santé Solidaire - CSS.

V. Social Security Contributions

Unemployment benefits do not entirely escape liability to social security contributions, in particular the cotisations sociales CSG and CRDS.

The rate of CSG is 6.2% (3.8% if you pay no income tax) and the rate of CRDS is 0.5%, on 98.25% of the benefit.

There is complete exemption from these charge where the cotisations sociales in total or in part reduce the net level of the benefit to less than the daily rate of the minimum wage.

The 'reference year' for the income test are two years previously, ie for 2025 it is your income for 2021 as notified on your 2022 tax notice.

CSG is deductible against income tax at the rate of 3.80%, assuming you pay income tax.

A social security contribution of 3% of the SJR is levied to finance the complementary retirement pension, except where it would reduce the benefit to below €31.97 per day.

No health contributions are payable, except in Alsace-Moselle, where they are levied at the rate of 1.6%, except for those below the above income thresholds.

VI. Payment of Unemployment Benefit

Unemployment benefit is not offered immediately at the end of an employment contract.

There are two different points of departure.

First, there is a delay of seven days (délai de carence) except for those who become unemployed again within twelve months of first becoming unemployed.

The 7-day period may be extended, related to the payment by the employer for paid leave not taken before departure, as well as a delay due to any compensation package that might have been received at the end of the contract.

Once payment starts it is then paid every month. Currently, the monthly amount paid varies according to the number of days of the month in question. From 1st April 2025, the payment of unemployment benefit will be paid on a monthly basis on a 30 calendar day of all months. The amount of the allowance will therefore no longer vary according to the number of days in the month.

Back: Business Start-Up Support for Unemployed