Unemployment benefit 2026 in 4 steps: 6-month average, 60% rate, regional cap and duration
When people leave a job with nothing new lined up, the first question they put to HR is how much unemployment benefit they will get and for how many months. The calculation has just four steps: take the average contribution salary of the last 6 months, multiply it by 60%, compare the result with the regional cap, then count the months of benefit according to how long you have contributed. This article walks through each step with the 2026 figures and points out where claims most often fail.
Who is entitled to unemployment benefit and the deadline for filing a claim
From 1 January 2026, unemployment insurance is governed by the Employment Law 2025 (Luật Việc làm 2025), with detailed guidance in Decree 374/2025/ND-CP. You pay 1% of your salary, the company adds up to 1%, and if you lose your job the fund pays you a monthly amount while you look for a new one. There are three core conditions: the contract has ended lawfully, you have contributed for at least 12 months as required, and you file a claim at an Employment Service Centre (trung tâm dịch vụ việc làm) within 3 months of the date the contract ended.
HR staff mention the 3-month deadline over and over, because once it has passed, this round of benefit is lost, and the only option left is to have your contribution period reserved and added to a later claim. While you are receiving benefit, you must report to the centre every month on your job search, and the Social Insurance Agency pays your health insurance, so you still have a valid card for medical care.
- Monthly benefit
- 60%Of the average unemployment insurance contribution salary for the last 6 months
- Monthly maximum
- 5 times the regional minimum wageFor Region I in 2026 this is 26,550,000 VND
- Filing deadline
- 3 monthsFrom the date the labour contract ends
- Months of benefit
- 3 to 12 monthsBased on the contribution period; months not claimed are reserved
Four steps to calculate unemployment benefit
- Salary for the last 6 monthsAdd up and divide by 6
- Multiply by 60%Benefit before the cap
- Compare with the regional capTake the lower figure
- Count the months of benefit3 to 12 months
- Total for the claimMonthly amount times months
- Work out the average salary of the last 6 months
Take the salary used as the basis for unemployment insurance contributions in the 6 consecutive months before you left, add the six figures together and divide by 6. This is the salary stated in your contract and recorded in your social insurance book (sổ bảo hiểm xã hội), not your take-home pay, and it does not include bonuses. You can look up each month in the Social Insurance Agency's app or ask the company accountant.
- Multiply by 60%
The monthly benefit is 60% of that average. With an average salary of 15 million VND, the benefit before the cap is 9 million VND a month.
- Compare with the regional cap
The monthly amount cannot exceed 5 times the regional minimum wage of the area where your company pays your insurance. If the 60% figure is higher than the cap, you receive the cap.
- Count the months of benefit
Contributions of 12 to 36 months give 3 months of benefit; each further full 12 months adds 1 month, up to a maximum of 12 months. The total for the claim is the monthly benefit multiplied by the number of months. The calculator at the top of the page does all four steps and tells you straight away if you have hit the cap.
Example: the 6-month average after a recent pay rise
Ms Hạnh, an accountant in Hanoi, left her job at the end of September 2026. Her salary for unemployment insurance contributions was 14,000,000 VND from April to June and rose to 16,000,000 VND from July to September.
Average of the last 6 months: (14,000,000 × 3 + 16,000,000 × 3) ÷ 6 = 15,000,000 VND. Monthly benefit: 15,000,000 × 60% = 9,000,000 VND, which is below the Region I cap of 26,550,000 VND, so it stays unchanged.
Benefit cap by minimum wage region in 2026
The cap is 5 times the regional minimum wage under Decree 293/2025/ND-CP, which applies from 1 January 2026. The region is determined by where your company pays your insurance, not by where you live. People working in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City are in Region I; an average salary over the last 6 months above 44,250,000 VND hits the cap, because 44,250,000 × 60% comes to exactly 26,550,000 VND. On the same salary in Region II, you would receive only 23,650,000 VND.
| Region | Monthly minimum wage | Monthly benefit cap | Average salary at which the cap is reached |
|---|---|---|---|
| Region I | Monthly minimum wage5,310,000 | Monthly benefit cap26,550,000 | Average salary at which the cap is reached44,250,000 |
| Region II | Monthly minimum wage4,730,000 | Monthly benefit cap23,650,000 | Average salary at which the cap is reachedabout 39,416,000 |
| Region III | Monthly minimum wage4,140,000 | Monthly benefit cap20,700,000 | Average salary at which the cap is reached34,500,000 |
| Region IV | Monthly minimum wage3,700,000 | Monthly benefit cap18,500,000 | Average salary at which the cap is reachedabout 30,833,000 |
Besides the benefit cap there is a contribution cap: the salary used for unemployment insurance contributions is limited to 20 times the regional minimum wage, so any salary above that level does not increase the benefit. Highly paid managers are often surprised that their unemployment benefit is far below their old salary, and these two caps are the reason.
How many months of unemployment benefit you get for your contribution period
| Contribution period | Months of benefit |
|---|---|
| 12 to 36 full months | Months of benefit3 months |
| 48 full months (4 years) | Months of benefit4 months |
| 60 full months (5 years) | Months of benefit5 months |
| 72 full months (6 years) | Months of benefit6 months |
| 96 full months (8 years) | Months of benefit8 months |
| 144 full months (12 years) or more | Months of benefit12 months, the maximum |
The rule that "only each further full 12 months adds 1 month" is where people most often go wrong. With 47 months of contributions you still get only 3 months of benefit; you move up to 4 only at 48 months. The leftover months are not lost but reserved and added to your next claim. Contributions at different companies are added together as long as you have not yet claimed benefit, so someone who has changed jobs several times can still reach 60 or 72 months.
Three worked examples of unemployment benefit
| Scenario | Monthly benefit | Months | Total for the claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Region I, average 15,000,000, 30 months of contributions | Monthly benefit9,000,000 | Months3 | Total for the claim27,000,000 |
| Region I, average 20,000,000, 60 months of contributions | Monthly benefit12,000,000 | Months5 | Total for the claim60,000,000 |
| Region II, average 45,000,000, 100 months of contributions | Monthly benefit23,650,000 (capped; 27,000,000 before the cap) | Months8 | Total for the claim189,200,000 |
The third example shows two things. First, 100 months of contributions give only 8 months of benefit: 100 minus 36 leaves 64, and 64 divided by 12, rounded down to a whole number, is 5, which is added to the base 3 months. Second, the 27 million VND before the cap is cut down to the Region II cap. Enter these three figures in the calculator at the top of the page and you get the same result, labelled "capped".
Documents to file at the Employment Service Centre
You file the claim at the Employment Service Centre in the place where you want to receive benefit, which need not be where your former company is based; many provinces already accept claims online through the public service portal. The file is short, but proof that the contract has ended and a finalised social insurance book are the two items most often missing.
- An application for unemployment benefit on the current official form, which the centre provides.
- A document confirming that the contract has ended: a termination decision, a termination agreement, a notice of contract expiry, or the expired contract itself.
- Your social insurance book, finalised by the company up to the last month, or a separate statement confirming your contribution history.
- Your identity card (căn cước) for verification and a bank account number for the monthly payments.
- Contract end dateThe company has 14 working days to finalise your social insurance book and return your documents
- Within 3 monthsFile the claim at the Employment Service Centre
- Benefit decision issuedThe first month's payment goes into your account
- Every monthReport on your job search on the scheduled date
Common mistakes that lose or reduce unemployment benefit
- Filing more than 3 months after the contract ended: this round of benefit is lost and the contribution period can only be reserved.
- Missing the monthly job-search report or arriving late: payment for that month is suspended.
- Entering take-home pay or pay including bonuses in the calculator instead of the unemployment insurance contribution salary, which produces a higher figure than you will actually receive.
- Quitting without giving the required notice: under the rules, an unlawful termination may disqualify you from benefit.
- Starting a new job without telling the centre: benefit received after you went back to work may be clawed back.
- A social insurance book that cannot be finalised because the company owes contributions: the claim is returned until the company settles them.
Unemployment benefit is paid by the insurance fund, unlike the severance allowance (trợ cấp thôi việc), which the company pays for years worked before unemployment insurance applied. If you have decided to leave, hand in your resignation letter with the required notice so that the way your contract ends does not stand in the way of your claim.
Frequently asked questions
A full 60 months of contributions give 5 months of benefit: 3 months for the first 36 months, plus 2 months for the next 24. With 59 months you still get only 4 months, and the 11 leftover months are reserved for your next claim.
If your average unemployment insurance contribution salary for the last 6 months is 15 million VND, you receive 9 million VND a month, which is 60% and below the cap in every region. With 30 months of contributions, the total for the claim is 27 million VND.
Not for this round, because the 3-month deadline from the date the contract ended has passed. The contribution period you have not claimed for is reserved and counted towards your next claim.
Tell the Employment Service Centre as soon as you start work again so that the payments stop. The contribution period matching the months you have not yet received is reserved for next time; money received for months when you were working without reporting it may be clawed back.