Luxembourg - Other sickness cash benefits
This chapter provides information on what you need to know about claiming cash benefits during leave for family reasons (a child's sickness), compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill or to receive a funeral grant in the event of the death of a family member.
In what situation can I claim?
Aside from the cash benefits paid to you if you are ill and unable to work, three other sets of circumstances grant access to benefits:
Leave in the event of a child's sickness (Congé en cas de maladie d’un enfant)
Leave for family reasons enables you to stay with your sick child without losing income.
Compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill (Congé d’accompagnement d’une personne en fin de vie)
If you have somebody close to you at the end stage of a serious illness, you may take leave from work, without losing income, and remain by the side of this person.
Funeral grant (Indemnité funéraire)
In the event of the death of the insured person or of a member of their family, a lump-sum funeral grant is provided to cover funeral costs.
What conditions do I need to meet?
Leave in the event of a child's sickness
If you are a salaried employee, an apprentice or self-employed and you are the legal guardian of a child under the age of 18 requiring you to be with them in the event of illness or an accident, you can claim leave for family reasons.
Each parent performing a professional activity has an individual right to leave. If just one parent works and the other stays at home, the working parent still has the right to take leave for family reasons.
To claim this leave, you will need to present a medical note confirming the child's illness or accident.
Leave for family reasons is also possible in case of quarantine, isolation or home care for a child under the age of 13, due to imperative public health reasons aimed at limiting the spread of an epidemic.
Compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill
Leave is only granted in the event of the terminal stage of a person's serious illness, where their state of health requires the presence of somebody close to them.
You can request this type of leave if you have:
- a terminally ill first-degree relative, ascendant or descendant (mother/father or son/daughter);
- a terminally ill second degree relative (sister/brother);
- your terminally ill spouse (husband/wife) or (legally recognised) partner.
Funeral grant
The funeral grant is allocated in the event of the death of the insured person or of a member of their family.
It is paid, up to the amount of the costs incurred, to the person or to the institution which has advanced such costs. Any remaining balance is paid to the spouse or the partner or to the children, father and mother, brothers and sisters, if they lived with the insured person.
What am I entitled to and how can I claim?
Leave in the event of a child's sickness
- Per child, the period of leave for family reasons is 12 days if the child is younger than 4, 18 days if the child is between 4 and 13, and 5 days if the child is between 13 and 18 (in the latter case, the leave is only granted if the child is in hospital). The leave period is doubled for children benefiting from an additional allowance for disabled children. If the child has an exceptionally serious illness or disability or in the event of quarantine, isolation or home care of a child under the age of 13 for imperative public health reasons aimed at limiting the spread of an epidemic, the duration of the leave may be extended to 52 weeks over a 104-week period.
- Leave for family reasons may be split. This means that it does not have to be taken in full all at once. A split period which does not exceed four hours will only be included as a half day.
- The age limit of 18 years does not apply to children benefiting from additional allowances for disabled children.
- For the duration of this leave, workers may benefit from compensation matching their professional remuneration or income.
Compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill
- Compassionate leave may not exceed 5 working days (40 hours) per case and per year. This will, however, end on the date of the death of the person concerned.
- Compassionate leave can be split: it can be taken in more than one instance.
- This form of leave can also be taken part-time (with the employer's agreement): in this case, the period of leave is increased in proportion.
Please note: to receive benefits during leave for family reasons or during compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill, you must declare your absence to the National Health Fund (CNS) with a medical note confirming the child's illness or, in the case of compassionate leave, the terminal illness of the dying person and the need for your continued presence with the child or the person concerned.
You are also obliged to notify your employer on the first day of your absence at the latest.
Funeral grant
On 1st January 2023, the amount of the funeral grant stood at EUR 1,140.11. If this relates to a child under six months old or a stillborn child, only half or one fifth respectively of this amount is granted. The grant must be claimed from the CNS.
Jargon busters
- National Health Fund (Caisse nationale de santé - CNS): health insurance fund regulating all private sector workers, employees and independent.
- Social Security Medical Inspectorate (Contrôle médical de la sécurité sociale - CMSS): Competent administration for all medical issues. Its opinions are binding on the social security institutions.
- Dependent child: a dependent child is a child for whom a family allowance is granted by the Children’s Future Fund (Caisse pour l’avenir des enfants, CAE).
- Additional allowance for disabled children: this allowance constitutes financial assistance for the additional costs caused by a child's disability. It is granted in addition to the family allowance.
- Disabled child: child afflicted by one or more conditions which constitute permanent impairment or decrease of at least 50% of the physical or mental capacity of a healthy child of the same age.
Forms you may need to fill in
Know your rights
The links below provide a legal definition of your rights. They are not European Commission websites and they do not represent the views of the Commission:
Leave in the event of a child's sickness
- Further information is available on the website of the Caisse Nationale de Santé (CNS).
- Further information is available in the Luxembourg State administrative guide.
Compassionate leave to support somebody who is terminally ill
- Further information is available on the website of the Caisse Nationale de Santé (CNS).
- Further information is available in the Luxembourg State administrative guide.
Funeral grants
- Further information is available on the website of the Caisse Nationale de Santé (CNS).
- Further information is available in the Luxembourg State administrative guide.
Commission publications and websites:
Who do you need to contact?
Caisse Nationale de Santé
Address: 125 route d’Esch, L-1471 Luxembourg
Telephone number: +352 27 57-1
E-mail: cns@secu.lu
Website: http://www.cns.lu/