Dismissal in Mozambique: Severance Pay and Just Cause
Dismissal in Mozambique explained: 45 days' salary per year of service, just cause rules, notice periods, and collective dismissal under Labour Law No. 13/2023.
The short answer
- Base compensation: dismissal without just cause, in an indefinite-term contract, pays 45 days of salary for each year of service, prorated for fractions of a year.
- Fixed-term contract: termination without just cause pays the salaries that would be due until the end of the contract.
- Termination by the employer: only for structural, technological, or market reasons, with 30 days' written notice to the employee, union body, and ministry.
- Collective dismissal: over 8 employees (micro and small companies) or 10 (medium and large), with negotiations lasting up to 30 days.
- Unlawful dismissal: if the dismissal is illegal, you are entitled to reinstatement or compensation corresponding to 45 days per year.
Knowing what the law guarantees before signing any document is what separates a fair dismissal from a silent loss. In Mozambique, Labor Law No. 13/2023 defines the ways to terminate a contract, what is paid in each case, and the steps the company is required to follow.
This guide from the Inademy Guide explains, with exact numbers, what you should be paid and when a dismissal can be challenged.
Ways to terminate a contract
An employment contract can end in several ways, and the financial impact of each is different:
- Expiry — the end of the term or the event specified in the contract (the completion of a project, for example);
- Mutual agreement — both parties agree to the termination in writing;
- Termination with just cause — a serious breach by one of the parties;
- Employer-initiated termination with notice — structural, technological, or market reasons;
- Collective dismissal — reduction of several job positions under a specific procedure.
The amount of compensation depends on the method of termination and the type of contract. Therefore, the first step is always to re-read your contract — the guide to employment contracts in Mozambique: types and rules helps identify what you have signed.
How much is paid in a dismissal without just cause
In an indefinite-term contract, the compensation fixed by law is 45 days of salary for each year of service. For fractions under 12 months, the amount is prorated. In a fixed-term contract, the rule is different: the company pays the remuneration that would be due between the termination date and the end of the agreed term.
An example with real numbers: a manufacturing sector worker with three years of service and a monthly salary of 10,622.50 MT — the sector minimum in 2026. The 45 days of salary per year equal 15,933.75 MT per year (salary divided by 30, multiplied by 45).
Three years, then, represent 47,801.25 MT before deductions. The net amount that hits your account results from applying INSS and IRPS to the compensation — the guide on net vs. gross salary shows how these deductions work.
In an unspecified-term contract, where the end depends on an event, dismissal without just cause also follows the reference of 45 days of salary per year of service.
Dismissal for disciplinary offense
When the ground is disciplinary — a serious breach that makes it impossible to maintain the employment relationship — the company must follow the legal procedure. Disciplinary authority expires in six months, counted from the occurrence, and evidentiary proceedings have a limit of five calendar days.
There is a detail that weighs heavily in disputes: evidence gathered by remote surveillance is void if the employee did not have prior written notice, except when it concerns the safety of persons and property. If the dismissal is based on an unlawful or disproportionate sanction, it constitutes an abuse of disciplinary power — and the dismissal is considered unlawful, giving the right to reinstatement or compensation.
Sanctions must be proportionate: an unlawful warning corresponds to one month's salary in compensation; unlawful fines or demotions are compensated at five times the lost salary. The complete list of your rights is in the guide to workers' rights in Mozambique.
The company wants to cut staff: what is owed
The company may terminate contracts with notice when the measure is based on structural, technological, or market reasons and proves essential to competitiveness, economic restructuring, or corporate reorganization. However, formalities are mandatory:
- Written communication to each affected worker;
- Copy to the union body (or representative trade union association) and to the ministry of labor;
- Notice of at least 30 days prior to the intended date of termination.
And there is an important restriction: a company claiming unsustainability cannot terminate contracts and hire new workers for the same positions. If it does so, the termination is considered without just cause.
Collective dismissal: specific rules
Talking about collective dismissal involves numbers: over eight workers in micro and small enterprises, or ten in medium and large ones, the procedure changes. The process involves negotiation with workers' representative bodies, with a negotiation period of up to 30 days, and the burden is on the company to prove the alleged lack of economic resources.
If the collective dismissal is ruled unfounded, the consequences are serious for the company: workers are entitled to reinstatement or corresponding compensation.
When dismissal is prohibited
The law protects specific situations. The contract of a pregnant or breastfeeding worker cannot be terminated during pregnancy and up to one year after the end of maternity leave, except in cases of expiration and collective dismissal. The leave rules are in the guide to maternity and paternity leave.
If you suspect that a retaliatory dismissal resulted from a report you made, the path goes through Labor Inspection and trade unions: where to report violations.
If you are the one who wants to leave
Let's make clear a right many people are unaware of: if the problem is the company and not you, you can resign with just cause. All it takes is prior notice of at least seven days, indicating the facts justifying the decision. In that case, you receive the same compensation of 45 days of salary per year of service — or, in a fixed-term contract, remuneration up to the end of the contract.
Those who leave without just cause also have rules: in an indefinite-term contract, the notice period is 15 days for between six months and three years of service, and 30 days for more than three years. In a fixed-term contract, termination requires 30 days' advance notice, failing which the worker must compensate the company up to the limit of one month's salary.
Dismissal and evidence: the documents that decide
In a dismissal, documents speak louder than memories. Gather from day one: the signed contract, the last three payslips, written communications from the company, and any performance evaluation records. If the company alleges just cause, the procedure followed must be documented — and the law requires it to be.
A detail many workers are unaware of: the company's evidentiary proceedings have a limit of five calendar days. If the internal investigation took months before the dismissal, the sanction can be challenged for being untimely. And disciplinary authority expires in six months — a dismissal based on an event from a year ago deserves extra scrutiny before signing.
Work certificate: always request it
In the end, regardless of the form of termination, you are entitled to a work certificate. The document proves your length of service and the position you held — and it is gold for your next application process. If your next step is a new job opening, the guide on how to get a job in Mozambique picks up the journey from the start.
How Inademy helps you
A dismissal closes a chapter, not the book. On Inademy, job openings from companies across the country are published daily, from Maputo to Niassa. Profiles are free, accept PDF CVs, and alerts for new vacancies arrive via email and WhatsApp. For your next contract, read the guide on what Law 13/2023 changed — knowing what you sign is half the protection.
Read also
- Probationary period in Mozambique: deadlines and rules
- Voluntary Resignation: What You Lose and Keep in Mozambique
Where these figures come from
- Labor Law, Law No. 13/2023, of August 25 (Official Gazette): Arts. 135 to 147 (forms of termination, mutual agreement, just cause, resignations, collective dismissal, work certificate).
- in the same statute: Art. 139 (compensation of 45 days per year upon resignation with just cause by the employee), Art. 140 (notice periods of 15 and 30 days), Art. 142 (30 days' written notice), Art. 69 and Arts. 74-75 (disciplinary authority and abuse), Art. 66 (six-month statute of limitations). In force since February 21, 2024.
- Reference legal sources (2024): WageIndicator and legal briefs from Mozambican law firms on the 45-day per year compensation and collective dismissal.
Frequently asked questions
How much do I receive in a dismissal without just cause?
In an indefinite-term contract, 45 days of salary for each year of service, prorated for fractions of a year. A salary of 10,622.50 MT with three years of service amounts to 47,801.25 MT. In a fixed-term contract, you receive your salaries until the end of the contract term.
Can the company dismiss an employee without reason?
No. Termination by the company requires structural, technological, or market grounds, communicated in writing 30 days in advance to the employee, the union body, and the ministry. Without such grounds and formalities, the termination may be deemed without just cause.
Does being dismissed for just cause strip away any rights?
Just cause invoked by the company requires a serious infraction and legal procedure. If the sanction is unlawful or disproportionate, the dismissal is considered abusive — and entitles the worker to reinstatement or compensation of 45 days per year. Disciplinary authority expires in six months.
I am pregnant. Can I be dismissed?
The employment contract of a pregnant or breastfeeding worker cannot be terminated during pregnancy and up to one year after the end of maternity leave, except in cases of contract expiry or collective dismissal.
Can I leave the company and receive severance pay?
Yes, if you resign with just cause attributable to the company, with at least seven days' advance notice detailing the facts. You receive 45 days of salary per year of service. Anyone leaving without just cause must observe the 15 or 30-day notice periods, without compensation.
Is collective dismissal the same as individual dismissal?
No. For more than eight workers in micro and small enterprises, or ten in medium and large ones, there is a specific procedure: negotiations for up to 30 days with representative bodies and the burden of proof regarding economic distress falling on the company.
What document do I receive at the end?
The work certificate, which the company is legally required to issue. It proves your length of service and role — keep it for your next application.
In summary, what to do today
- Re-read your contract and confirm whether it is fixed-term, unspecified-term, or indefinite-term.
- If you receive a termination document, do not sign right away: check the grounds and the proposed amount against the 45 days per year formula.
- Demand written communication with copies sent to the union body and the ministry.
- In case of a disciplinary dismissal, check time limits (six-month statute of limitations) and the legality of the evidence.
- With your work certificate in hand, create your profile on Inademy and turn on new job alerts.
Official source: Law No. 13/2023 (Labour Law) is available as a PDF on the website of Mozambique's Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo): official text (PDF).
