Pregnancy sick leave (trudničko bolovanje): the new law, 100% pay and who pays
Pregnancy sick leave in Serbia under the new law: 100% pay from day one, who pays the first 30 days and after, calculation, maternity leave, late payment.
Pregnancy sick leave under the new law: 100% from the first day
Pregnancy sick leave (trudničko bolovanje) is not a separate legal institution but one of the grounds for temporary incapacity for work. The Health Insurance Law (Zakon o zdravstvenom osiguranju, "Sl. glasnik RS", nos. 25/2019, 92/2023 and 109/2025 - other law) describes it in Article 73 as incapacity due to illness or complications related to maintaining a pregnancy.
When people search for "trudničko bolovanje novi zakon" (the new law), they mean the amendments published in "Sl. glasnik RS", no. 92/2023, applied from 1 January 2024. Since then, salary compensation is 100% of the base for the whole of pregnancy sick leave, including the first 30 days (Art. 95). Previously the employer paid 65% for the first 30 days and the full amount began only on day 31.
The rule applies to employees, but also to sole traders and other insured women entitled to salary compensation under this law. The condition is prior insurance of at least three months without interruption or six months with interruptions in the last 18 months (Art. 50). An insured woman who does not meet that condition receives compensation equal to the minimum wage until she meets it (Art. 74).
The leave is not opened by the employer or a private practice. It is opened by the chosen doctor, and after a certain number of days RFZO's medical commission decides on extension. From 2026 sick notes are issued and delivered through the e-bolovanje system.
Who pays the compensation and when
For the first 30 days the employer calculates and pays the compensation from its own funds (Art. 101). It pays within the period in which it pays salaries to other employees.
From day 31 the funds are provided by RFZO. The compensation stays at 100% and is financed from two sources: 65% of the base from compulsory health insurance and 35% from the state budget. The employer still has work to do. It prepares the calculation and submits it to the RFZO branch with the sick note. On a complete claim the branch makes the calculation and transfers the funds to the employer's special account within 21 days at the latest, and the employer pays them out within seven days (Art. 102).
This is where delays arise in practice. The employer submits the calculation only after the month ends, and the fund has its own payment period. Compensation for one month can therefore arrive six to eight weeks later. That is hard on a household budget, but does not in itself mean anyone has broken the law.
How the compensation is calculated
The base for compensation borne by RFZO is the average salary earned in the 12 months before the month in which the leave began (Art. 87). Salaries with all employers in that period are added up. For months with no salary the minimum wage is taken. No single month can enter the average at more than the highest contribution base (Art. 88).
For the first 30 days the employer as a rule uses the average of the salaries you earned with it. If you have worked there for less than 12 months, the average for the time worked is used, and if there has been no salary yet, the basic salary from the contract.
Payments that have the character of salary are included: meal allowance, holiday allowance, the seniority supplement, night and overtime supplements, bonuses. It is therefore worth comparing the calculation with your payslips. The compensation is paid as a net amount after tax and contributions, like salary.
Moving from pregnancy sick leave to maternity leave
Under Article 94 of the Labour Law (Zakon o radu), maternity leave begins no earlier than 45 and no later than 28 days before the due date. On that day pregnancy sick leave ends. Maternity leave lasts until three months after the birth, followed by childcare leave, 365 days in total for a first and second child.
Both the statute and the payer change. From that day compensation is claimed under the Law on Financial Support for Families with Children (Zakon o finansijskoj podršci porodici sa decom, "Sl. glasnik RS", no. 113/2017, with later amendments and Constitutional Court decisions). The claim is filed through the employer or the eUprava portal, and the state pays the money directly into your account. The base is the sum of contribution bases in the last 18 months divided by 18, and the monthly base may not exceed five average monthly salaries in the Republic (Art. 13). Payment is made by the ministry responsible for financial support to families, into the beneficiary's current account (Art. 14).
Because of this calculation many mothers receive less on maternity leave than on pregnancy sick leave. Months without salary enter the division as zero.
What to do when the employer or RFZO is late
First establish who is late. For the first 30 days the debtor is the employer. Send a written request for payment with the sick note number and the period. If it does not pay, you can report to the labour inspectorate, which can order payment, and sue before the basic court for the debt with default interest. The claim becomes time-barred after three years (Art. 196 of the Labour Law).
For the period from day 31, ask the employer on what date it submitted the calculation to the branch. If it has not been submitted, the omission is the employer's. If it has, the status of the claim can be checked on RFZO's online service or at the branch. Once the branch's time limit has passed, write to the branch and ask for the reason for the delay. If the fund disputes the right to compensation itself, ask it to issue a formal decision, because only a decision can be appealed. The appeal is filed within 15 days of service of the decision (Art. 153 of the Law on General Administrative Procedure), and the Republic Fund decides on it at second instance (Art. 166 of the Health Insurance Law). The exact deadline and body are also stated in the legal remedy instruction in the decision.
An employer whose account is blocked or who does not pay contributions complicates payment considerably. In that situation it is worth seeking legal advice early, since the payment route depends on the circumstances. The general information on this page does not replace a check of your own calculation and documents.
When to consult a lawyer
A delay of a few weeks between the sick leave and the payment is often the result of the regular deadlines for calculation and reimbursement, and as a rule does not require a lawyer. Legal advice makes sense when the employer does not pay the compensation for the first 30 days even after a written request, when the calculation differs from your payslips, when the employer's account is blocked or it is not paying contributions, or when RFZO issues a decision disputing the right to compensation. The deadline for an appeal against a decision is 15 days, and monetary claims against the employer become time-barred after three years, so it is useful to speak with a lawyer before those deadlines expire, bringing the sick-leave certificates, payslips, and correspondence with the employer and the branch office.
Sources
- Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement (Tarifa o nagradama i naknadama troškova za rad advokata, Sl. glasnik RS No. 43/2023), Items 13
- Tariff on Attorneys' Fees and Expense Reimbursement, consolidated text (Sl. glasnik RS Nos. 43/2023 and 56/2025) (paragraf.rs)
- Health Insurance Law (Zakon o zdravstvenom osiguranju), Arts. 50, 74, 95, 102, 143, 148 and 166
- Labour Law (Zakon o radu), Art. 196
- Law on Financial Support for Families with Children (Zakon o finansijskoj podršci porodici sa decom), Arts. 13 and 14
- Law on Court Fees (Zakon o sudskim taksama), Art. 10, Fee Schedule Item 1
- Law on General Administrative Procedure (Zakon o opštem upravnom postupku), Art. 153
What to do
- The leave is opened by your chosen doctor, as a rule the chosen gynaecologist at the public health centre, on a finding that rest is needed to maintain the pregnancy. A private gynaecologist's report is not enough on its own; take it to the chosen doctor.
- Check that the sick note has been issued in the e-bolovanje system and that the employer has received it. From 2026 sick notes are exchanged electronically, so as a rule you do not carry a paper certificate yourself.
- The chosen doctor can certify sick leave for maintaining a pregnancy for up to 60 days; after that, further extension is assessed, on the chosen doctor's proposal, by RFZO's first-instance medical commission (Arts. 143 and 148 of the Health Insurance Law). Keep track of the dates to which leave has been approved so that no gap arises.
- Ask the employer for the calculation and compare it with your salaries for the previous 12 months. Meal allowance, holiday allowance and the seniority supplement are part of the base.
- If the employer is late paying the first 30 days, send a written request with a deadline. If that does not help, a report to the labour inspectorate and a court claim for payment are possible.
- If the part paid through RFZO is late, ask the employer on what date it submitted the calculation to the branch, and check the status on RFZO's online service for salary compensation claims.
- No earlier than 45 and no later than 28 days before the due date, give the employer the report opening maternity leave, so that it can file the claim for compensation under the rules on financial support for families with children in good time.
What it costs
Opening sick leave and the procedure before the medical commission are free of charge. Costs arise only if there is a dispute with the employer. In an employment dispute the employee pays a court fee only if the claim is a monetary one (Fee Schedule to the Law on Court Fees, Item 1, note 8), and a claim for unpaid salary compensation is exactly that, so the fee is as a rule payable. The court may grant an exemption for limited means (Art. 10). On top of that comes the attorney's fee if you engage a lawyer.
Basis for the attorney fee: Tariff item 13 of the Attorney Tariff (representation in civil proceedings, assessable matter), if unpaid compensation is recovered by a court claim. The value of the dispute is the amount owed.
FAQ
What does the new law change for pregnancy sick leave?
Under the amendments to the Health Insurance Law ("Sl. glasnik RS", no. 92/2023), applied from 1 January 2024, compensation for pregnancy sick leave is 100% of the base for the first 30 days as well, which the employer pays. Before that, the employer paid 65% for the first 30 days and 100% applied only from day 31.
Who pays pregnancy sick leave after 30 days?
From day 31 the funds are provided by RFZO: 65% of the base from compulsory health insurance and 35% from the state budget. The employer submits the claim with evidence to the RFZO branch, the branch transfers the funds to the employer's special account, and the employer pays them to you. The branch pays directly into the insured person's current account only for sole traders without a special account, their employees, and clergy and religious officials (Art. 102 of the Health Insurance Law).
How is the compensation calculated?
The base is the average salary earned in the 12 months before the month in which the leave began (Art. 87 of the Health Insurance Law). For months without salary, the minimum wage is taken. The base cannot exceed the highest monthly contribution base (Art. 88). For the first 30 days the employer uses the average of salaries earned with that employer.
Can my employer dismiss me while I am on pregnancy sick leave?
Under Article 187 of the Labour Law the employer may not terminate the employment contract of an employee during pregnancy, maternity leave and childcare leave. A fixed-term contract is extended until the end of that leave.
When does pregnancy sick leave turn into maternity leave?
Maternity leave (porodiljsko odsustvo) begins no earlier than 45 and no later than 28 days before the due date (Art. 94 of the Labour Law). From that day you no longer receive compensation under the Health Insurance Law but under the Law on Financial Support for Families with Children, which the state pays directly into your account.
Why is maternity pay lower than pay on pregnancy sick leave?
Because it is calculated differently. For maternity leave, the bases on which contributions were paid in the last 18 months are added up and divided by 18, regardless of whether you worked all 18 months. Anyone who worked for less than 18 months before the pregnancy therefore receives less. Pregnancy sick leave is calculated from a 12-month average.