Sick leave in Germany: sick notes, sick pay and Krankengeld

Who needs it

These rules apply to employees in Germany, including part-time workers and minijobbers. Being sick is not a reason for your employer to cut your pay, but you have two duties:

1. Tell your employer that you are unable to work and how long it will probably last.
2. Get a doctor's certificate (Arbeitsunfähigkeitsbescheinigung, AU, often called Krankschreibung) if your absence lasts longer than three calendar days.

Freelancers have no employer to notify. Whether they get sick pay depends on their insurance.

When

• Notify your employer immediately (unverzüglich), normally on the first morning before your work starts. A call or the channel your employer uses is enough. You don't have to say what illness you have.
• Doctor's certificate: needed if you are ill for more than three calendar days, by the next working day. In practice that is usually from day 4. Weekends count as calendar days.
• Earlier if required: your employer may ask for a certificate from the first day. Check your contract or company rules.
• If you are still ill when the certificate ends, you need a follow-up certificate.

How to do it

1. Tell your employer

Call or message your manager or HR before your shift. Say that you are unable to work and when you expect to be back.

2. See a doctor

Go to your family doctor (Hausarzt) or another practice. The doctor decides whether you are unable to work and for how long.

Sick notes by phone: if the practice already knows you and you have no severe symptoms, the doctor may certify you by telephone for up to 5 calendar days. There is no right to a phone sick note; the doctor decides. For a longer absence, you usually need to be seen in person.

3. The certificate reaches your employer

• Public health insurance (GKV): since 2023 the doctor sends the certificate electronically to your Krankenkasse (eAU). Your employer then retrieves it. You no longer hand in a paper form, but you must still tell your employer you are ill.
• Private health insurance, or a doctor abroad: the eAU does not apply. Send your employer the paper certificate yourself.

What happens afterwards

Up to six weeks: full pay from your employer

Your employer continues to pay your full salary for up to six weeks per illness (Entgeltfortzahlung). This starts after you have worked there for four weeks without a break. If you become ill in your first four weeks, your Krankenkasse may pay Krankengeld instead.

If the same illness returns, the six weeks can start again only if you were not off work with it for at least six months, or twelve months have passed since that illness first began. A new, different illness starts a new six-week period.

After six weeks: Krankengeld

If you are still ill after six weeks, your public health insurance pays Krankengeld (sickness benefit):

• amount: 70% of your gross pay, but no more than 90% of your net pay,
• maximum in 2026: €135.63 per day before deductions,
• duration: up to 78 weeks within three years for the same illness.

Your doctor keeps issuing certificates. Your Krankenkasse will contact you about the payment.

When your child is sick

If your child is ill and needs care at home, a parent with public insurance can take children's sick days (Kinderkrankentage) and receive Kinderkrankengeld from the Krankenkasse instead of salary. Conditions:

• the child is under 12 (or has a disability and needs help),
• the child is covered by public insurance,
• no one else in the household can look after the child,
• a doctor confirms that the child needs care.

In 2026 you get 15 working days per child per parent (30 for single parents), up to 35 days in total (70 for single parents). This higher number is a temporary rule for 2026. Unless the law is extended, the permanent rule applies again from 2027: 10 working days per child per parent (20 for single parents), up to 25 days in total (50 for single parents).

Tell your employer on the first day, as for your own illness.

Common problems

Do I need a sick note for one day?

Usually not, unless your contract or employer requires one from day 1. The legal default is a certificate after more than three calendar days.

Can my employer ask what illness I have?

No. The certificate your employer sees shows that you are unable to work and for how long, not the diagnosis.

Can I travel or go out while on sick leave?

You must not do anything that slows your recovery. Whether an activity is fine depends on the illness. If in doubt, ask your doctor.

I work a minijob. Do I get sick pay?

Yes, minijobbers are also entitled to continued pay for up to six weeks after the first four weeks of work.