Illness and notification when you are ill in Denmark

When am I ill enough to call in sick from work?

Do you have to stay home from work because you're unwell, have a cold, headache or cough? Can you call in sick if you're having a bad day, haven't slept well, are in a crisis due to personal problems or mental health issues? Or is it only necessary to call in sick when you have a fever, are vomiting or are so ill that it's completely impossible to work?

It's up to you to decide when you can't do your job.

When considering whether you're ‘sick enough’ to call in sick, keep in mind that an early sick day can prevent you from getting worse. If you go to work while ill, you could also risk infecting your colleagues, which means you're actually hindering your colleagues' work in the long term instead of helping them in the short term.

Your manager may request a medical certificate to confirm that you really are ill. The employer must pay for the medical certificate.

Should I call in sick if I can work from home but I'm too ill to go to the office?

The flexible, hybrid working life has the advantage of making working from home more acceptable.

However, it can also make you feel pressured to work from home when you're actually sick - either because you feel guilty or because of a sense of duty or responsibility to your tasks and colleagues, commitment to your tasks or workplace culture.

But if you are unwell, you should call in sick so you have time and peace of mind to recover. If you're not sure if you're sick enough Ask yourself what you would say to your friend or partner if they were working while feeling the way you do.

What should I do if I feel pressured to work remotely instead of calling in sick?

The purpose of calling in sick is to take care of your health and recover. Therefore, your employer cannot require you to work from home when you're ill - this also means that you should not respond to emails or messages from your workplace or be available in any other way.

However, you may feel obliged to work from home during illness anyway. Maybe it's your own expectations of yourself, your work performance or your tasks that are putting pressure on you. Maybe it's your workplace's expectations of when your task should be completed.

If it's a recurring problem that you feel pressurised to be available from home during illness, talk to your manager, your colleagues, HR, your union representative or health and safety representative about feeling pressured to work even though you're sick.

Start by asking your colleagues if they experience the same pressure. If it's primarily you experiencing the pressure, you can discuss it with your manager; if it's a general problem in the workplace, you may need to address it at the workplace level.

When should I call in sick?

If you are ill, you must notify your employer as soon as possible - preferably before working hours begin and generally no later than 2 hours after working hours have started, unless you are prevented from giving notice.

How do I call in sick?

Most workplaces have rules for how you as an employee report sick and who you should report sick to.
The rules can, for example, include:

How do you report sick? Do you have to call, or is it enough to send a text message, an email or a message in Teams, for example?

Who should you report sick to? Should you only report sickness to your manager or should you also report sickness to relevant colleagues and business partners?

If you're ill for several days, should you call in sick every day, or is it okay to call in sick once and stay away until you're well again without giving further notice?

Do you need to tell someone when you expect to be back?

You can find the rules on how to call in sick by asking your manager or checking the company's staff handbook.

It's important that you follow the rules, as it's your responsibility to document that you have given notice in case of illness. Therefore, IDA recommends that you report sick in writing so that you have documentation that you have given notice.

It's always a good idea to let your colleagues and your manager know when you'll be back if you can say anything about it, so they can take precautions while you're ill.

Do I need to share details about my illness with my manager or colleagues?

Your health information is confidential. Therefore, you are not obliged to tell your manager, colleagues or others at work what is affecting you when you are ill.

However, you must notify the relevant managers and colleagues if there are tasks you cannot perform due to illness.

Your employer may ask when you plan to return to work. You can also tell them yourself if you know.

Can my manager or colleagues contact me while I am sick?

Your employer is welcome to contact you while you are ill to get answers to work-related questions, for example if they need your knowledge to be able to solve a task in your absence.

Your manager may also ask about your health in general terms (you are not obliged to state what is wrong with you) and when you think you will return to work.

If your manager contacts you to pressure you, it can either be due to poor work culture, poor management or outright harassment.

If your manager pressures you, you can tell the manager that he/she has no right to contact you to pressure you back to work before you are ready. You can also contact IDA and get advice on how to handle the situation.

If you are ill for more than 4 weeks, your manager is obliged to call you in for an interview.

Can my employer or manager request a doctor's certificate when I am ill?

After your first day of absence, your employer can request a doctor's certificate as documentation for your sick leave. This document is also called a "friattest".

If your employer does so, they must also pay for the doctor's certificate. You however, have to pay for it at the doctor's visit and will be renumerated for the costs afterwards.

Am I entitled to pay during illness?

In Denmark, you are entitled to pay, when you are ill. As a salaried employee, as most IDA members are, you are entitled to full salary, both in the public and private sector.

Special rules for pay during illness may apply if you are ill due to a work-related injury.

Learn more about work-related injuries

Can I go to the doctor, dentist, check-ups or treatments during working hours?

Any treatment you seek because you have become acutely ill or are in pain will be covered by the rules in the Salaried Employees Act on pay during illness. This means that you can go to the doctor/treatment during working hours and also receive pay during your absence. You must remember to notify your employer that you have an emergency doctor's appointment, but you don't need to tell them what's the issue.

If you schedule an appointment with a doctor, dentist, hospital or specialist examination or treatment with a physiotherapist, psychologist or other healthcare professional in the future, you should, as far as possible, schedule your doctor's appointment outside of working hours.

If it is not possible to schedule treatment outside normal working hours, you will be entitled to salary during your absence if the reason for the treatment can be equated with illness under the Salaried Employees Act. Therefore, your employer cannot deduct your salary or require you to use time off in lieu or holiday days if you need to attend scheduled medical examinations or treatment during working hours.

Your scheduled routine check-ups at the dentist, for example, will generally be unpaid absence, unless your collective agreement, employee handbook or contract states otherwise.

In general, it's important to check your collective agreement, employee handbook or contract, as special rules may apply at your workplace.

What if I fall ill during the working day and have to go home? Or if I only do a little remote work while I'm ill?

Your sick leave must be registered in full days. This is because your employer is obliged to register illness and report it to Statistics Denmark.

Therefore, you cannot decide for yourself exactly for how long you are off sick during the course of a day.

As stated above in the answer to the question 'What should I do if I feel pressured to work remotely instead of calling in sick?' the purpose of a sick day is to recover, which is best achieved by taking full sick days.

If you decide to work a little during the sick day, you still need to report sick for the whole day, but you can inform your employer that you will work as much as you can.

Other ways of registering sickness must be agreed with your manager. For example, if you are sick for 3 days, but you have actually worked the equivalent of one day from home. Then you can ask your employer if it's okay to record only 2 sick days instead of 3.

What can I do when I'm ill from work or on sick leave?

You don't have to stay in bed because you're ill or on sick leave.

You can go outside, for example to go grocery shopping, to the pharmacy, etc. as long as it doesn't delay your recovery. Sometimes doctors even recommend that you exercise while you're sick - for example, for back pain or stress.

But your behaviour must be reasonable. You could be dismissed if your employer thinks you've been too active during your sick leave. Therefore, you should be careful about what you post on social media, such as pictures of your activities.

Ask your doctor if you have any doubts about what you can or should do in relation to your illness, and get the doctor's recommendations written into your medical records so that you have them in writing in case it becomes an issue between you and your workplace.

Can I go on holiday when I'm feeling ill?

As a rule, you are not allowed to go on holiday while you are off sick, because illness is a so-called holiday impediment.

This also means that if you fall ill during your holiday, you may be entitled to a replacement holiday.

However, if you are on long-term sick leave, you may be allowed to take holiday during your sick leave.

Get support from IDA when you are ill

As a member of IDA you can get advice on your rights in connection with sickness.

Illness and sick leave