French sick pay in 2026: daily allowance (IJ), waiting days and the employer top-up
Estimates only, not financial advice. What you type stays on your device. Checked against sources on 17 Oct 2026.In France the sick-leave daily allowance (IJ) is 50% of the gross pay of the last 3 months divided by 91.25, from the 4th day, with pay counted up to 2,613.82 euros a month, so at most 42.97 euros a day. With a year of seniority the employer tops up to 90% of pay from the 8th day.
2026 · Rates and rules read from the sources listed on this page (the earliest on 17 Oct 2026); they may have changed since.
Type your average gross monthly salary over the last 3 months.
Enter the number of calendar days of the arrêt de travail.
Enter your full years of seniority with the employer.
Read the IJ from the 4th day, the employer top-up from the 8th day and the total against your normal pay.
This calculator estimates what an employee in the French private sector receives during an arrêt maladie in 2026: the indemnités journalières (IJ) paid by health insurance and the employer's legal top-up, from Service Public.
The daily allowance. The daily basic salary is the gross pay of the 3 months before the stop divided by 91.25. The IJ is half of it. Pay counts only up to 1.4 times the monthly SMIC, 2,613.82 euros from 1 July 2026, so the IJ is at most 42.97 euros gross a day.
Waiting days. The IJ starts on the 4th day: the first 3 days are not paid by health insurance. It is paid for every calendar day, weekends included.
The employer top-up. After 1 year of seniority, from the 8th day the employer brings your income to 90% of your gross pay for 30 days, then to two thirds for 30 more days. Each period grows by 10 days for every 5 years of seniority, up to 90 days from 31 years. The employer pays the difference with the IJ.
A worked example. 2,000 euros a month, 15 days off, 3 years of seniority: IJ 32.88 euros a day for 12 days (394.56 euros), employer top-up 26.30 euros a day for 8 days (210.40 euros), 604.96 euros in all against 986.25 euros of normal pay.
Service Public's examples. 2,000 euros gives a daily basic salary of 65.75 euros, and a salary above the cap gives 85.93 euros and the 42.97 euro maximum.
Not included. Long illness (ALD), work accidents, collective agreements that pay more, top-ups already used in the last 12 months and the CSG and CRDS on the IJ. For your usual net pay, see the France Gross to Net Salary Calculator.
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Add the gross salaries of the 3 months before the stop and divide by 91.25 to get the daily basic salary; the IJ is half of it. A salary of 2,000 euros a month gives 65.75 euros a day and an IJ of about 32.88 euros, paid for each calendar day from the 4th day of the stop.
Since 1 July 2026 the salary taken into account is capped at 1.4 times the monthly SMIC, 2,613.82 euros, so the IJ for illness cannot exceed 42.97 euros gross a day. The cap has been 1.4 SMIC for stops starting since 1 April 2025; before that it was 1.8 SMIC.
Health insurance pays nothing for the first 3 days of each stop: the IJ starts on the 4th day. There are no waiting days when work resumed for under 48 hours between two stops, or for successive stops due to a long illness. Many collective agreements pay the employee during the 3 days.
With at least 1 year of seniority, the employer tops up the IJ from the 8th day of the stop, so that you receive 90% of your gross pay for 30 days and then two thirds for 30 more. Each period grows by 10 days per 5 years of seniority, up to 90 days each from 31 years.
Outside a long illness, health insurance pays at most 12 months of IJ, 360 days, over any 3 consecutive years. For a long illness (ALD) the IJ can be paid for 3 years. To be paid for the first 6 months you need 150 hours of work in the 3 months before the stop, or equivalent contributions.
The amounts shown are gross. The IJ is subject to CSG and CRDS, and the employer's top-up is salary, with the usual employee contributions taken from it. A collective agreement may also guarantee more, such as full pay with no waiting days, so check your agreement before relying on the legal minimum.
Rates and rules change; check the source before you rely on a figure.
Still stuck? Ask about France Sick Pay Calculator 2026 (Arrêt Maladie) and anybody who knows can answer. No account needed.
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