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The landscape of employee incapacity has fundamentally shifted. Are you prepared?
On 1 January 2026, new legal rules entered into force aimed at accelerating the reintegration of incapacitated employees. They include important changes to the reintegration track and the force majeure track, as well as the obligation for employers to include a procedure for maintaining contact with sick employees in their work rules, restrictions on sick days without medical certificate, and new rules regarding relapse.
This article provides an overview of the most important changes for employers and employees .
1. The reinforced reintegration track 3.0
1.1 Introduction of a so-called "preventive" reintegration track
The new law introduces a possibility for the employee to initiate a reintegration track preventively, i.e. when the employee is not yet incapacitated for work but is at risk of becoming so due to illness or medical problems. The employee can then ask the employer to adjust their workstation or to provide them with different or adapted work. Such request is not subjected to any formalities.
If the employer wishes, it can seek advice from different prevention advisers (occupational doctor, ergonomist, prevention adviser for psychosocial aspects, etc.).
The employer is not obliged to grant the employee's request, but must inform the employee of its (positive or negative) decision as soon as possible.
1.2 The "informal" reintegration track: Employer-initiated pre-return visit to the occupational doctor
Previously, only the employee could request for a visit to the occupational doctor prior to returning to work. Now, such visit can also be asked by the employer. In such a case, the occupational doctor invites the employee as soon as possible (the 10-day period that was previously stipulated has been abolished), but the employee cannot be obliged to accept this invitation.
1.3 The formal reintegration track 3.0
Change 1: Immediate initiation (Day 1)
One of the most significant changes to the reintegration track is that the three-months' "waiting period" for an employer to initiate such a track has been abolished. Indeed, as of 1 January 2026, the employer can immediately initiate a reintegration track, from the first day of incapacity for work, provided however that the employee gives their consent.
Change 2: Mandatory work potential assessment (8 weeks)
Another important change is that employers are now obliged to have the occupational doctor and his/her nursing staff assess the so-called "work potential" of the absent employee after at least 8 weeks of incapacity for work. The "work potential" is a newly introduced concept that refers to the incapacitated employee's ability to perform other or adapted work.
The occupational doctor and their nursing staff assess the employee's work potential using a standardized method, i.e. (i) by using the available information on the employee's state of health and capabilities provided by the employee's treating doctor, the advising doctor of the Health Insurance Fund, the employer and the employee, and (ii) if necessary, by asking the employee to complete a questionnaire (a template of which is available on the Employment Ministry's website).
If it appears that the employee has "the potential to work", then the employer has the option to either:
- first ask the occupational doctor to invite the employee for a visit prior to resuming work; or
- to directly initiate a formal reintegration track.
Change 3: Mandatory initiation of a reintegration track after 6 months
Finally, employers with 20 or more employees are obliged to ask the occupational doctor to initiate a reintegration track no later than six months after the start of the incapacity for work.
Employers who fail to comply with this obligation risk to be penalized with a level 2 sanction under the Social Penal Code. The fine is multiplied by the number of employees involved.
Transitional rules
The above new rules relating to the reintegration track do not apply to reintegration tracks that were already initiated before 1 January 2026.
The obligation for employers with at least 20 employees to start a reintegration track after six months of work incapacity only applies for work incapacities that commence on or after 1 January 2026. In other words, if the employee was already incapacitated for work before 1 January 2026 but no reintegration track had been started yet, the new obligation to start a reintegration track after six months will not apply to this employee.
Timeline
The above new rules can be summarized as follows:
| As of day 1 | 8 weeks | 6 months |
| The employer has the option to : – have the employee invited for a visit prior to resuming work with the occupational doctor; or – Immediately initiate a formal reintegration track. However, consent of the employee is required. |
The employer is obliged to have the occupational doctor/nursing staff make an assessment of the employee's work potential. | The employer with more than 20 employees is obliged to initiate a reintegration track after 6 months of incapacity for work. |
1.4 The employee who does not cooperate can be sanctioned
If the employee has not responded to the invitation from the occupational doctor for a reintegration assessment after having been invited twice, the occupational doctor shall inform the advising doctor of the Health Insurance Fund of this fact. If the employee has not responded to the invitation from the occupational doctor after having been invited three times (with at least 14 calendar days between each invitation), the reintegration track will be terminated and the employer and the advising doctor will be informed. Not responding to the occupational doctor's invitation may result in sanctions from the Health Insurance Fund with regard to the granting of sickness benefits.
The possibility of this sanction is the reason why the occupational doctor's invitations will have to be sent by registered post, so that it can be certain that the employee has actually received the invitations.
2. The medical force majeure track: shorter waiting period
The waiting period for initiating a medical force majeure track has been shortened. Previously, an employee had to be uninterruptedly incapacitated for work for at least nine months before such track could be started. This period has now been reduced to six months. For the remainder, the medical force majeure procedure remains unchanged.
3. Staying connected with the sick employee is now mandatory
Before the entering into force of the new rules, the employer was already obliged to maintain contact with the occupational doctor. Indeed, from four weeks of incapacity for work, the employer has to inform the occupational doctor about the employee's absence so that the occupational doctor can contact the employee to inform them about the options available to facilitate their return to work, such as the possibility of requesting a visit prior to returning to work or the starting of a reintegration track. This obligation remains in place.
What is new is that the employer will now also be obliged to maintain contact with its sick employees. Such procedure "for maintaining contact" must be included in the work rules. It must be determined who will contact the sick employee and how often that contact will take place.
If this has not yet been included in the employer's work rules, it is thus necessary to do so. To this end, the normal procedure for amending work rules must be followed.
4. Solidarity contribution for primary incapacity
Employers with at least 50 employees are obliged to pay a solidarity contribution for employees between 18 and 54 years of age who are incapacitated for work for more than 30 days.
This solidarity contribution amounts to 30% of the sickness benefits received by the employee from the Health Insurance Fund during the second and third month of incapacity for work.
This contribution is calculated and collected by the National Social Security Office.
It replaces the existing disability responsibility contribution and only applies to periods of primary incapacity for work commencing on or after 1 January 2026.
The government's Budget Agreement of November 2025 also announced an extension of this solidarity contribution to a period of four months, but the specific details have not yet been finalized.
5. Extension of the relapse period to 8 weeks
Until 1 January 2026, a 14-day relapse period applied when returning to work after incapacity for work. If the employee became incapacitated for work again within that period, no new entitlement to guaranteed pay arose, unless a medical certificate showed that the new absence was the result of a different condition or accident. If the renewed incapacity for work occurred only after the expiry of this period, the employer was again obliged to pay guaranteed pay.
With effect from 1 January 2026, this relapse period has been significantly extended to eight weeks. This means that if an employee returns to work and is absent again within that period, the employer will not be obliged to pay guaranteed pay.
This extended relapse period applies to incapacities for work occurring from 1 January 2026 onwards.
6. Fewer sick days without medical certificate
From 1 January 2026, an employee will only be able to take one sick day twice a year without having to submit a medical certificate, instead of three times a year.
7. Action points
- Update work rules
The first action point for employers who have not already done so, is to include a procedure "for maintaining contact" with sick employees in their work rules. To this end, the normal procedure for amending work rules must be followed.
- Review internal policies
Furthermore, it is important that employers consider how they need to adapt their internal reintegration policy to comply with the new regulations.
As a recap, we have listed the new possibilities and obligations for employers in the table below..
| Optional for the employer | Mandatory for the employer |
| Preventive reintegration track | X |
| Informal reintegration track initiated by the employer | X |
| Assessment of work potential after 8 weeks | X |
| Initiate reintegration track after 6 months | X (if ≥ 20 employees) |
| Contact with sick employees | X |
| Payment of a solidarity contribution | X (if ≥ 50 employees) |
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
