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I want a mutual termination of my employment contract

How a mutual termination of an employment contract (sporazumni raskid) works and how it differs from dismissal.

INFO
Short answer. A mutual termination (sporazumni raskid) is a two-sided legal act - employment ends based on a written agreement between the will of the employee and the employer, not by the employer's unilateral decision as with a dismissal - so before signing you should review the content of the agreement and the consequences that follow from it, above all the loss of the right to unemployment benefits.
ROK
Deadline. The law does not prescribe a specific deadline within which an employee must sign or decline an offer of mutual termination - the agreement takes effect only once both parties sign it. The 60-day deadline for judicial protection (as with a dismissal) is, as a rule, not relevant here, unless the employee claims the agreement was never validly concluded at all (e.g., due to duress or fraud), which is determined under the general rules on the annulment of legal transactions. (Article 177 of the Labor Law (written form of the agreement); the general rules of the Law on Contracts and Torts (Zakon o obligacionim odnosima) on defects of will in concluding a contract; annulment of a voidable contract may be sought within one year of learning of the ground for voidability, or of the end of the duress, and in any event within three years of the conclusion of the contract (Art. 117). The Labour Law sets no special deadline for challenging the agreement, but for a dispute over an act that violated an employee's right it sets a 60-day deadline (Art. 195), so it is safer to file the claim within that shorter period.)

What to do

A mutual termination of an employment contract is not the same as a dismissal, even though employment ends in both cases. With a dismissal, the employer decides unilaterally and the employee can defend against it with a claim within 60 days; with a mutual termination, both parties agree on the termination, and that agreement must be made in writing to take effect. This difference has a practical consequence that is often overlooked: a mutual termination, as a rule, excludes the right to unemployment benefits from the National Employment Service, while a dismissal does not exclude that right.

Before signing, the text of the agreement should be read carefully - the termination date, the calculation of the final salary and unused annual leave, and any severance pay the employer offers as part of the deal. The employer is required to notify the employee in writing of the consequences of a mutual termination for their rights before the NSZ before the agreement is signed. If the amount of compensation offered is low or there is none at all, and losing the right to unemployment benefits matters to you, it is worth considering whether the agreement suits your situation at all, or whether it would be better to wait for the employer to possibly initiate a formal dismissal procedure (if grounds for one exist) and defend yourself in that proceeding.

If you are looking for a sample mutual termination agreement (sporazumni raskid ugovora o radu primer), note that the law prescribes no ready-made text. The agreement only has to be in writing and signed by both sides (Art. 177 of the Labour Law). In practice it records the end date of employment, the employer's duty to pay the final salary and other earnings within 30 days (Art. 186), compensation for unused annual leave (Art. 76), any agreed severance, and a statement that you received written notice of the consequences for your NSZ rights before signing. If you have not received that notice, ask for it before you sign.

When to consult a lawyer

Consultation before signing is most useful precisely because an agreement, once signed, is hard to challenge - legal advice at this stage serves to review the content of the text and compare the consequences of the agreement with the alternatives (waiting for a possible dismissal, negotiating severance pay), not to attempt annulment of an already-signed document later. If the employer offered the agreement under pressure or with a short deadline to decide, that is an additional reason to seek advice before signing.

Sources

What to do

  • Read the text of the agreement before signing - be sure to check the date employment ends, the calculation of all unpaid salary and compensation, the treatment of unused annual leave, and any severance pay or other monetary compensation the employer is offering.
  • Check whether the employer notified you in writing, before signing, of the consequences of a mutual termination for your rights before the Nacionalna služba za zapošljavanje (NSZ, the National Employment Service) - this notification obligation rests with the employer.
  • Keep in mind that a mutual termination, unlike a dismissal imposed on you by the employer, as a rule excludes the right to unemployment benefits from the NSZ - if that benefit income matters to you, that is a reason to consider whether the agreement is more favorable than other options.
  • If the agreement is offered as a 'soft' alternative to dismissal (e.g., to avoid a disciplinary proceeding), check whether an actual ground for dismissal exists - if it doesn't, you may not be obliged to accept the agreement at all.
  • Keep a copy of the signed agreement and all supporting documentation (the calculation, the salary certificate) for later exercise of your rights.

What it costs

Consulting a lawyer before signing an agreement is a one-time cost (reviewing the text and giving advice), considerably lower than the cost of a later dispute over annulling an already-signed agreement. If a dispute does arise, the general rules on civil-proceeding costs described on the labor-dispute costs page apply.

Basis for the attorney fee: Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement, Item 78 - for reviewing the agreement and legal advice before signing, the lawyer is entitled to the fee set for the filing that would initiate the corresponding proceeding (for a labour dispute over termination of employment that is Item 14), not the fee for representation in a dispute.

FAQ

Does a mutual termination affect the right to unemployment benefits?

As a general rule, yes - an employee who signs a mutual termination agreement loses the right to unemployment benefits from the National Employment Service, because that benefit is tied to termination of employment against the employee's will, not to an agreement the employee accepted themselves. An agreement is not among the grounds for termination that give a right to the benefit (Art. 67(1) of the Law on Employment and Unemployment Insurance). A person whose employment ended by their own will can obtain the benefit only once they again meet the condition of at least 12 months of insurance in the last 18 months (Art. 66 and Art. 67(2)). The same applies to an employee who, under a redundancy programme, voluntarily opts for a severance payment higher than the statutory one.

Does the employer have to offer me severance pay for a mutual termination?

There is no statutory obligation for the employer to pay severance or other monetary compensation as part of a mutual termination (unlike a dismissal due to redundancy, where severance is mandatory) - the amount and existence of such compensation are a matter of agreement between the parties, so this is an element that can be negotiated before signing.

Can I change my mind after signing the agreement?

The agreement is a two-sided legal transaction and, once signed, binds both parties - unilateral withdrawal is, as a rule, not possible. Challenging an already-signed agreement is only possible under the general rules on defects of will (e.g., if it was signed under duress or fraud), which must be proven in any court proceeding and is an exception, not the rule.

How does a mutual termination differ from a dismissal?

A dismissal is a unilateral decision by the employer, against which the employee can defend themselves with a claim within 60 days, while a mutual termination is a two-sided agreement that the employee signs themselves, thereby, as a rule, giving up the ability to later challenge the termination of employment in the same way as with a dismissal.

What must a mutual termination agreement contain - is there a sample?

The Labour Law (Zakon o radu) has no official form. It requires the agreement to be in writing and signed by both the employer and the employee (Art. 177(1)), and the employer must inform the employee in writing, before signing, of the consequences for unemployment insurance rights (Art. 177(2)). A typical agreement states: the employer and employee, the employment contract being ended, that employment ends by agreement (Art. 175(3) and Art. 177), the exact end date, the employer's duty to pay all salary and other earnings within 30 days at the latest (Art. 186), compensation for unused annual leave (Art. 76), any agreed severance and when it is paid, a statement that the employee received the written notice of consequences, the date and signatures. The main consequence: as a rule, no unemployment benefit from the NSZ (Art. 67 of the Law on Employment and Unemployment Insurance).