International Travel and Sick Leave: Is It Possible?
In a series of significant decisions, the Council of State and the Court of Cassation have clarified the rights of employees on sick leave who temporarily travel abroad regarding the receipt of daily security social security benefits.
The dispute in question concerns an employee who was deprived of benefits for leaving the territory without permission from the primary health insurance fund. The Council of State, on November 28, 2024, ruled that the 9th paragraph of Article 37 of the 1947 decree is illegal. This ruling also determined that the text establishing the provisional internal regulations of the primary health insurance funds for the service of benefits does not allow for the withholding of benefits due to a trip abroad making control impossible.
Similarly, on June 5, 2025, the Court of Cassation drew consequences from this ruling, stating that it is no longer possible to suspend the payment of benefits based on the illegal paragraph in case of leaving the territory without prior authorization.
The Council of State will now determine whether Article 37, 9th paragraph from the 1947 decree is compatible with Article L 323-6 of the Social Security Code. The supreme administrative court is authorized to respond to this question.
Article L 323-6 of the Social Security Code regulates social security benefits in France, including daily allowances for temporary incapacity due to illness or accident. The June 19, 1947 decree, Article 37, 9th paragraph, is an older regulation potentially related to social security provisions or employees’ rights when traveling or working abroad. Its specific content needs to be confirmed from official legal texts to assess compatibility.
In principle, compatibility depends on whether the 1947 decree’s provision imposes additional restrictions or conditions on entitlement to daily benefits during temporary stays abroad, which must not contradict the provisions in Article L 323-6. The current Social Security Code tends to allow for continued benefit payment under certain conditions when an employee is temporarily abroad, provided the employee remains covered under French social security.
The Court of Cassation is also ruling on whether the text favourable to insured persons is compatible with provisions from the August 13, 2004 law on health insurance.
It is worth noting that the primary health insurance fund may authorize an employee to travel outside the territory indefinitely, if the treating physician orders it for a therapeutic purpose or for a justified personal convenience. The obligations for beneficiaries to submit to the controls organized by the medical control service do not apply to those traveling abroad.
These rulings are significant as they limit the ability of primary health insurance funds to withhold benefits based on an employee’s travel outside the territory without prior authorization. Employees on sick leave temporarily traveling abroad can now receive daily security social security benefits, if their primary health insurance fund has given them permission, without fear of benefit suspension due to leaving the territory without permission.
For detailed legal advice or confirmation, consulting official French legal databases or a specialist in French social security law is recommended.
- In light of the Court of Cassation's ruling, it seems that mental health therapies and treatments falling under health-and-wellness, when authorized by the primary health insurance fund, should not be a reason for withholding daily security social security benefits for employees on sick leave, even if such treatments require travel abroad.
- The Council of State's future ruling on the compatibility of Article 37, 9th paragraph from the 1947 decree and Article L 323-6 of the Social Security Code may further clarify whether science-based treatments or therapies abroad can be covered under daily allowances for temporary incapacity due to illness or accident, aligning with the current Social Security Code's intentions for continued benefit payment under certain conditions when an employee is temporarily abroad.
