End-of-contract bonus and holiday pay for a fixed-term job

How it is calculated

Two calculations in code, then a net estimate by the engine. The end-of-contract bonus is 10% of the total gross pay over the contract (monthly gross × length), 6% if a sector agreement provides for it with training commitments (service-public.gouv.fr, rule in force since 18 January 2002). Pay for untaken holiday follows URSSAF's rule for a fixed-term contract: 10% of total gross pay, end-of-contract bonus included, pro rata for the days left, or salary maintenance if that is higher.

Holiday earned is counted at 2.08 working days per month of contract (25 working days a year); days already taken are deducted. For the net figure, the modele-social engine evaluates the fixed-term payslip with and without each sum: the difference gives the estimated net of the bonus and of the holiday pay, employee contributions included, before income tax.

What the result includes

So that two people get the same figure from the same gross pay, the site always calculates from the same baseline situation. Each line can be changed in the calculator's options where it matters.

• General social security scheme (régime général), rates as of 26 October 2026 (rules from modele-social, the engine behind URSSAF's simulator).
• Permanent full-time contract (CDI), 35 hours a week, i.e. 151.67 h a month, paid over 12 months.
• Non-cadre by default (cadre status is one button away), collective agreement set to the general rules (“droit commun”).
• Company health cover (mutuelle) of €40 a month, of which €20 is deducted from pay, URSSAF's default setting; zero is possible in the options.
• Outside Alsace-Moselle (option available), without meal vouchers or benefits in kind.
• Before income tax: tax withheld at source depends on your household and comes on top (see the “net after tax” tool).
• Minimum wage (SMIC) since 1 June 2026: €12.31 gross per hour (service-public.gouv.fr).
• End-of-contract bonus at the legal rate or a sector agreement's reduced rate, on all the gross pay of the contract.
• Holiday pay: one tenth (bonus included) or salary maintenance, whichever is higher, for the days not taken; estimated net of both by the engine.

Limits

A correct calculation for a typical situation is not your payslip. Here is what the tool does not know, so that you read the result as a reliable order of magnitude, not a promise.

• Collective agreement: sector minimums, seniority bonuses, compulsory thirteenth month and specific provident schemes are not taken into account (general rules only).
• Bonuses, variable pay, overtime, benefits in kind: left out, except in the tools that ask for them.
• Health cover and provident scheme: your actual contribution may be different; change it in the options.
• Alsace-Moselle: the option adds the local scheme's health contribution, without its other specifics.
• Public sector not covered: civil servants' pay scales and contributions follow other rules.
• Simplified tax: no tax reductions or credits, no exceptional income; the engine's “tax” module is flagged as experimental by URSSAF.
• Exclusion cases not checked: the tool calculates the bonus even if your contract does not qualify (permanent contract afterwards, seasonal, customary, student, serious misconduct…).
• Variable pay: a constant monthly gross is assumed; with bonuses or overtime, enter your actual monthly average.
• Estimated net: the engine spreads the bonus by month; the actual payslip pays it in one go, which can shift a few euros of contributions.

End of a fixed-term contract by length

For €3,000 gross a month, non-cadre, legal rate, no leave taken: end-of-contract bonus, holiday pay and totals, calculated by the site's code and engine.

What you receive at the end of a fixed-term contract

The last payslip of a fixed-term contract gathers pay for the days worked, the end-of-contract bonus and pay for untaken holiday, plus any pro-rata thirteenth month or bonus provided in the contract. In the tool's example, the bonus and holiday pay add €3,780 gross to the last salary, for 6 months at €3,000. Check every line of the final settlement before signing it: you have a deadline to challenge it afterwards, which the final settlement guide explains.

The bonus compensates for the precariousness of the contract: that is why it disappears when the fixed-term contract leads to a permanent one, or when you turn down an equivalent permanent contract; the other cases where it is not owed are in the end-of-contract bonus guide. If you are offered a permanent position, compare both situations in net terms with the job offer comparison tool; the fixed-term or permanent guide helps weigh the rest.

Holiday pay: one tenth or salary maintenance

On a short fixed-term contract you rarely take your holiday: it is paid to you at the end. The one-tenth method gives €1,980 in the example; salary maintenance, i.e. what you would have earned by taking your 12.5 working days at your usual gross pay, gives €1,731. The law requires whichever is higher. The holiday pay tool does the same calculation for a permanent contract, with both methods detailed, and the holiday pay guide explains working days, six-day weeks and the reference period.