Severance pay

Severance pay by country, what the law requires

The statutory severance of 132 countries, each linked to the law that sets it: how much per year of service, when it applies, and where none is required. Listed by country rather than ranked, because laws pay it on different grounds and in different forms.

Every country

Statutory severance in every country

The rule as the law states it, linked to its source: how much, for which kind of termination, and any cap.

CountryAs the law states itRead at source
Albania15 days salary per year of service (after 3 yrs' service)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Andorra25 days' salary per year of service (non-causal dismissal; capped at 365 days)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Argentina1 month/yr (min 1 month)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
ArmeniaRedundancy: 1 month avg salary; unsuitability/incapacity: 10x avg daily wage (<1yr) up to 44x (15+ yrs)โ†—Nov 9, 2026
Australia4-16 weeks redundancy pay (by tenure)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
AustriaAbfertigung Neu fund (1.53% of salary)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Azerbaijan1.0x to 2.0x avg monthly wage by service (1.0x under 1 yr, 1.4x, 1.7x, 2.0x over 10 yrs), redundancy/liquidation, lump sumโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Bahamas2 weeks' pay/yr, cap 24 wks (managers 1 month/yr, cap 48 wks)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Bahrain0.5 month/yr (yrs 1-3); 1 month/yr afterโ†—Oct 1, 2026
Bangladesh30 days' wages per completed year (or gratuity if higher; 45 days' wages after 10 years of service)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Barbados2.5 weeks' pay/yr (yrs 1-10), 3 wks (yrs 11-20), 3.5 wks (yrs 21-33), redundancy onlyโ†—Oct 1, 2026
BelgiumIndemnity = pay for the notice periodโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Benin30% month/yr (yrs1-5), 35% (6-10), 40% (11+), per yearโ†—Oct 28, 2026
Bolivia1 month salary (indemnizacion) per year of serviceโ†—Oct 28, 2026
Bosnia and HerzegovinaMin 1/3 monthly pay per year of service, capped at 6 months (only after 2 years of service)โ†—Oct 30, 2026
Botswana1 day pay/completed month (about 12 days/yr), payable after 60 months' continuous serviceโ†—Oct 28, 2026
Brazil40% FGTS fine on total depositsโ†—Oct 1, 2026
BruneiRetrenchment benefit only after 5 years' continuous service (no amount in the Order)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
BulgariaUp to 1 month (redundancy); 2 months (illness, 5+ years' service); 2 months, or 6 months after 10 years (retirement)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Burkina Faso1 month salary/yr (yrs 1-5), 1.5 months/yr (yr 6+)โ†—Aug 18, 2026
Cabo Verde20 days of pay per year of service (objective dismissal or redundancy); 40 days per year if dismissed without just cause and not reinstatedโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Cambodia15 days/yr (seniority payment, paid in two instalments)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Cameroon20% month/yr (yrs1-5), rising to 40% (yr21+), after 2 yrs serviceโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Canada1 week/yr, max 26 weeks (Ontario; 5+ yrs and $2.5M+ payroll, or 50+ closure)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Chile1 month/yr (max 11 yrs)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
China1 month/yr (cap 3x avg wage, 12 yrs)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Colombia30 days (yr1) + 20 days/yr (<10 min wages)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Congo, Rep.No statutory severance; unfair dismissal: reinstatement or court-set damagesโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Costa Rica19.5-22 days/yr (cesantรญa, cap 8 yrs)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Cote d'Ivoire30% month/yr (yrs1-5), 35% (6-10), 40% (11+), per yearโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Croatia1/3 month/yr (after 2 yrs)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Cyprus2-4 weeks/yr (scale to 25 yrs, 104+ wks service)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Czechia1-3 months (org/health grounds)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Denmark1 month at 12 yrs; 3 months at 17 yrsโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Dominican Republic21 days/yr (cesantรญa, 1-5 yrs); 23 days/yr (5+ yrs)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Ecuador1 month/yr (max 25; min 3 months)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Egypt1 month's wage per year (yrs 1-5), 1.5 months per year after (economic dismissal)โ†—Oct 3, 2026
El Salvador30 days' ordinary salary per year of service (unjustified dismissal)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Estonia1 month (employer) + 1-2 months (Unemployment Fund, 5+ yrs)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Ethiopia30 days wage for yr1 + 10 days/yr thereafter (max 12 months)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Fiji1 week's wages per complete year of service (redundancy)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
FinlandNone on a lawful dismissal; 3 to 24 months' pay if dismissal is unjustifiedโ†—Oct 29, 2026
France1/4 month/yr (1/3 after 10 yrs)โ†—Oct 3, 2026
Gabon20% of avg monthly pay per year of service (no seniority condition)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Georgia1 month salary (or 2 months if 3-day notice)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
GermanyNone statutory (0.5 mo/yr under ยง1a KSchG)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
GhanaNegotiated (no statutory formula)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
GreeceTiered by tenure (up to 12 months cap)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Guatemala1 month/yr (indemnizaciรณn)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Guyana1 wk/yr (yrs 1-5), 2 wks/yr (6-10), 3 wks/yr (11+), max 52 wksโ†—Oct 1, 2026
Honduras1 month salary per year of service (capped at 25 months)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Hong Kong2/3 month/yr (SP/LSP, cap HK$390k)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Hungary1-6 months (by tenure, 3+yr)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
IcelandNone separate (salary through notice period)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
India15 days/yr (retrenchment, 1+yr)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
IndonesiaTiered by tenure (1-9 months) + UPMKโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Iraq2 weeks wages per year of serviceโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Ireland2 weeks/yr + 1 week bonus (after 2 yrs)โ†—Oct 4, 2026
Israel1 month/yr (monthly pay), 2 weeks/yr (wage-based), after 1 yrโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Italy~1 month/yr (TFR, salary/13.5)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Jamaica2 weeks' pay/yr (first 10 yrs), 3 weeks/yr thereafter (needs 104 weeks continuous service)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
JapanNone (no statutory severance)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Jordan1 month wage/yr (only employees not covered by Social Security)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Kazakhstan1 month avg wage (redundancy)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Kenya15 days/yr (redundancy)โ†—Oct 4, 2026
Kuwait15 days/yr (first 5 yrs); 1 month/yr after, cap 1.5 yrs pay (monthly-paid)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Kyrgyzstan2 months' avg wage (liquidation/reduction); 1 month (incapacity)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Latvia1-4 months by tenure, on no-fault dismissalsโ†—Oct 30, 2026
Lebanon1 month/yr (indefinite contract)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
LiechtensteinNo redundancy severance; abusive-dismissal compensation up to 6 months' wagesโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Lithuania2 months average pay (0.5 month if under 1yr)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Luxembourg1-12 months (5+yr, by tenure)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Madagascar10 days' pay per full year, cap 6 months (economic dismissal)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Malaysia10-20 days/yr (by tenure, redundancy)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
MaltaNone (no statutory severance; notice or pay in lieu only)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Mauritius3 monthsโ€™ remuneration per 12 monthsโ€™ service (unjustified termination, after 12 months)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Mexico90 days + 20 days/yr + 12 days/yr seniority premiumโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Moldova1 week avg pay per year of service (min 1 month, max 6 months) for redundancy; 2 weeks avg pay for health or skills groundsโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Monaco0.25 month salary/yr (first 10 yrs), 1/3 month/yr thereafterโ†—Aug 18, 2026
Mongolia1 to 4+ months base salary by tenure (6-24 months: 1; 2-5 years: 2; 5-10 years: 3; 10+ years: 4)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Montenegro1/3 monthly pay per year of service, min 3 monthly salaries (redundancy; 18+ months service)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Morocco96-240 hours' wages/yr (by tenure band)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Mozambique30 days/yr (โ‰ค7x min wage earners); less for higher earnersโ†—Oct 29, 2026
MyanmarTiered by tenure (Notification 84/2015): 0.5 month at 6 months, rising to 13 months at 25+ yearsโ†—Oct 29, 2026
Namibia1 week's remuneration per year of continuous service (after 12 months)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Nepal1 month basic/yr (retrenchment; pro rata under 1 yr)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Netherlands1/3 month pay/yr (transition payment)โ†—Nov 2, 2026
New ZealandNone (no statutory redundancy pay)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Nicaragua1 month/yr (yrs1-3), 20 days/yr thereafter (cap 5 months)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
NigeriaNot statutory (redundancy by agreement)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
North Macedonia1-7 net salaries (by tenure, business-reason dismissal)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
NorwayNone (no statutory severance)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Oman1 month's basic wage/yr (pro-rated, gratuity)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Pakistan1 month's wages/yr (part-year over 6 months counts)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
PanamaSeniority premium 1 wk/yr + 3.4 wks/yr if dismissed without cause (first 10 yrs; then 1 wk/yr)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Papua New GuineaNone (no statutory severance or redundancy pay)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Peru1.5 months/yr (arbitrary dismissal, cap 12)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Philippines1 month, or 0.5-1 month/yr if higher (authorized cause)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Poland1-3 months (20+ staff, no-fault)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Portugal14 days/yr (collective or objective dismissal)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Qatar3 weeks/yr (1+yr, gratuity)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
RomaniaNone (no statutory minimum)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Russia1 month avg wage; months 2-3 paid while unemployed (redundancy)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Rwanda2-7 months pay (by tenure; economic or sickness dismissal)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Saudi Arabia15 days/yr (yrs 1-5); 1 month/yr afterโ†—Oct 28, 2026
Senegal25-40% of monthly salary/yr (by tenure)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Serbia1/3 month/yr (redundancy)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Singapore2 wks-1 month/yr (2+yr, not mandated)โ†—Oct 4, 2026
Slovakia1-5 months (redundancy/health, by tenure)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Slovenia1/5-1/3 month/yr (scale, cap 10x)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
South Africa1 week/yr (retrenchment)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
South Korea1 month/yr (retirement allowance, 1+yr)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Spain20 days/yr (objective); 33 days/yr (unfair)โ†—Oct 4, 2026
Sri Lanka2.5 months' pay per year (yrs 1-5), tapering to 0.5 (TEWA formula, cap LKR 2.5m)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
SwedenNone (no statutory severance)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
SwitzerlandNone (unless 50+ & 20yr: 2-8 months)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
Tanzania7 days/yr (cap 70 days / 10 yrs)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Thailand30-400 days pay by tenure (120d-20yr+)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Togo35% month/yr (yrs1-5), 40% (6-10), 45% (11+), per yearโ†—Oct 30, 2026
Tunisia1 day's wage/month of service (~12 days/yr), cap 3 months' payโ†—Oct 1, 2026
Turkey30 days/yr (1+yr, no just cause)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
UgandaNegotiable (no statutory formula)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Ukraine1 month min (redundancy)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
United Arab Emirates21 days pay/yr (30 days/yr after 5 yrs)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
United Kingdom0.5-1.5 weeks/yr (age-based, max 20 yrs)โ†—Oct 4, 2026
United StatesNone (no statutory severance)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Uruguay1 month/yr (cap 6 months)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Uzbekistan50% to 200% of average monthly pay (by tenure with employer)โ†—Oct 28, 2026
VenezuelaGreater of 15 days pay per quarter (60 days/yr) + 2 days/yr after year 1 (max 30), or 30 days/yr at last integral salary; plus equal indemnity if dismissed without causeโ†—Oct 28, 2026
Vietnam0.5 month/yr (severance, 12+ months' service)โ†—Oct 29, 2026
Zambia2 months' basic pay per year of service (redundancy)โ†—Oct 1, 2026
Zimbabwe1 month's salary per year of service (retrenchment, SI 191/2024)โ†—Oct 29, 2026

Statutory minimums or standards; employment contracts and collective agreements can set more. Employment terms as listed on each country page (labour data as of Aug 18, 2026 unless re-read since), 132 countries.

Download this table (CSV)132 countriesFree to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite as: BestEOR.co (2026), Statutory severance pay by country, besteor.co/severance-pay, figures read at source up to Nov 9, 2026.

Severance is why providers take a deposit. Many employer of record providers hold one to cover notice and severance; compare what each asks for and refunds.

Compare deposits and fees
Questions

Severance pay by country: common questions

Which countries require severance pay?

Most of them. Of the 132 countries listed, 68 state severance as days of pay per year of service, most often 30 days a year (22 countries); others pay a fixed scale by tenure, pay into a severance fund or tie it to the notice pay. 10 require no statutory severance, among them Germany, Japan and the United States, though several of them award damages for an unjustified dismissal.

Does severance depend on the reason for dismissal?

Often: many laws pay severance only on redundancy or dismissal without cause, and not on dismissal for serious misconduct or resignation. Each country's wording, linked to its source, states when it applies.

Who pays severance when an employer of record ends an employment?

The employer of record, as the legal employer, pays the statutory severance and notice and invoices the client for them, so the rule here is part of the cost of ending an EOR employment. Many providers also take a deposit to cover it.

Hiring someone in another country? Pick the country and we rank the employer of record providers that employ there and apply its employment law, with their published fees.

Get matched

More employment rules by country: employer costs, minimum wage, annual leave, public holidays, working hours, overtime pay, sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave, 13th month salary, probation period, notice period and employer pension.