Starting as of 1 June 2018, a new welfare benefit – the caregiver allowance – will be paid out of the sickness insurance scheme. Its purpose is to give material support to participants in the scheme who give care to someone who has been released from the hospital and will need domestic care for a sustained period of time, and to ensure that they do not lose their job during their temporary leave. This benefit may be drawn by employees if they were part of the sickness insurance scheme for at least 90 days during the past four months, as well as by self-employed individuals if they participated in the sickness insurance scheme for at least three months (note that for the self-employed, unlike employees, participation is voluntary).

The claim for the family caregiver allowance (and for caregiver leave) is conditional upon the following: the person in need of care must have been hospitalized for at least seven days, and is expected to require domestic care for at least another month. Also, the person in need of care must consent in writing to being assisted by the caregiver. Family caregiver allowance will be granted for no more 90 days, in the amount of 60% of the reduced daily assessment base per calendar day.

A particular advantage of this benefit is that family members may take turns in assisting their ailing dependent. In such a case, each caregiver submits a separate claim for allowance. In the event that several caregivers have already agreed to alternate in turns, they shall submit, along with their motion for the caregiver allowance (and along with the letter of consent signed by the person in need of care), a schedule showing how they will discharge their duties as caregiver.

The caregiver who will assist the person in need of care may be any of the following:

• Spouses
• Registered partners 
• Relatives in the direct line or collateral line
• Relatives (in the direct line or collateral line) of one's spouse, life partner, registered partner, if living in the same household
• Other natural persons who share a household with the person receiving care.

Employers may deny caregiver leave if they can show that there exist pressing operational reasons to do so. This would e.g. be the case if the regular operations of the employer are being jeopardized by the long-term absence of the caregiver because the fulfillment of work tasks is no longer warranted or performances related to the production of goods or the provision of services cannot be guaranteed.

Source: bnt attorenys-at-law, Czech Social Security Administration ČSSZ) – Allowances within the sickness insurance scheme