Those receiving unemployment benefits can still contribute to voluntary social insurance.

According to Article 2 of the 2024 Social Insurance Law, the subjects eligible for voluntary social insurance include: Vietnamese citizens aged 15 years and older who are not subject to compulsory social insurance and are not currently receiving a monthly pension or social insurance benefit; and individuals whose labor contracts are temporarily suspended, except in cases where both parties agree to continue paying compulsory social insurance contributions.

According to Article 38 of the 2025 Employment Law, employees who are contributing to unemployment insurance are entitled to unemployment benefits when they meet all of the following conditions:

- Termination of the employment contract is legal and does not fall under the category of unlawful unilateral termination or resignation upon meeting the conditions for receiving a pension.

- Must have paid unemployment insurance for at least 12 months within the 24 months prior to the termination of the employment contract. If the contract duration is from 1 month to less than 12 months, then at least 12 months of contributions must have been paid within the 36 months prior to leaving employment.

Submit all necessary documents for unemployment benefits within 3 months of the contract termination date. Within 10 working days of submitting all documents, the employee must be unemployed and not fall under any of the following categories: serving in the military , attending school for more than 12 months, serving a prison sentence, emigrating abroad, or having died.

As you can see, unemployment benefits are a sum of money that employees receive after leaving their job and before finding new employment. Therefore, employees receiving unemployment benefits are not subject to mandatory social insurance.

Therefore, workers who are receiving unemployment benefits can participate in voluntary social insurance to accumulate more time contributing to social insurance in order to receive a pension.

Regarding voluntary social insurance contributions, Article 36 of the 2024 Social Insurance Law stipulates: The monthly contribution rate is 22% of the monthly income chosen by the participant. The minimum income is equal to the poverty line for rural areas (currently 1,500,000 VND/month), and the maximum is 20 times the basic salary (46,800,000 VND/month).

Participants can not only choose a contribution level that suits their income but also receive support for their contributions from the state budget and the provincial budget (if there is a separate policy).

Voluntary social insurance participants can choose to pay monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, annually, or make a lump-sum payment for several years in advance (up to 5 years); or make a lump-sum payment for the remaining years needed to receive a pension, but not exceeding 5 years.

Below is a table showing the contribution levels (minimum and maximum) for groups receiving state budget support: