Unemployment benefits are money that help reduce the economic burden when employees are unemployed. However, when the employee has a job but does not notify the employment service center, it is considered a violation of the law in Vietnam.
Article table of contents
Is it illegal to continue receiving unemployment benefits when you have already found a job in Vietnam? (illustration)
According to Point b, Clause 1, Article 21 of Vietnam's Decree 28/2015/ND-CP as amended and supplemented by Clause 9 Article 1 of Vietnam's Decree 61/2020/ND-CP, when the employee has a job, he/she will stop enjoying the salary. unemployment benefits.
An employee will be deemed as employed of he/she falls into one of the following cases:
- He/she has concluded an employment contract, a seasonal labor contract or a piecework contract with a term of full 1 month or more.
The date on which the employee is determined as having a job is the effective date of the employment or labor contract in accordance with law;
- There is a recruitment or appointment decision for cases in which an employee is not classified as eligible for entry into a labor or employment contract.
The date on which the employee is determined to be employed in this case is the date on which the employee is placed with a job or is appointed as stated in the recruitment or appointment decision;
- He/she has business household registration certificate in case the employee is the homeowner of the business household, or has an enterprise registration certificate in case the employee is the business owner.
The date on which an employee is determined to have a job is the date on which the employee notifies the employment service center of their business commencement.
- The employee notifies the employment service center that he/she has got a job.
The date on which the employee is determined as having a job is the date specified in the employee’s notice of being employed.
In addition, within 03 working days from the date of termination of unemployment benefits under the provisions of the points b, c, d, g and h, Clause 1 of Article 21 of Decree 28, the employees must notify in writing the employment service center where they are receiving the unemployment benefits in the form defined by the Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Vietnam and enclose the documents relating to the termination of unemployment benefits (snapshot), in case of submission by post, it shall be the date of the postmark.
Penalty for having a job but still receiving unemployment insurance
According to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 39 of Vietnam's Decree 28/2020/ND-CP, employees receiving unemployment benefits who fail to notify the Employment Service Center when they have jobs will be penalized as follows:
“Article 39. Violations against regulations on preparation of application and documentation requirements for entitlement to compulsory social insurance and unemployment insurance benefits
1. Fines ranging from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed on any employee that commits one of the following violations:
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c) As beneficiaries of unemployment insurance benefits, they fail to send required notifications to the Employment Service Center in one of the following cases: they have got a job; they are performing military or public security service; they receive monthly retirement pensions; they are studying for a term of at least 12 months.
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3. Relief and mitigative measures
Compelling those committing the violations specified in clause 1 and 2 of this Article to refund social security authorities the received amounts of social insurance and/or unemployment insurance benefits.”
Thus, the employee will be fined from 01-02 million and forced to pay back the amount of unemployment benefits received.
