PayMetric Labs
Portugal · 2026 · Compensação por Despedimento

Portugal Severance Calculator

On a 2500 €/month salary with 6 years of service and a caducidade de contrato a termo, gross compensação comes to roughly 12 000 €, and since it falls below the IRS exemption threshold, the net amount is the same 12 000 €. Select your termination category below and enter your own numbers.

Run your numbers ↓

Despedimento coletivo

14 dias/ano

Art. 366 CT

Caducidade a termo

24 dias/ano

2023 reform

Despedimento ilícito

15-45 dias/ano

court's discretion

IRS exemption

1 month/year

not a fixed cap

24 days' base pay per complete year of service. Also below the 30-day/year exemption threshold, so typically fully IRS-exempt.

Total compensação received (after IRS)

12 000 €

Gross compensação

12 000 €

IRS withheld

0 €

Effective rate

0.0%

How your 12 000 € compensação is split

IRS-exempt

12 000 €

100.0%

Taxable excess kept

0 €

0.0%

IRS withheld

0 €

0.0%

Compensação (24 dias/ano × 6 anos)12 000 €
IRS-exempt cap (1 month's pay × years of service)15 000 €
Taxable excess0 €
IRS withheld on excess-0 €
Total compensação recebida12 000 €

Social Security doesn't apply to any of these compensation categories. The IRS-exempt cap is one month's regular pay per year of service, not a fixed euro cap, so the 14-day and 24-day statutory formulas are typically fully exempt; only a court-set unlawful-dismissal award above 30 days/year creates a taxable excess. Uses monthly base salary as a proxy for retribuição base e diuturnidades, doesn't model falta de aviso prévio or acordo de revogação (fully negotiable, no statutory formula), and doesn't apply the Art. 74 CIRS income-averaging election available at tax-filing time. This is an estimate, not legal or payroll advice: consult a lawyer for a court-determined figure or before signing an acordo de revogação.

How this actually works

Portuguese severance splits into a handful of distinct categories, each with its own formula, or no formula at all. Despedimento coletivo, extinção do posto de trabalho, and despedimento por inadaptação, the "authorized cause" objective dismissals, all pay 14 days of base salary per complete year of service under Article 366 of the Código do Trabalho, raised from 12 days by the 2023 labour reform. Caducidade de contrato a termo, when an employer simply doesn't renew a fixed- or uncertain-term contract, pays more: 24 days per year, replacing the older 18-day/12-day split.

Despedimento por justa causa and an ordinary resignation carry no statutory compensation at all. Despedimento ilícito, an unlawful dismissal where the employee opts for compensation instead of reinstatement, is different again: there's no fixed formula, a court sets the figure between 15 and 45 days per year of service, with a 3-month minimum. This calculator lets you slide across that range to see how different court outcomes would play out, rather than pretending a single number is guaranteed.

The tax mechanic surprises a lot of people. Portugal doesn't cap the IRS exemption at a fixed euro amount, it caps it structurally: exempt up to one month's average regular pay per year of service. Since 14 days and 24 days per year are both under that 30-day/year threshold, the two statutory formulas are typically fully exempt in the ordinary case. Only when a court sets an unlawful-dismissal award above 30 days per year does a taxable excess appear, and Social Security doesn't apply to any of these compensation categories regardless.

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Frequently asked questions

1

How is severance calculated for a collective dismissal or redundancy?

Article 366 of the Código do Trabalho sets compensação at 14 days of base pay per complete year of service, for despedimento coletivo, extinção do posto de trabalho, and despedimento por inadaptação alike. On a 2500 €/month salary with 6 years of service, that alone would be roughly 7000 €.

2

What if my fixed-term contract simply isn't renewed?

That's caducidade de contrato a termo, and it pays a higher rate: 24 days per complete year of service (raised from the old 18-day/12-day split by the 2023 labour reform). On the same 2500 €/month, 6-year example, that's roughly 12 000 €.

3

Do I get compensation if I'm dismissed for cause or if I resign?

No. Despedimento por justa causa (dismissal for cause, attributable to the employee) and denúncia do contrato (an ordinary resignation with proper notice) carry no statutory compensation under the Código do Trabalho.

4

What if my dismissal was unlawful?

There's no fixed formula. If a court finds the dismissal unlawful (despedimento ilícito) and you opt for compensation instead of reinstatement, a judge sets the amount between 15 and 45 days per year of service, with a floor of 3 months' pay. This calculator lets you model different court outcomes across that range rather than presenting one number as certain.

5

Is my severance taxed?

Often not, and this is the detail most estimates get wrong. The IRS exemption isn't a fixed euro cap, it's structural: exempt up to one month's average pay per year of service. Since the 14-day and 24-day statutory formulas are both below that 30-day/year threshold, they're typically fully exempt. Only a court-set unlawful-dismissal award above 30 days/year creates a taxable excess, and Social Security doesn't apply to any of these categories at all.

6

Can I negotiate my severance through an acordo de revogação instead?

Yes, a mutual-agreement termination has no statutory formula at all, the amount is whatever you and your employer agree. It's a common way to resolve a departure faster, but it's fully negotiable, so it isn't modeled by this calculator, which covers the statutory formulas instead.

7

On a 2500 €/month salary with 6 years of service and a caducidade de contrato a termo, how much would I actually receive?

Gross compensação comes to roughly 12 000 €. Since 24 days/year sits below the 30-day/year IRS exemption threshold, it's fully exempt, so the net amount received is the same 12 000 €. Enter your own salary, years of service, and termination category above for your exact figures.