Terminating an employee in Morocco is one of the highest-risk HR decisions a foreign company can make without proper local guidance. The Code du Travail (Law 65-99) is explicitly pro-employee on termination: it requires documented cause, mandates statutory notice periods, specifies severance calculations to the hour, and gives employees access to labour tribunals (juridictions du travail) that enforce these rules actively. Get it wrong and you are facing reinstatement orders, back-pay awards, and reputational damage in a market you are trying to build credibility in.
AFRICA DEPLOYMENTS MOROCCO S.A.R.L., operating through its registered entity in Casablanca, manages all employee terminations under the Code du Travail as part of its Employer of Record service. Every dismissal is handled with the correct documented cause, the correct notice, and the correct severance calculation before the employee’s last day.
What Are the Grounds for Terminating a CDI in Morocco?
An indefinite-term contract (CDI) can only be terminated for a genuine and serious cause (motif réel et sérieux). The Code du Travail recognises two categories:
Personal cause (faute du salarié): misconduct, serious misconduct (faute grave), repeated poor performance after formal warnings, or behaviour that makes continued employment impossible.
Economic cause (motif économique): structural or technological changes to the business, or genuine economic difficulty that necessitates a reduction in headcount. Economic dismissals require additional procedural steps including, in some cases, consultation with employee representatives.
Dismissal without genuine cause exposes the employer to a claim for unjustified dismissal (licenciement abusif). The employee can be awarded compensation ranging from 1.5 months to several months of salary depending on the severity of the procedural failure and the length of service.
What Are the Notice Periods for Termination in Morocco?
Notice periods under the Code du Travail vary by employee category and length of service:
|
Employee Category |
Service Under 5 Years |
Service 5 to 10 Years |
Service Over 10 Years |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Office workers and non-management (employés) |
1 month |
2 months |
3 months |
|
Management and executives (cadres) |
3 months |
6 months |
Negotiated or per convention |
These are statutory minimums. Employment contracts and collective agreements may specify longer notice periods.
During the notice period, the employee continues to work and receive full salary and benefits. The employer may pay in lieu of notice (indemnité compensatrice de préavis), releasing the employee immediately while paying the equivalent notice period salary.
How Is Severance (Indemnité de Licenciement) Calculated in Morocco?
Severance is calculated on the basis of the employee’s average gross monthly remuneration over the last 52 weeks, using a formula tied to years of service. The Code du Travail specifies the calculation in hours of pay:
|
Years of Service |
Severance Entitlement |
|---|---|
|
Years 1 to 5 |
96 hours of pay per year of service |
|
Years 6 to 10 |
144 hours of pay per year of service |
|
Years 11 to 15 |
192 hours of pay per year of service |
|
Beyond 15 years |
240 hours of pay per year of service |
Here is a practical example: An employee earning MAD 10,000 per month (assuming 191.33 working hours/month, the Code’s standard) with 8 years of service is entitled to: (5 years x 96 hours) + (3 years x 144 hours) = 480 + 432 = 912 hours. At approximately MAD 52.27 per hour (MAD 10,000 / 191.33), that gives a severance payment of approximately MAD 47,669.
What Else Is Owed at Termination?
Beyond severance, the final payroll settlement must include:
- Pay in lieu of notice (if applicable)
- Accrued but unused annual leave (calculated at daily salary rate)
- Pro-rated seniority bonus for the year of termination
- Any outstanding salary, commission, or bonus payments
- Final CNSS and IGR contributions for the final pay period
Failure to make these payments in full on or before the employee’s last day gives the employee grounds for an immediate labour tribunal claim.
What Is the Procedure for Terminating an Employee for Misconduct?
The Code du Travail requires a formal disciplinary procedure before termination for misconduct:
- Written convocation to a disciplinary hearing (entretien préalable), with at least 8 days’ notice
- The disciplinary hearing itself, at which the employee has the right to be accompanied by a representative
- Written notification of the termination decision within 48 hours of the hearing
Skipping any step in this procedure, even if the misconduct is well-documented, gives the employee grounds to challenge the dismissal on procedural grounds (licenciement irrégulier).
What Happens With a CDD Termination?
A fixed-term contract (CDD) that reaches its end date simply expires. No severance is payable at the natural end of a CDD. However, if the employer terminates a CDD before the end date without just cause, the employer owes the employee the salary they would have earned for the remaining term of the contract.
The International Labour Organization publishes comparative data on termination and severance standards in Morocco relative to international labour norms, relevant for multinationals benchmarking their Morocco offboarding practices.
Rule of Thumb on Termination in Morocco
Document everything before you act. A well-documented performance improvement process or a clear record of misconduct is your only reliable protection against a successful unjustified dismissal claim. Improvised terminations, even for valid reasons, almost always result in procedural challenges.
