The National Assembly passed an amendment to extend the minimum duration of bereavement leave for parents who have lost a child, from 5 to 12 days.
Currently, the Labor Code provides 5 days of leave in case of loss of a child and 7 working days for children under 25 years old. In 2020, the government set up a “parental bereavement leave” of 8 additional days for those under 25 who live in the household, an allowance partly covered by Social Security. In 2021, Guy Bricout (UDI) proposed to extend the duration of the leave in the Labor Code, but this bill had been rejected by the Assembly, which had aroused indignation. This Thursday, March 2, the deputies avoided a new controversy, by voting unanimously the extension of the minimum leave for parents who lose a child, increasing its duration from 5 to 12 days.
This LFI amendment was passed as part of the Horizons group’s bill, which aims to improve support for families whose child is seriously ill. “No day off will ever replace the loss of a child” underlined Frédéric Mathieu who defends the extension of this leave, if only to “complete the administrative procedures” and “material” in the event of a death.
“No day off will ever replace the loss of a child.”
How long is bereavement leave in France?
Currently in France, bereavement leave may extend over a total of 15 days. Indeed, the current leave provided for in the Labor Code is 7 days for children under 25to which is added bereavement leave of a period of 8 additional days. These days can be split up and are partly covered by Social Security.
Until when can bereavement leave be taken in the event of the loss of a child?
The death of the child must have occurred less than two years ago. It should be noted that the allowance is due in the event of death occurring from the 20th week of pregnancy.
What is the amount of the allowance in the event of the death of a child?
The allowance in the event of parental bereavement varies between 2130 euros and 1065 euros depending on the number of dependent children and the income of the parents at the time of the child’s death. In 2023, the resources of 2021 are taken into account. This allowance is intended to cover part of the costs related to expenses following the death of a child under 25 years of age.
- For a child, the amount in 2023 is 2130 euros if the income does not exceed 88,931 euros and 1,065 euros if the income is greater than 88,931 euros in 2021.
- For two dependent childrenthe amount of the allowance is 2,130 euros for incomes up to 94,893 euros and 1,065 euros if they are higher.
- For three dependent children : 2,310 euros for income up to 100,825 euros and 1,065 euros if the income exceeds this amount.
- For 4 dependent children, the income must not exceed 106,757 euros (amount of 2,130 euros). If the income ceiling is greater than 106,757 euros, the amount of the allowance is 1,065 euros.
What are the steps to benefit from this aid?
- If you are a beneficiary, you do not have to take any steps since the civil status services inform the Caf of the death and the allowance will be paid to you automatically.
- If you are not a recipient, you must send the forms made available to you on the page My child diedaccompanied by the requested documents, by mail to the Caf in your department or by or through the “transmit a document” function that you will find in the My Account area.
- The CAF then pays the allowance within 15 days after have received all the documents.
Can other family benefits be received in the event of the death of the child?
Following the death of the child, certain family benefits continue to be paid under certain conditions, in particular for the birth bonus (and the basic allowance), the adoption bonus (and the basic allowance), the shared education benefit and the back-to-school allowance. On the other hand, it is not possible to combine this parental bereavement allowance with a death benefit paid by a social security organization such as the health insurance fund for example.
Mourning a child: up to what age?
By fixing the age limit of 25 years for the deceased child, Parliament has taken into account the stepfamilies Who “assume the effective and permanent charge” of a young adult. In the event of the death of a young person over the age of 25, and who would themselves be a parent, the Senate had adopted a new amendment. Thus, as for young mothers returning from maternity leave , employees whose child has died benefit from a protective measure against dismissal for a period of 13 weeks.
Sources: National Assembly