Can an employee on sick leave leave his home?

Verified 27 April 2026 - Public Service / Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

It all depends on what the doctor said about your sick leave.

Three situations are possible:

  • The doctor may forbid you to go out during your sick leave, because your health does not allow it.
  • The doctor may allow you to exit during your sick leave, but you must be present at your home (unless you need to receive care or undergo medical examinations) 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 pm to 4 pm, including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.
  • The doctor may allow you to go out freely (i.e. no time restriction). In this case, the doctor refers to the work stoppage the medical elements that justify his opinion.

The doctor also indicates on the work stoppage if you can carry out certain activities outside your home.

During your sick leave, you must limit your travel to take into account your health.

During your work stoppage, checks can be carried out by the health insurance or by your employer to verify that the discontinuation is medically justified and that the obligations related to it are respected.

If your work stoppage provides for authorized time-restricted outings, you must:

  • Be present at your home from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 2 pm to 4 pm
  • Respect these hours every day, including weekends and holidays

You can leave your home outside of these hours.

However, you can be absent during the mandatory time slots if you need to receive care or undergo medical examinations. In this case, you must be able to justify such travel.

When your work stoppage mentions free outings, you can leave without constraint of schedules.

However, even in the case of free trips, you must respect the doctor's instructions on the work stoppage, including any activity restrictions.

This authorization must be justified by your state of health. The doctor indicates the corresponding medical elements on the work stoppage.

The doctor may also specify whether you are allowed to perform certain activities during this period.

If you plan to temporarily reside at another address during your sick leave, you must indicate this on Part 1 of the sick leave notice issued by your doctor and send it to your health insurance fund. If your doctor transmits online parts 1 and 2 of your sick leave notice, directly via his computer, just ask him to indicate it.

It is at this address that the medical control department can send you a summons. Whatever your place of residence, you must be able to submit to the checks organized by the medical service.

A departure abroad may prevent you from continuing to receive your daily allowances.

The collection of your daily allowances depends on the country you are traveling to and may be subject to prior authorization from your health insurance fund.

You must get closer to your cash register to know the conditions.

You can consult the website of Center for European and International Social Security Liaison (Cleiss).

If you do not comply with the obligations related to your work stoppage, you risk:

  • suspension or abolition of daily allowances,
  • a financial penalty,
  • a sanction from your employer.

In the event of fraud, you may have to reimburse the compensation received.

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