Partial Sick Leave Arrives in Germany: Workers Can Now Clock In at 25, 50 or 75 Percent

A significant overhaul of Germany's sick-leave rules takes effect as the government introduces graded incapacity certificates — Teil-AU — allowing employees to return to work gradually while still officially ill, provided their doctor approves and the employer agrees. The reform marks a departure from the all-or-nothing approach that has long defined German workplace absence.

Under the new system, employees whose illness lasts more than four weeks can opt to work at 25, 50, or 75 percent capacity. The six-week wage-continuation period remains untouched; after that, workers receive reduced sick pay proportional to their hours. The government also plans to tighten doctor's-note requirements: an in-person medical certificate will be needed from day one of absence, eliminating the long-standing phone-based sick note. Large employers such as Airbus have welcomed stricter controls, while Audi and Kuka representatives point to existing collective agreements that require a certificate only from the fourth day. Family doctors' associations warn the rule will pile extra strain on already overburdened practices.

Privacy Fears Over Digital Health Records in the Workplace

The Berufsverband Deutscher Psychologinnen und Psychologen (BDP) — Germany's professional association of psychologists — has sharpened its position on the electronic patient record (ePA), demanding an opt-in procedure for company doctors. In a statement dated July 13, the BDP insisted that employees must give explicit consent before workplace physicians can access their digital health files. The demand responds to a draft of the Health Data Use Act (GeDIG), which currently grants company doctors broad default access.

The BDP stressed the request does not reflect distrust of medical confidentiality but rather protects employees' "informational self-determination." It calls for fine-grained masking rights so patients can shield highly sensitive data from occupational health services. Meanwhile, the ePA's hospital uptake continues to grow: nearly 70 percent of all German hospitals have now accessed the system, according to Gematik's management in early July.

Cuts of 19 Billion Euros Tighten GKV Benefits

On July 10, the Bundestag passed the GKV Contribution Rate Stabilisation Act (GKV-BStabG), targeting savings of nearly 19 billion euros by 2027. The package delivers far-reaching cuts:

• Co-payments for prescription drugs rise to between 7.50 and 15 euros
• Homeopathic treatments and skin-cancer screening are removed from the statutory catalogue
• Funding for filling the ePA and for organ-donation counselling is eliminated

Psychotherapy faces particular pressure. The Verband Psychologischer Psychotherapeutinnen und Psychotherapeuten (VPP) criticised the scrapping of the "reasonableness test" for fee negotiations. VPP chair Dr. Johanna Thünker warned the move threatens the very existence of many practices.

A modest victory came on July 9, when the Berlin-Brandenburg Social Court temporarily suspended planned fee cuts of 4.5 percent in an interim ruling.

Experts on the GKV finance commission believe the measures may stabilise contribution rates for 2027. However, they cautioned that further reforms will likely be needed by 2029 and 2030.

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