Sickness of Child
Family Member in Need of Care

What do I do when my Child is Sick?

The following information is only applicable to employees who have statutory health insurance. If you have private health insurance, please contact your insurer for further information.

Each employee can take up to 10 days off work per year to care for their child when the child is ill. Single parents can take 20 days off per year. If an employee has 2 children, the number of days they can take off work doubles. However, if an employee has three or more children, the number of days is capped at 25 (50 for single parents).

Preconditions:

  • the child must be under 12 years of age
  • the employee must present a doctor's note for the child from the first day onwards
  • the doctor's note must state that it is necessary for the child to be cared for
  • the relevant parent and child both have state health insurance
  • no one else in the household can look after the child

Usually, this doctor's note is printed with red font on blue paper. On the back of this note you have to give details regarding the parent taking care of the sick child, and the employer. The original doctor's note has to be sent to the health insurance, the MPS administration should receive a copy. The health insurance will then contact the employer regarding salary etc. and will reimburse the salary lost during the sickness of your child as "child sickness benefit". The exact amount of the child sickness benefit is dependent on several criteria; please contact your health insurance for detailed information.

It is possible to transfer child sickness days between parents, if both parents are insured at the same insurance company, and are living in the same household as the child.

If your child is sick and you do not have any more days allocated to caring for your child, you should not report in as sick yourself. This is a justification for immediate dismissal.

What do I do when a Family Member is in Need of Care?

If a family member suddenly needs constant care, you can be released from work for up to ten days to organize for proper care, or to care yourself. The employer is obliged to grant you up to 10 days of unpaid leave for this purpose. During this time, you will receive wage-replacement benefits, which you request at the nursing care insurance of the family member in need of care. Please contact the responsible nursing care insurance for further details.

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