France: who qualifies for ARE unemployment benefit and how to register

Who is entitled to the ARE

You must be registered as a jobseeker, be involuntarily without work, physically fit and actively and continuously looking for a job (Unédic). The end of the contract must be a dismissal, the end of a fixed-term contract or assignment, a conventional termination or a resignation considered legitimate.

On the work side: at least 130 days worked or 910 hours, not necessarily continuous, in the last 24 months (36 months from age 55). Seasonal workers and people registering for the first time need only 108 days or 758 hours.

How much you get

The ARE is a benefit per day, paid each month on a 30-day basis. It starts from the reference daily wage (SJR): the gross salaries of the reference period, bonuses included, divided by the calendar days of that period. The benefit is the more favorable of 40.4% of the SJR plus €13.18 or 57% of the SJR, with a minimum of €32.13 and at most 75% of the SJR.

With €2,500 gross a month over 24 months, the SJR is €82.19 and the benefit €46.85 a day, or €1,405.50 a month. Benefits were not increased on July 1, 2026: the July 2025 amounts remain valid. Before age 55, a benefit above €92.57 a day (a gross salary of about €4,940 a month) falls by 30% from the 7th month, without going below €92.57.

These amounts are gross: France Travail withholds the CSG and CRDS when the benefit exceeds €61 a day, and 3% of the SJR as a contribution to supplementary retirement.

How long

The length is the number of calendar days between the first day of the first contract and the end of the last, within the last 24 months (36 months from age 55), multiplied by 0.75 since 2023. It cannot be less than 182 days, or 6 months, and cannot exceed 548 days before age 55, 685 days at 55 and 56 and 822 days from age 57.

For an individual conventional termination whose contract end falls on or after September 1, 2026, the maximum length is 15 months before age 55 (456 days) and 20.5 months from age 55 (624 days). From age 55, you can ask France Travail for an extension.

When it starts

Compensation starts after two possible deferrals and a waiting period. The paid-leave deferral is the compensatory payment for paid leave divided by the SJR, at most 30 days. The specific deferral comes from termination payments above the legal minimum, divided by a divisor that Unédic indexes every year (109.6 on January 1, 2025): at most 150 days, 75 in the case of an economic dismissal. Then 7 days of waiting.

Unédic’s example: contract end on July 30, €646 of paid leave for an SJR of €38, €460 of payments above the legal minimum: 17 days + 4 days + 7 days of waiting, or 28 days. Compensation starts on August 28.

Registering with France Travail

You must register within the 12 months after the employment contract ends, online at francetravail.fr. The employer must have the work certificate, the final settlement and the France Travail certificate available for you as soon as the contract ends (Service Public).

To receive the benefit, you must look for work effectively, under an engagement contract drawn up with an adviser: refusing two reasonable offers, missing an appointment or making no search effort exposes you to removal from the register or a reduction in the benefit.

Resignation, mutuelle and other cases

Resignation does not in principle open a right, unless it is considered legitimate (following a spouse who is transferred, for example), or for a validated retraining project.

The company’s supplementary health and provident cover continues for up to 12 months after the contract ends (without exceeding the length of the last contract) if you were a member, if the termination is not for gross misconduct and if you are receiving benefit: this is portability (Social Security Code, art. L911-8). You must prove your benefit coverage to the insurer.