Caregiver leave

Verified 01 January 2024 - Legal and Administrative Information Directorate (Prime Minister)

The caregiving leave allows the employee to caring for a disabled or elderly person or a person who is losing their independence. This leave is available under conditions (family or close link with the person assisted, residence in France of the person assisted) and for a limited duration. We present you with the information you need to know.

Caregiver leave has replaced family support leave since 2017.

It allows the employee to temporarily cease his professional activity to care for a person who is disabled or disabled or who is losing independence or who is elderly or with whom he resides or has a close and stable relationship.

Caregiver leave is open to all employees.

The person accompanied by the employee may be one of the following:

  • The person with whom the employee lives in pairs
  • Sound ascendant, sound descendant, the child in her care (as defined in family benefits) or its collateral up to 4e degree (brother, sister, aunt, uncle, first cousin, nephew, niece...)
  • The ascendant, descendant, or collateral up to 4e degree of the person with whom the employee lives as a couple
  • An elderly or disabled person with whom he resides or with whom he has close and stable ties, to whom he assists on a regular and frequent basis. The employee acts in a non-professional capacity to perform all or part of the acts or activities of daily life.

The assisted person must reside in France on a stable and regular basis.

The maximum duration of compassionate care leave shall be fixed by collective agreement or collective company agreement or extended branch agreement.

In the absence of treaty provisions, the maximum duration of the leave shall be 3 months.

The leave may be renewed. However, the leave may not exceed 1 year over the employee's entire career.

Demand

The leave shall be taken at the initiative of the employee. It shall inform the employer in accordance with the conditions and time limits laid down in collective agreement or collective company agreement or extended branch agreement.

In the absence of treaty provisions, the employee shall address his request to the employer by any means which can be used to justify the date of the request (e.g. letter or registered e-mail).

The application shall specify the following:

  • Willingness of the employee to suspend his/her employment contract in order to benefit from the compassionate care leave
  • Date of departure on leave
  • Willingness to split the leave (or turn it into part-time), if the employee so wishes

A leave request template is available:

Apply for caregiving leave

Deadline

The request shall at least be addressed 1 month before the planned date of departure on leave.

However, leave shall start without delay if it is justified by one of the following situations:

  • Emergency linked in particular to a sudden deterioration in the state of health of the person being assisted (certified by a medical certificate)
  • Crisis situation requiring urgent employee action
  • Abrupt cessation of the residential accommodation of the person being assisted (certified by the person in charge of the establishment)

Documents to be provided

The application for compassionate care leave must be accompanied by the following documents:

  • Declaration on the honor of the employee's family relationship with the person assisted, or of the assistance provided to an elderly or disabled person with whom he resides or maintains close and stable ties
  • Honor declaration stating either that he has not previously taken leave as a caregiver during his career or, if he has already taken such leave, his duration
  • Copy of the decision justifying a permanent incapacity rate of at least 80 % (if the person assisted is a disabled child at the time of charge or a disabled adult)
  • Copy of the award decision Custom Autonomy Allocation (Apa)
  • Copy of the decision awarding the following benefits where the assisted person receives them:
    • Third Party Surcharge (TPM) for constant help
    • Supplementary benefit for third-party assistance
    • Special surcharge for assistance by a third person covered by the CNRACL: titleContent
    • Increase for disabled officials and judges who have to rely on the assistance of a third person for ordinary life acts
    • Third-Party Surcharge for Military and War Victims

The employer cannot refuse the leave.

In the event of refusal by the employer, the employee may request the labor council (CPH).

Professional activity

The employee may not engage in any other professional activity during the period of leave.

However, it may be used by the assisted person when the latter receives Custom Autonomy Allocation (Apa) or the Disability Compensation Benefit (DCP).

Compensation

Caregiver leave is not paid by the employer (except treaty provisions providing for it).

However, the employee may receive a daily caregiving allowance (AJPA).

The AJPA aims to compensate for part of the loss of salary, within the limit of 66 days during the employee's career path.

The amount is:

  • €64.54 per day
  • €32.27 per half-day

The employee is entitled to a maximum of 22 days of AJPA per month.

Please note

the amount of the AJPA in Mayotte is €55.51 per day and €27.75 per half-day.

A template for the AJPA application form is available:

Application for payment of the daily caregiving allowance (AJPA)

The form must be sent to the Caf: titleContent or to the MSA: titleContent for insured persons covered by the agricultural scheme:

Who shall I contact

Leave splitting or part-time

If the employer accepts that the leave be split or converted into part-time, the employee shall alternate periods of work and periods of leave.

The employee must notify his employer at least 48 hours before the date on which he intends to take each period of leave.

In the case of split leave, the minimum duration of each period of leave shall be half a day.

However, leave shall start without delay if it is justified by one of the following situations:

  • Emergency linked in particular to a sudden deterioration in the state of health of the person being assisted (certified by a medical certificate)
  • Crisis situation requiring urgent employee action
  • Abrupt cessation of the residential accommodation of the person being assisted (certified by the person in charge of the establishment)

Benefits

The duration of the caregiving leave shall be taken into account for the calculation of seniority benefits.

The employee shall retain the benefit of all the advantages he had acquired before the start of the leave.

An employee who is granted compassionate care leave shall be entitled to Caregivers' old-age insurance (Ava)

The employee may request the renewal of his leave.

The number of renewals authorized, the conditions and deadlines for information shall be determined by collective agreement or collective company agreement or extended branch agreement.

In the absence treaty provisions, the employee shall submit his request for renewal at least 15 days before the date of the end of the leave originally scheduled.

He may use any means of proving the date of the request (e.g. letter or registered e-mail).

The employee may terminate (or waive) the compassionate care leave early in any of the following cases:

  • Death of the assisted person
  • Admission to an establishment of the assisted person
  • Substantial decrease in employee resources
  • Use of a home help service to assist the person being helped
  • Caregiver leave taken by another family member

The employee shall inform the employer of his wish to terminate his leave, taking into account the period of notice to be respected before the early return of the employee.

The conditions and deadlines for information shall be determined by collective agreement or collective company agreement or extended branch agreement.

In the absence of treaty provisions, the employee shall make a reasoned request to the employer at least 1 month before the date of departure on which he intends to end his leave.

In the event of the death of the assisted person, this period shall be reduced to 2 weeks.

He may use any means of proving the date of the request (e.g. letter or registered e-mail).

At the end of the caregiving leave, the employee returns to his or her job or to a similar job with at least equal pay. He's entitled to a professional interview with his employer.

He can also benefit from it before his leave.

Who can help me?

Find who can answer your questions in your region

  • For additional information about the employee-employer relationship

    Telephone administrative information - Allo Public Service

    The informants who answer you belong to the ministry responsible for labor.

    Cost: free service

    Attention: the service does not respond questions relating to unemployment compensation and representations to Pôle emploi, civil servants or public service contractors, the amount or payment of social, wage or employer contributions.

    The service is available at the following times:

    • Monday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
    • Tuesday: 8:30 to 12:15
    • Wednesday: 8:30 to 12:15
    • Thursday: 8.30am to 5.30pm
    • Friday: 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m
      • Lundi : de 08h30 à 17h30
      • Mardi : de 08h30 à 12h15
      • Mercredi : de 08h30 à 12h15
      • Jeudi : de 08h30 à 17h30
      • Vendredi : de 13h00 à 16h15

    Request a call

  • For additional information on the daily caregiving allowance (AJPA)

    Family Allowance Fund (Caf)

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