Severance Pay Calculator (Brazil)

What goes into the severance calculation?

• Salary balance: salary proportional to days worked in the last month
• Proportional vacation: (1/12 of salary per full month) + 1/3 constitutional bonus
• Proportional 13th salary: 1/12 of salary per full month of work
• Indemnified notice: 30 days + 3 days per year (max 90) — only for dismissal without just cause
• FGTS penalty: 40% of accumulated balance — only for dismissal without just cause

Brazilian CLT severance — how it works

Under the Brazilian Labour Code (CLT, arts. 477-485), the severance package depends on who terminated the contract and why. The same employee earning R$ 3,000/month with 2 years on the job can walk away with very different amounts:

• Dismissal without cause (employer initiative): salary balance + indemnified prior notice of 30 days + 3 extra days per year worked (Law 12,506/2011, capped at 90 days) + proportional 13th salary + proportional vacation + 1/3 constitutional bonus + full FGTS withdrawal + 40% FGTS penalty + unemployment insurance eligibility. Our example employee receives ~R$ 9,500.
• Resignation (employee initiative): salary balance + proportional 13th + proportional vacation + 1/3. No FGTS withdrawal, no 40% penalty, no unemployment insurance.
• Mutual agreement (Law 13,467/2017): half the prior notice and half the FGTS penalty (20%), 80% of FGTS may be withdrawn, no unemployment insurance.
• Dismissal for just cause (art. 482 CLT): only salary balance + vacation already accrued from prior period. No proportional vacation, no 13th, no FGTS access.

Brazilian context

The FGTS (Fundo de Garantia por Tempo de Serviço) is a monthly 8% deposit the employer makes into a worker's restricted account. It accumulates during employment and is released on dismissal without cause, retirement, serious illness or home purchase. The 40% penalty is paid by the employer on top of the accumulated FGTS balance, as an indemnity for unjustified dismissal.