How to get electronic sick leave
Electronic sick leave is opened by the doctor treating you, most often your family doctor. After an exam or consultation, they issue a medical report on temporary incapacity in the national eHealth system, and the Pension Fund of Ukraine uses it to automatically create a sick leave certificate your employer can see. You don't need to bring any paperwork to work.
Who opens electronic sick leave
Sick leave is opened by your treating doctor: a family doctor, internist, pediatrician or the specialist who is treating you. The clinic can be public or private, as long as it works in the national eHealth system.
Formally, the doctor issues a medical report on temporary incapacity for work. The report goes to the Pension Fund of Ukraine, and if you’re officially employed, the fund automatically creates an electronic sick leave certificate. That certificate is what people usually mean by sick leave. Your doctor doesn’t need your employer’s details: the Pension Fund finds you in the register of insured persons.
The easiest way is to get sick leave from your own family doctor. They know your medical history, and you can contact them by phone or on Viber with any health question.
How to get sick leave from your family doctor
- Contact your doctor on the first day you feel you can’t work.
- Describe your symptoms, and the doctor will decide whether you need to be seen in person. If you have signs of a cold, flu or COVID-19, sick leave can be opened after a phone consultation for up to 5 days. This is allowed while martial law is in effect.
- Based on your condition, the doctor decides whether you need sick leave and for how long, then issues the medical report. Ask for the report number so you can check your sick leave.
- Let your employer know you’re on sick leave.
When you call, say straight away that you need sick leave. Describe your symptoms, your temperature and the day you fell ill, and name any medicines you’re already taking.
A phone consultation works when your condition allows you to be treated at home. You need to be seen the same day if you have a high fever that won’t come down or a cough with shortness of breath. If you have severe shortness of breath, chest pain or confusion, call an ambulance on 103.
Patients with a declaration with a Viva Clinic family doctor call their doctor or message them on Viber. With signs of a cold, flu or COVID-19, sick leave can be opened after a phone consultation. In other cases, the doctor needs to see you in person.
If you don’t have a declaration with one of the clinic’s doctors yet, you can sign one free of charge at reception on a weekday between 8:00 and 17:00, at 3 Danyla Halytskoho St or 27a Sobornosti St. A declaration is the document that registers you with a primary care doctor. Bring your passport, tax ID number and your previous declaration, if you have one. The administrator will tell you which doctors are currently accepting new declarations. To see what else is free for patients with a declaration, read What a family doctor declaration covers.
How sick leave is extended and closed
If you’re well again when the period in the medical report ends, you don’t need to do anything: the sick leave certificate closes on its own, and there’s no need to see the doctor again.
If your illness lasts longer, contact your doctor again. After examining you, they’ll issue a new report, and your sick leave will be extended as part of the same case. Sick leave opened after a phone consultation can only be extended after an in-person exam.
If you recover sooner than the report says, go to your doctor. They’ll confirm you’re fit to work and issue a new report that shortens your sick leave.
Payment is a matter for your employer and the Pension Fund, and the doctor has no say in it. For how much you’ll be paid and when, ask your employer’s accounting department or the Pension Fund.
Sick leave to care for a sick child
When a child is ill, sick leave is opened for one of the parents or another family member who looks after the child. It’s issued by the child’s doctor, a pediatrician or family doctor. For a child under 14 being treated at home, the care report is issued for up to 14 calendar days. If the child is admitted to hospital and you stay there with them, sick leave covers the whole time you’re in hospital together.
Viva Clinic pediatricians issue sick leave to parents caring for a sick child. Tell the administrator when you book, and the doctor at the start of the appointment, that you need it.
How to check your electronic sick leave
You can check the medical report on the Diia portal using its number. The sick leave certificate itself appears in your personal account on the Pension Fund of Ukraine web portal, in the “My sick leave certificates” section (Мої листки непрацездатності). To log in, you’ll need an electronic signature or BankID. Your account shows the certificate number, opening and closing dates and its status. If the dates differ from what you agreed with your doctor, let them know so they can check the report.
Questions and answers
Can I get sick leave without a declaration?
Yes. The medical report is issued by the doctor treating you, even if your declaration is with another doctor or you don't have one at all. A declaration gives you something else: free family doctor appointments and the option to contact your doctor by phone or on Viber.
Do I need to give my employer a printed copy of my sick leave?
No. You don't need to print your sick leave or bring any paper proof to work. Tell your employer you're ill in whatever way is convenient, and they'll see the sick leave certificate in their electronic account on the Pension Fund portal.
What if my sick leave doesn't appear in my Pension Fund account?
First check with your employer that they submitted your details to the register of insured persons correctly. A mistake in that data can stop the sick leave certificate from being created. Once it's fixed, ask your doctor to send the medical report again.
