Sick Leave and Sick Pay by Country
Who pays when someone is ill, how much, for how long, and when a certificate is due — in 21 countries, each sourced to the statute or agency that sets the rule.
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Every European country in this table makes the employer pay something from the first days of illness, then hands over to a state or insurance benefit — but the employer's share ranges from five days a year in Ireland to 104 weeks in the Netherlands. Waiting days survive in France, Spain, Portugal and (as a deduction) Sweden; the UK abolished its three waiting days and its earnings threshold on 6 April 2026, and Czechia its three unpaid days in 2019. Australia works differently: ten days of paid personal leave a year that accumulate, and nothing statutory after they run out.
Every country compared
| Country | Waiting period | Employer pays | Then | Certificate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | None | 10 days a year (pro-rata part-time), accumulating without limit | Nothing statutory — unpaid leave, insurance or social security | If requested: medical certificate or statutory declaration |
| Austria | None | Full pay for 6 weeks (year 1), 8 weeks (from year 2), 10 (from year 16), 12 (from year 26), then 4 weeks at half pay | ÖGK Krankengeld: 50% for days 4–42, then 60%, for up to 26 weeks (extendable) | Immediately on request of the employer; commonly from day 1 or day 3 by company rule |
| Belgium | None (the waiting day was abolished in 2014) | Guaranteed salary for 30 days: 100% for white-collar; tiered for blue-collar | Mutualité/INAMI: 60% of capped salary from day 31, for up to 1 year | Per the work rules; 3 single-day absences a year need none (employers of 50+) |
| Czechia | None (the three unpaid days were abolished in July 2019) | 60% of reduced average earnings for working days in the first 14 calendar days | ČSSZ nemocenské: 60% (days 15–30), 66% (31–60), 72% from day 61, up to 380 days | Electronic eNeschopenka from day 1, sent by the doctor to ČSSZ and the employer |
| Denmark | None | Sickness benefit for the first 30 calendar days (full pay for salaried staff and under most agreements) | Municipal sygedagpenge, capped, for up to 22 weeks in 9 months (extendable) | Solemn declaration or a medical statement, only if the employer asks and pays for it |
| Finland | None from the employer | Full pay for the day of falling ill plus 9 working days (after 1 month’s service; 50% before) | Kela sickness allowance, income-based, for up to 300 working days | Per workplace rules; typically a doctor’s or nurse’s certificate after a few days |
| France | 3 days (CPAM); 7 days for the employer top-up, unless the agreement is better | Top-up to 90% for 30 days, then 66.66% for 30 days (after 1 year's service; longer with seniority) | CPAM daily allowance: 50% of daily salary (capped), up to 360 days in 3 years | Arrêt de travail within 48 hours |
| Germany | None | 6 weeks at 100%, per illness | Krankengeld: 70% of gross (max 90% of net), up to 78 weeks in 3 years | From day 4 (employer may require day 1); electronic eAU |
| Greece | 3 days, paid by the employer at half wages | Half wages for days 1–3, then the top-up above the e-EFKA benefit — half a month’s pay in year one, a month’s pay after that | e-EFKA sickness benefit from day 4, up to 182 days for the same illness | Medical certificate; e-EFKA also requires 120 insurance days in the previous year |
| Hungary | None | Betegászabadság: 15 working days a year at 70% of absentee pay | Táppénz from the health insurance fund at 60% (50% below 730 insured days), max 1 year | Doctor’s certificate of incapacity from the first day |
| Ireland | None (certificate needed from day 1) | 5 days a year at 70%, max €110 a day | Illness Benefit (Department of Social Protection) | Medical certificate from day 1 |
| Italy | Days 1–3 (carenza): paid by the employer under most CCNLs | Top-up to full pay and the protected period (comporto) set by the CCNL | INPS: 50% from day 4 to 20, 66.66% from day 21 to 180 | Electronic certificate from day 1, sent by the doctor to INPS |
| Netherlands | Up to 2 waiting days, only if agreed in the contract or CAO | At least 70% for up to 104 weeks (at least minimum wage in year 1) | WIA disability benefit through UWV | None — the company doctor assesses; employers may not ask for a diagnosis |
| Norway | None | Sick pay for the first 16 calendar days (arbeidsgiverperioden) | NAV sykepenger at 100% up to six times the basic amount (6G), for up to 52 weeks | Self-certification up to 3 days, 4 times a year; doctor’s note from day 4 |
| Poland | None | 80% for the first 33 days a year (14 days if aged 50+) | ZUS sickness allowance at 80% (100% for pregnancy or accidents), up to 182 days | Electronic e-ZLA from day 1, sent by the doctor to ZUS and the employer |
| Portugal | 3 days (none for hospitalisation, surgery or tuberculosis) | Nothing by law — the contract is suspended; some agreements top up | Social Security: 55% (to day 30), 60% (31–90), 70% (91–365), 75% after a year, up to 1,095 days | Certificado de Incapacidade Temporária (CIT) from day 1, issued electronically by the SNS doctor |
| Romania | The first day of each episode is unpaid since the 2026 reform | Days 2–6 of each episode, from its own funds | FNUASS (health insurance fund) from day 7; 55%, 65% or 75% of the base by episode length | Concediu medical certificate, issued electronically by the doctor |
| Spain | Days 1–3 unpaid by law (most agreements pay them) | Days 4–15 at 60% of the contribution base | INSS or mutua: 60% from day 16, 75% from day 21, up to 365 days (+180) | Baja médica from day 1, sent electronically |
| Sweden | Karensavdrag: a deduction of 20% of one week's sick pay | 80% (sjuklön) for days 1–14 | Försäkringskassan sjukpenning at about 80% (capped) from day 15, up to 364 days | From day 8 to the employer; from day 15 to Försäkringskassan |
| Switzerland | None by law (insurance waiting days are bridged by the employer) | 3 weeks in year 1, then per cantonal scale (e.g. 8 weeks in year 2) | No statutory sick pay; KTG insurance (usually 80% for 720 days) if the employer has it | Usually from day 3–4, per contract or staff rules |
| United Kingdom | None since 6 April 2026 | Statutory Sick Pay, up to 28 weeks | State benefits (ESA / Universal Credit) | Self-certify 7 days; fit note from day 8 |
Statutory minimums. Collective agreements and company schemes very often pay more and for longer — in France, Spain and Italy the collective agreement is the practical rule for most employees. Rates and caps typically change each January or April.
Three patterns worth knowing
- Employer first, state second. Germany (six weeks), Belgium (30 days), Poland (33 days), Sweden (14 days) and the Netherlands (two years) all start with employer-paid sickness before insurance takes over. The length of that first period is the number that matters for a small employer's budget.
- The certificate rule decides the paperwork. Electronic certificates sent straight to the insurer (Germany, Spain, Italy, Poland) mean the employer retrieves rather than collects; the Netherlands goes further and bars employers from asking for a diagnosis.
- Sickness protects annual leave, not the reverse. Across Europe, leave keeps accruing during illness and certified sickness during a holiday is converted to sick leave. Only Switzerland lets an employer reduce holiday after a month of absence.
If you employ people in more than one country
A single sick-pay policy cannot express this table. The Dutch employee needs a company doctor and a reintegration timetable; the German one needs the eAU retrieved from the insurer; the Irish one is paid for five days and then claims from the state. What every location does need is the same record: the first day of absence, the certificate date, and the day the employer's obligation ends. Leavo keeps that record next to annual leave for each policy group; our software comparison covers the alternatives, and the annual leave table and parental leave table cover the other two entitlements.
Common questions
Which country makes employers pay sick leave for longest?
The Netherlands: employers pay at least 70% of salary (and at least the minimum wage in the first year) for up to 104 weeks, with no state sick pay for employees until then. Austria follows with six to twelve weeks at full pay plus four at half pay depending on service, then Germany with six weeks at full pay per illness. At the other end, Portugal has no employer-paid period at all.
Which countries have unpaid waiting days?
France (three days before social security pays, seven before the employer top-up), Spain (the first three days of ordinary illness), Portugal (three days before Social Security pays) and Sweden (a deduction equal to about one day). The UK removed its three waiting days on 6 April 2026; Belgium abolished its waiting day in 2014 and Czechia its three unpaid days in 2019; Germany, Poland, Ireland, Australia, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Austria have none.
Do I always need a doctor’s certificate?
No. The UK allows seven days of self-certification, Norway three days at a time four times a year, Germany defaults to the fourth day, Sweden to the eighth, Belgium allows three certificate-free single days a year in larger companies, Denmark has no standard sick note at all, and the Netherlands forbids employers from asking for medical details. Ireland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Poland and Czechia require certification from the first day.
Does sick leave reduce my annual leave?
Almost never in Europe: annual leave keeps accruing during sickness, and certified illness during a holiday is generally converted to sick leave so the holiday can be taken later. Switzerland is the exception, allowing a reduction after a full month of absence. In Australia personal leave and annual leave are separate entitlements and sickness during annual leave can be re-credited.
How we built this
Each country is summarised from the statute or agency guidance named on its page and linked as the primary source. We record the statutory floor; where collective agreements dominate in practice we say so. The figures are downloadable from our open data page under CC BY 4.0, and the policy questions are covered in our guides. See our methodology.