The status of an individual entrepreneur in Ukraine is not only about taxes, reporting, and ongoing obligations to the state. It is also about rights clearly defined by law, which entrepreneurs often do not exercise simply because they are unaware of them. One such right is the right to receive sick leave and other social benefits.
Many entrepreneurs are unaware that they are eligible for the same types of assistance as employees, provided that they have paid their social security contributions. Therefore, it is important to know that being a sole proprietor means having real social protection tools that are worth using. We will explain how to do this below.
Who is eligible for sick pay?
All individual entrepreneurs can receive sick leave, regardless of their tax group and system. However, this is subject to them paying social security contributions. This right arises from the moment an insured event occurs, as specified in Part 1 of Article 12 of the Law of Ukraine “On Compulsory State Social Insurance”.
If an individual entrepreneur is also an employee and the employer has paid social security contributions for them in an amount not less than the minimum insurance contribution, then insurance payments can be received at the place of work. In this case, sick leave for individual entrepreneurs cannot be issued.
Conditions for receiving sick leave:
- The individual entrepreneur must be an insured person — pay social security contributions for the months of the calculation period and for the month in which the event occurred.
- No arrears — in order to receive the payment, it is important that there are no arrears in the payment of social security contributions (certificates of the status of settlements are required).
- The basis for payments is an electronic sick leave certificate generated in the Unified Register of Sick Leave Certificates based on a medical opinion.
How to calculate the amount of payments?
The amount of sick pay depends on the amount of income from which you paid social security contributions. The calculation period is 12 months before the month in which the insured event occurred.
For example, if you took sick leave in November 2025, the calculation period will be from November 2024 to October 2025.
The amount of benefits per day can be calculated using the following formula:
Average daily benefit = Individual entrepreneur’s income for the calculation period (ESV base) : Number of calendar days in the calculation period * insurance experience coefficient.
That is, if an individual entrepreneur pays the minimum social security contribution of 1,760 UAH/month, the income base is the minimum wage of 8,000 UAH. We have the following calculation:
- Income for the year: 8,000 × 12 = 96,000 UAH.
- Number of days: 365
- Average daily benefit: 96,000 ÷ 365 = 263 UAH.
The insurance period coefficient is:
- up to 3 years — 50%;
- 3–5 years — 60%;
- 5–8 years — 70%;
- over 8 years — 100%.
For example, if the insurance period of an individual entrepreneur is 7 years and 4 months, the coefficient is 70%. Average daily payment: 263 × 70% = 184 UAH. Next, the amount obtained must be multiplied by the number of days of incapacity for work. Sick leave is paid from the 6th day. The individual entrepreneur does not receive any payments for the first 5 days. Let’s assume that the sick leave lasts 13 days. 13 − 5 = 8 days are subject to payment. Therefore, the amount of sick leave payments is: 184.11 × 8 ≈ 1,472 UAH.
The first 5 days of illness are not paid to the individual entrepreneur according to the sick leave certificate. The Pension Fund of Ukraine pays for the remaining days of illness, starting from the 6th day.
What documents are required?
The individual entrepreneur must collect a package of documents to apply to the Pension Fund of Ukraine (PFU) for temporary disability benefits. Namely:
- Electronic sick leave certificate (e-sick leave) — based on a medical opinion, it is automatically generated by a doctor in the system. The entrepreneur can view its status in Actions or in the PFU’s electronic office.
- Application-calculation — a form of application to the PFU, which specifies the period of temporary disability, the number of days, and the calculated amount of benefit. It is submitted through the electronic office on the PFU portal or in paper form.
- Certificate of no arrears in social security contributions — can be obtained from the taxpayer’s electronic office (cabinet.tax.gov.ua) or from the tax authority at the place of registration.
- Tax return — available in the taxpayer’s electronic office in the “Incoming/outgoing documents” section.
- Details of the social account for crediting sick leave (account 2604).
- Documents on the registration of an individual entrepreneur — an extract or statement from the Unified State Register can be obtained from Diia.
Deadlines for submitting documents
You can apply to the PFU with a statement of account and a package of documents within six months from the date of closing the e-sick leave or recovery. Before submitting the application, you must pay the unified social tax (UST) for the month in which the insured event occurred, as well as for all months of the calculation period. Without this, the payment will not be granted. Therefore, it is better to collect the documents immediately after the e-sick leave has received the status “ready for payment”. However, the law allows you to submit an application at any time within a six-month period.
Therefore, an individual entrepreneur has the full right to sick leave and other social benefits — the main thing is to pay the unified social tax on time, know the list of necessary documents, and submit an application to the Pension Fund of Ukraine within the established deadlines.
The CeDePe team can help you prepare documents, check payments, and assist with the application process to ensure that you receive the appropriate payments without delays or stress. Click “Order” on the website to get expert advice.
