Financial benefits for employees

How are my benefits calculated?

The sick pay provided in the event of incapacity for work consists of:

• A basic allowance;
• In certain cases, additional supplements and accessories.

Basic salary

The basic allowance typically corresponds to my highest basic salary during the three months preceding the start of payment of sick pay by the CNS.

Good to know: basic salary includes those elements of salary which are paid monthly in cash and which are not considered as supplements and accessories.

However, a basic salary cannot always be determined in this way.

For example, when there is no month entirely covered by an activity subject to contributions (for example, in the case of a temporary employment contract). In this case, the value agreed in the employment contract is used.

In addition, in the case of apprentices, for example, the apprenticeship benefit is used as the basis for calculating sickness benefits.

Complements and accessories

This is cash remuneration paid on a monthly basis, but the amount may vary from month to month, such as a productivity bonus.

The CNS determines the amount by calculating the average of the sums paid in this respect during the 12 calendar months preceding the month prior to the start of the incapacity for work.

If this reference period is not fully covered by an activity subject to contributions, the average is calculated on the basis of the month or months that were fully covered.

What is not taken into account when calculating my benefits

To determine the amount of my benefits, the CNS will not take into account the following salary elements:

• Overtime, even if it was regularly worked before the period of incapacity for work, and initially scheduled for the period during which I am incapacitated for work;
• Gratuities or occasional benefits ;
• Remuneration in kind such as company accommodation, company car, meal vouchers, etc.

I would like my benefits to be corrected

I can ask the CNS to recalculate my sickness benefits for a period of one month if I find, for the month in question, a difference in income caused by different calculation methods used by my employer and the CNS.

I download the PDF Request for recalculation of a sickness benefits and attach to my request the detailed statement of the part of my salary paid by my employer for the month in question.

Age limit

Sick pay is no longer paid after the age of 68.

Minimum and maximum benefits

The monthly sickness benefits cannot:

• Be lower than the minimum social wage, unless there is a legitimate reason for exemption or reduction. In the case of part-time work, this threshold is established on the basis of the hourly social minimum wage.
• More than five times the social minimum wage.

If you carry out several activities of a different nature, whether salaried or self-employed, the various sickness benefits may be accumulated up to a maximum of five times the reference minimum social salary. If this threshold is exceeded, the benefits are reduced proportionally.