Additional care allowance and childcare leave for children up to the age of 18 from 2027
The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy has submitted a draft amendment to the Sickness Benefits Act and the Labour Code for inter-ministerial coordination, public consultation and opinion which significantly extends the care entitlements of parents of seriously ill children and parents of children older than 14.
The draft specifies the following:
- an additional care allowance for a seriously ill child up to the age of 18, for up to 60 days per calendar year, on top of the standard care allowance limit;
- the additional allowance becomes available only after the standard limit has been used up, and only on the basis of an individual assessment by the doctor issuing the e-sick-leave certificate;
- the age limit up to which an employee is entitled to 2 days or 16 hours of paid childcare leave per calendar year is raised from 14 to 18.
This is a significant change compared to the current legal position, under which the number of care allowance days depends solely on the child's age rather than the nature of the illness. As a result, parents of sick children regardless of how serious their illness is, currently have the same pool of care allowance days available to them.
The increase in the child's age limit for the 2 days of paid childcare leave is to take effect 14 days after publication, while the additional care allowance for a seriously ill child is to take effect 8 months after publication.