Starting your incapacity for work
Are you employed, unemployed or self-employed and have become incapacitated for work due to an illness or an accident? Find out what you need to arrange at the start of your incapacity for work.
Submitting a declaration and notification period
Have you become incapacitated for work? Then submit a declaration of incapacity for work to your health insurance fund promptly. You can do this by having a incapacity-for-work certificate completed by your attending physician, and by submitting it to your health insurance fund in good time.
The notification period varies depending on whether you are employed, unemployed or self-employed.
Incapacitated for work?
Submit your declaration to Helan as soon as possible.
How do you apply for a benefit?
Employed persons can receive incapacity benefits after the guaranteed salary period has ended. Unemployed persons can receive benefits from the first day of their incapacity for work. Self-employed persons can receive benefits from the first day of incapacity, if incapacitated for more than seven days. Apply for this by submitting an incapacity-for-work declaration.
Notify your health insurance fund of your incapacity for work in good time. That way, you can avoid any financial penalty. The notification deadline will depend on your status. Find out more about the notification period.
Your first benefit will be paid about 45 days after we receive your certificate. This is conditional on us receiving all the necessary documents correctly completed within 30 days.
Download the incapacity-for-work certificate. Have it completed by your treating physician and provide it to us digitally and in a timely manner.
Don't have a certificate of incapacity for work available?
Please ask your doctor to prepare your medical certificate (also referred to as a 'confidentiality form') with all the required details:
- your details
- the identification of the treating physician (physician recognised by the NIHDI)
- date and signature of the treating physician
- start and end date of incapacity for work
- diagnosis: reason and nature of incapacity for work
Employed and unemployed:
Fill in your information sheet via My Helan. Do this right away, so we can process your file more quickly.
Self-employed:
The health insurance fund will ask you to complete some documents:
- An information sheet with questions about your income. Please submit this digitally.
- A questionnaire regarding your professional activity. Please submit this digitally.
- A 'form 225' with questions regarding your family circumstances. Complete this digitally via My Helan.
- Or send all documents by post to Helan Ziekenfonds, Incapacity for Work Department (Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid), Boomsesteenweg 5, 2610 Wilrijk.
The health insurance fund's medical officer must first recognise your incapacity for work.
- Your incapacity for work is recognised.
- Your incapacity for work is not recognised. If you do not agree with the decision, you can appeal to the employment tribunal.
Once your incapacity for work has been recognised, we will confirm this with a letter. After your benefit file has been reviewed, you will receive another letter notifying you of your daily amount.
Later, if necessary, the medical officer may invite you for a medical assessment.
Guaranteed-salary period
Employed persons will still be receiving salary from their employer at the start of their incapacity for work. This is called the ‘guaranteed salary period’. The guaranteed salary period depends on your employment status. You will not receive illness benefits from your health insurance fund as long as you are still receiving guaranteed salary.
If you are not receiving guaranteed salary because, for example, you are unemployed and become incapacitated, you will receive benefit payments from your health insurance fund from your first day of incapacity for work.
Amount of benefit payments
Should you become incapacitated for work, the health insurance fund may pay you a replacement income. In the first year of incapacity for work, you will receive benefit payments that cover your primary incapacity for work. From the second year onwards, you will be granted 'invalidity' status and will therefore receive invalidity benefits. The rules are different for employees, the unemployed and the self-employed. Calculate how much your benefit will be approximately.
Date of benefit payment
Are you employed, unemployed or self-employed? Enter your employment status below to see when your benefit will be paid. Please note that this calendar is only applicable after you have received your first benefit payment. The date of payment will also vary depending on whether you have been incapacitated for work less than or more than one year.
Consult the calendar to track when we will transfer your replacement income to your bank. It may take a few days for the amount to reach your account, depending on your bank. As soon as we transfer the payment, you will receive an email notification. The time at which you receive this email may vary for each payment. Indicate in your profile on My Helan whether or not you want to receive a notification via email.
Please indicate your circumstances
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Track and manage your benefit file on My Helan
- initiating your benefit file
- track your benefit payments
- add documents to your benefit file digitally
- request holidays, return to work, voluntary work
- and so much more!
Medical assessment
If you are receiving incapacity benefits, you may be contacted for a medical assessment. This may occur at the start, during, or at the end of your incapacity for work. In this kind of medical assessment, the health insurance fund’s medical officer will verify your incapacity for work. You cannot decline a medical assessment.
Would you like to resume work on a part-time basis, do volunteer work or take a training course while you are incapacitated for work? Then you must first submit a request to the medical officer.
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Extensions and relapse
An extension is when you have been off work longer than the end date shown on your incapacity-for-work certificate. Notify the health insurance fund of any extension as soon as possible. If you return to work , and become incapacitated for work again after a certain period of time, this is referred to as a relapse. You should also notify us as soon as possible in such a case.
Read more about incapacity for work
Would you like to know what your rights and obligations when you are incapacitated for work? Or what to be aware of when you return to work? We would be happy to help you.
