Sickness benefit for jobseekers
Sickness benefit is compensation you can receive if you are unable to work or take a job due to illness.
Am I eligible for sickness benefit?
You are eligible for sickness benefit if you:
- cannot take a job or work because you are ill
- are registered with the Swedish Public Employment Service and actively seeking a job
- have worked previously so that you have a sickness benefit qualifying income
- are insured in Sweden.
You can receive sickness benefit at 25 percent, 50 percent, 75 percent or 100 percent.
How do I apply?
1. Report your sickness
If you are not participating in a Public Employment Service programme, you must report your sickness the first day you are sick. Report your sickness to your employer if you work part time.
2. Apply
After reporting your sickness, log in to My pages (Mina sidor) to apply for sickness benefit.
3. Send in a doctor's certificate
If you are sick for more than 7 days, you must send in a doctor's certificate with information about your illness or injury. In most counties, electronic certificates can be issued. You can then send in your certificate on Mina intyg on 1177 Vårdguiden. This speeds up the process and you then do not have to send the certificate by post.
Intyg (1177.se)
External link, opens in new window.
If you have received your doctor's certificate on paper and for some reason it has not been sent electronically to us, send the original to:
Försäkringskassans Inläsningscentral
839 88 Östersund
4. Disbursement
The first sickness benefit disbursement is not paid on a fixed date. It is instead paid once we have completed the processing work. If your application is complete, this takes no more than 30 days.
After the first disbursement, sickness benefit is paid on a specific date each month. Which date applies for you depends on when you were born:
- If you were born between the 1st and the 10th: the 25th of each month
- If you were born between the 11th and the 20th: the 26th of each month
- If you were born between the 21st and the 31st: the 27th of each month
You can see all of your disbursements on My pages (Mina sidor).
Special disbursement dates
Special disbursement dates and processing times
What happens if my application is rejected?
If it is rejected, you need to return to being an active jobseeker with the Swedish Public Employment Service.
If you want to change any aspect of your sick leave
If you want to extend your sick leave
Send in your new doctor’s certificate. You can do this digitally on Mina intyg on 1177 Vårdguiden.
Intyg (1177.se) External link, opens in new window.
If you answered yes when asked whether a new doctor’s certificate should serve to extend the sick leave when you applied for sickness benefit, then you do not need to do anything else.
If you answered no, an application form for extended sickness benefit will be sent to your home. You cannot apply for extended sickness benefit via Mina sidor (My pages).
If you want to change the scope
If you begin seeking work part time or in any other way change the scope of your sick leave, you must notify us of this. This is done most easily via My pages (Mina sidor).
If you want to report your recovery
If you recover before your sickness period has run out, report your recovery on My pages (Mina sidor).
If you cannot use My pages (Mina sidor), call the Customer Centre at 0771‑524 524 or contact your personal administrative officer.
What happens if I am sick for a long time?
If you are ill for a long time, you are assigned a personal administrative officer. He/she helps you with everything regarding your sickness benefit, e.g. planning how you can start seeking a job again.
When you have received sickness benefit for 364 days, your compensation will be reduced from the normal level of 80 percent to a continuation level of 75 percent of your sickness benefit qualifying income (SGI).
If you have a serious illness you can apply to keep your sickness at 80 percent of your SGI even after 364 days. What in this context counts as serious illness is described in the National Board of Health and Welfare's criteria for serious illness.
Please contact your administrator if you have questions about the levels or how to apply.
Criteria for serious illness (www.socialstyrelsen.se) External link, opens in new window.
What happens if I can no longer receive sickness benefit?
If Försäkringskassan assesses that you can work, we arrange a meeting with the Swedish Public Employment Service. At this meeting, you meet administrative officers from Försäkringskassan and the Swedish Public Employment Service. The meeting is an opportunity for you to receive support (from the Swedish Public Employment Service) on your way back into working life.
