As of January 1, 2024, the amount of the daily caregiver allowance (AJPA) was increased.
In France, 60% of people losing their autonomy or with a disability are helped by one or more relatives. These relatives represent 8 to 11 million people including 44% report difficulties reconciling their role with their professional life. Since October 1, 2020these so-called “helpers” are entitled to “leave and a daily caregiver allowance (AJPA)”. As of January 1, 2024, the amount of the AJPA has been revised upwards.
Definition: what is caregiver leave?
Caregiver leave or allowance replaces family support leave since 2017. It allows any employee who wish to temporarily suspend or reduce their professional activity to support their loved ones when a medical context, convalescence or change in situation requires close presence. The caregiver is a person who helps to a dependent person (disabled, elderly, suffering from a chronic or long-term illness, etc.) in the accomplishment essential acts of everyday life (cleaning, washing, meals, help with care, ensuring travel or presence during leisure activities, etc.). A person’s caregiver must be “their spouse, their partner, a parent, an ascendant or a descendantor its collateral until the 4the degree (brother, sister, aunt, uncle, first cousin, nephew, niece, etc.), a person residing with them or who maintains close and stable ties with heron a regular and frequent basis, in a non-professional capacity, to carry out all or part of the acts or activities of daily life“, indicates article L. 113-1-3 of the Social Action and Families Code, introduced by the law relating to the adaptation of society to aging of December 28, 2015.
How much is the AJPA?
Caregiver leave is not not paid by the employer (unless conventional provisions provide for it). The employee can, however, receive a daily allowance from the caregiver (AJPA) For compensate part of the loss of salary. Its amount was revalued on January 1, 2024, it is:
- 64.4 euros per day
- €32.27 per half day
How long ?
The maximum duration of caregiver leave is fixed by collective agreement. In the absence of conventional provisions, the maximum duration of leave is 3 months. The leave can be renewed but it cannot exceed 1 year over the employee’s entire career.
The leave request is to be made by the employee to his employer, at least 1 month before the planned date of departure on leave. The leave begins 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 helped (attested by medical certificate)
- Crisis situation requiring urgent action by the employee
- Sudden cessation of accommodation in an establishment from which the person receiving assistance was benefiting (certified by the head of the establishment)
When making the request, the employee must specify:
- The desire to suspend your employment contract to benefit from caregiver leave
- The date of departure on leave.
- The will to split the leave (or transform it into part-time), if the employee wishes
The employee cannot exercise no other professional activity during the leave. However, it can be used by the person receiving assistance when they receive the personalized autonomy allowance (Apa) or the disability compensation benefit (PCH).
What documents must be provided to benefit from it?
The caregiver leave request must be accompanied by the following documents:
- Declaration on honor either of the employee’s family relationship with the person being helped, or of the assistance provided to an elderly or disabled person with whom he or she resides or maintains close and stable ties
- Declaration on honor specifying either that he has not previously taken caregiver leave throughout his career, or, if he has already benefited from it, its duration
- Copy of the decision justifying a level of permanent incapacity of at least 80% (if the person being assisted is a dependent disabled child or a disabled adult) or copy of the decision to award the personalized allowance autonomy (Apa) under classification in groups I, II and III of the Aggi gridr (when the person being helped suffers from a loss of autonomy).
The employee may end caregiver leave early (or waive it) in one of the following cases:
- Death of the person being cared for
- Admission to an establishment of the person being cared for
- Significant reduction in employee resources
- Use of a home help service to assist the person being cared for
- Caregiver leave taken by another family member.
The employee informs the employer of his wish to end his leave, taking into account the length of notice to be respected before the employee’s early return. The conditions and deadlines for information are determined by convention or collective company agreement (or, otherwise, by convention or branch agreement). In the absence of an applicable convention or agreement, the employee sends a reasoned request to the employer at least 1 month before the departure date on which he intends to end his leave. He may use any means to prove the date of the request (letter or registered email, for example).