Brazil unemployment insurance (seguro-desemprego) calculator

The value of each installment and the number of installments, with the 2026 table of the Ministry of Labor and Employment.

Value of each installment

R$2,241.78

in 4 installments: R$8,967.12 in total

4 installments
Total R$8,967.12
Claim from day 7 to day 120

With an average of R$3,150.25 over the last three salaries, the unemployment insurance installment is R$2,241.78: R$1,777.74 plus 50% of what exceeds R$2,222.17 (bracket 2). With 20 months of work in the last 36 months, on the 1st claim, there are 4 installments, R$8,967.12 in total.

The 1st installment is available 30 days after the claim, and the others every 30 days. The claim is valid from day 7 to day 120 after dismissal, through the Carteira de Trabalho Digital app or gov.br.

Only those dismissed without cause are entitled (including indirect termination): resignation, dismissal for cause and the CLT art. 484-A agreement do not give the benefit.
The Ministry checks on its own, in the CNIS and eSocial data, whether you received salary in at least 12 of the last 18 months (1st claim), 9 of the last 12 (2nd) or in each of the last 6 months (3rd onward). This page uses only the months you entered.

I’m not an accountant or a financial advisor. This is an estimate, for information only. Check with a professional before you decide.

Your numbers

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Average of the last three salaries

Add up the salaries of the three months before dismissal and divide by three. What counts is the contribution salary: the gross the company reported to the INSS, with overtime and commissions. With no data, the system uses one minimum wage.

This claim is the…

The 1st is for those who have never received unemployment insurance; the 2nd, for those who have received it once; the 3rd or more, for those who have received it twice or more.

1st claimnever received2nd claimreceived once3rd or morereceived twice or more

Months of work in the last 36 months

Count the months of formal employment in the 36 months before dismissal: a fraction of 15 days or more counts as a month. Do not count the months that already served for a previous unemployment insurance.

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The calculation

Step	How it is calculated	Value
Average of the last three salaries	entered by you	R$3,150.25
Installment by the 2026 table	R$1,777.74 + 50% of (average − R$2,222.17)	R$2,241.78
Value of each installment		R$2,241.78
Number of installments	20 months of work, on the 1st claim	4
Total benefit	4 × R$2,241.78	R$8,967.12

How it works

The amount comes from the average of the contribution salaries of the three months before dismissal (CODEFAT Resolution 957/2022, arts. 17 and 39), in a three-bracket table that the Ministry updates every year by the INPC. In 2026, with the values in force since January 11: up to R$2,222.17, the installment is 80% of the average; from R$2,222.18 to R$3,703.99, it is R$1,777.74 plus 50% of what exceeds R$2,222.17; above R$3,703.99, it is fixed, at R$2,518.65. The floor is the minimum wage, R$1,621.00.
The number of installments, from 3 to 5, depends on the claim and the months of work in the 36 months before dismissal (art. 36). On the 1st claim: 12 to 23 months give 4 installments and 24 or more give 5. On the 2nd: 9 to 11 months give 3, 12 to 23 give 4 and 24 or more give 5. From the 3rd: 6 to 11 months give 3, 12 to 23 give 4 and 24 or more give 5. Months that already served for a previous benefit do not count again.
To be entitled, besides the months, you must have been dismissed without cause, be unemployed, not have enough income of your own to support the family and not receive a continuing social security benefit (except accident benefit and death pension). And you must have received salary in at least 12 of the last 18 months on the 1st claim, 9 of the last 12 on the 2nd and in each of the last 6 from the 3rd on (Law 7.998/1990, art. 3).

Worked example

Average of the last three salaries of R$3,150.25. It exceeds R$2,222.17 by R$928.08; half of it, R$464.04, added to R$1,777.74 gives the installment of R$2,241.78. For someone claiming the benefit for the first time who worked 20 months of the last 36, there are 4 installments: R$8,967.12 in total.

Sources

Text checked on October 6, 2026

Good to know

The table is the one in force since January 11, 2026 and changes every year, together with the minimum wage; the amount is set on the date of the grant (Resolution, art. 17, § 2). The amount you will receive is what the Ministry’s system calculates: this page shows the calculation.
Only dismissal without cause gives entitlement, including indirect termination. Resignation, dismissal for cause and the agreement (CLT, art. 484-A) are left out, and so are those who joined a voluntary dismissal plan (Resolution, art. 38).
The claim is made from day 7 to day 120 after dismissal, through the Carteira de Trabalho Digital app or gov.br; without digital means, at a Regional Labor Superintendency or at the SINE, with a photo ID, CPF and NIS.
The 1st installment is available 30 days after the claim, and the others every 30 days. Each installment waits for you 67 days; after that it goes back to the FAT, and you can ask for it to be reissued within 2 years (Resolution, arts. 12 and 21).
Whoever finds a new job has the benefit suspended and can resume the balance if dismissed without cause within the same accrual period, of 16 months (arts. 36 and 37). Refusing a job compatible with your qualification and your previous salary cancels the benefit.
Being registered as an MEI, by itself, does not prove that you have enough income to support the family, unless that shows in the MEI’s annual declaration (Law 7.998/1990, art. 3, § 4).

Frequently asked questions

Who is entitled to unemployment insurance?

The formal worker dismissed without cause who is unemployed, without enough income of their own to support the family and without a continuing social security benefit (except accident benefit and death pension), and who received salary in the required months: 12 of the last 18 on the 1st claim, 9 of the last 12 on the 2nd and each of the last 6 from the 3rd on.

When can I claim unemployment insurance?

From day 7 to day 120, counted from the day after dismissal (CODEFAT Resolution 957/2022, art. 41). For a domestic employee, from day 7 to day 90 (art. 46).

How do I claim?

Through the Carteira de Trabalho Digital app or the gov.br portal, with your gov.br account. Without digital means, at a Regional Labor Superintendency or a SINE unit, with a photo ID, CPF and NIS. Phone 158 answers questions.

What are the minimum and maximum amounts?

The minimum is one minimum wage, R$1,621.00 in 2026. The maximum is R$2,518.65, for those with an average salary above R$3,703.99.

I resigned: am I entitled?

No. Unemployment insurance is only for dismissal without cause. The agreement between employee and company (CLT, art. 484-A) does not give entitlement either.

Can I work and receive unemployment insurance?

No. When you start a new job the benefit is suspended (Resolution, art. 22), and the law requires that you do not have enough income of your own to support the family.