Partial return to work

Are you incapacitated for work but want to return to an activity? Do you want to take a training course or do voluntary work? Always request permission from Helan Health Insurance Fund. Find out what you need to do. 

What is a partial resumption of work?

Would you like to return to work after a period of incapacity but not go full time straight away? You certainly can! After all, the longer you are out of the workforce, the more difficult it is to return. By resuming work on a part-time basis you can phase your return to the labour market. You can also do >volunteer work or take a training course.

You can decide yourself to resume work part-time - in consultation with your attending physician and your employer (if you are working for one). Follow the steps outlined below to do so. You can also get guidance from the health insurance fund's return-to-work coordinator

It is important to always ask for pre-approval from your health insurance fund's medical officer using the official application form. If you do not ask permission in advance, you may lose all your benefits.

Monitor your file

Track your benefit payments on My Helan.

What are the conditions for resuming work part-time?

You can resume working part-time if you have not worked for at least one full day because of your work disability and are recognised. Do you have several employers and does your health not allow you to carry out one of your two jobs while continuing to work in your other job? Then you cannot be recognised as being unfit for work and consequently cannot obtain an agreement to work part-time.

It is important that you always ask permission in advance from the advisory doctor of your health insurance fund via the official application form. If you do not ask permission in advance, you may lose your entire benefit.

How do I request permission?

Request approval for a part-time resumption of work using the official application form. Submit it to us digitally on My Helan or by post. If you inform us without using the application form, your request will not be valid.

Submit your application to us digitally on My Helan, or by post.

Complete your application digitally via My Helan or download the document, complete it and send it by post.

1. Send us your application digitally via My Helan.

Send us your application for part-time resumption of work or volunteer work digitally. This is the fastest and easiest option.

2. Download the application form and send it to us by post.

Send us your application form for your part-time resumption of work or your application form for volunteer work. Send your completed application as soon as possible to Helan Onafhankelijk Ziekenfonds, Incapacity for Work Service (Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid), Boomsesteenweg 5, 2610 Wilrijk.

Please correctly complete the application form in full, yourself. Make sure to coordinate with your employer beforehand. If your application form is incomplete, we will not be able to process your application. One of our staff will then contact you about this. Make sure these details are filled in:

  • start date of your part-time activity
  • type of activity: labourer, employee, self-employed, independent secondary occupation
  • number of hours (per week) you worked prior to your incapacity for work
  • number of hours (per week) you want to work during your incapacity for work
  • tick fixed or variable hours and complete the schedule
  • name of your employer (if you want to work for an employer)
  • your signature

The medical officer of the health insurance fund will review your application. If necessary, the medical officer may invite you for a medical assessment to decide whether you can work part-time.

The medical officer approves your application: /strong>

If you are employed:

You will receive a salary for your part-time work, and an additional benefit for your part-time incapacity for work. Your employer will report the number of hours you worked each month. We will calculate your benefit based on that information.

If you are self-employed:

  • During the first six months of part-time work: your benefit will not be reduced.
  • From the first day of the seventh month until 31 December of the third year following the year of the start of part-time activity: your daily benefit will be reduced by 10%.
  • From 1 January of the fourth year following the year of the start of the authorisation: your benefit will be reduced in line with your professional income as a self-employed person from three years earlier.

The medical officer declines further recognition of your part-time employment: 

You will stop working immediately. You may keep your wages and benefits for the period of part-time work prior to the medical assessment. From the date of the refusal of further recognition, you will once again receive full-time benefits.

  • Are you working part-time during your first year of incapacity for work? Then you still have to file for an extension of your incapacity for work. This is because even while working part-time, you must declare your incapacity for work by means of a incapacity for work certificate.
  • Is the end date of your approval to work part-time approaching and would you like to continue working part-time after that date? Then submit a new application before this end date in order to continue working part time.
  • You will also need to submit a new application if there are anychanges to your part-time activity. Examples:
    - Your timetable changes: you want to work more or fewer hours or you want to change your timetable.
    - The name of your employer changes: you are changing employers or you previously worked for a particular employer through interim contracts and then worked directly for this employer, or your employer merges or is taken over.
    - Your type of activity or the content of your job changes: e.g. from office job to warehouse worker.

Submit your application on time

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Make sure Helan Health Insurance Fund receives your application form at least one working day before the start of your part-time activity. You can start the day after we receive it. This means that you do not have to wait for the approval of your health insurance fund's medical officer.

If we receive your application form too late, this will have financial consequences with regard to your benefit:

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  • If you submit your application within 14 days of your part-time resumption of work: your benefit payments will be reduced by 10% for the period of lateness.
  • If you provide us with the application more than 14 days after your work resumption date: you will not receive any benefits from the start date of your part-time activity. Any benefits paid will be reclaimed and you will receive an invitation for a medical assessment from your health insurance fund's medical officer.

When will you receive your benefit payment?

Your additional benefit for part-time incapacity for work will be paid once per month, after receiving the 'declaration in case of an authorised activity as a salaried worker'. As your employer completes this declaration and provides it to us, the date of payment of your benefit may vary.

How do I renew my part-time work agreement?

Then you must reapply for a new agreement with your health insurance fund's advisory doctor:

1. Send us your application digitally via My Helan

Complete the application form digitally via My Helan. It's easy and quick.

2. Download the application form and send it to us by post.

Download the application form, complete it and send it to Helan Independent Health Insurance Fund, Disability Service, Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk.

Send it to us about two weeks before the end of your current agreement. That way you are sure to be on time and your current agreement can be smoothly incorporated into your new agreement.

What if my activity changes?

Increase or decrease your working regime

If you wish to work more or fewer hours than provided for in your current agreement, you must reapply before changing your working regime.

Changing working days

Do you currently work a fixed hourly schedule and wish to change to a variable hourly schedule? Or do you currently work every morning and wish to work 2.5 days a week? If so, you will need to reapply before changing your working days.

Working for another employer

If you wish to work part-time for another employer, you must reapply before changing employers.

Also, if your employer changes its name due to a merger or takeover, you must submit a new application.

Change of activity

If you continue to work for the same employer, but your activity or range of duties changes, you will have to submit a new application before changing your activity.

 

Practical questions and answers

How your part-time benefit is calculated depends on the type of part-time work you resume;

Labourer or office worker.

Your benefit is calculated based on the number of hours worked per month, known as an ‘employment fraction’. That fraction is expressed in Q/S: Q represents the number of hours you work part-time with the consent of the advising physician. The S represents the number of working hours of a full-time employee at the company. Your benefit will not be completely reduced: 20% of your benefit is exempted from the employment fraction.

A general example: You are incapacitated and you are receiving a benefit of €50 per day.

  • Q: The advising physician has authorised you to work 10 hours per week.
  • S: The normal number of working hours in your job is 38.
  • Q/S thus becomes 10/38 = 26.31%.
  • 20% of this will be exempt.
  • Your daily benefit allowance is reduced by 6%: €50 - 6% = €47.

We can calculate and pay your benefit only after we receive the monthly report from your employer. Your employer must provide us with this report digitally.

Child minder:

  • The first year of authorised work: -25%
  • From second year of authorised work: -50%

Employee in a sheltered or social enterprise workshop, or in a social enterprise working environment:

Your benefit will not be reduced. No 'report is required in case of an authorised activity as wage earner' .

Please note! You must always submit an application for part-time work to the advising physician, even in the case of an authorisation for the resumption of part-time work.

Self-employed as main or secondary occupation: 

  • Your benefit will not be reduced in the first six months of part-time work.
  • Your daily benefit is reduced by 10% from the first day of the seventh month until 31 December of the third year following the year that you started the part-time activity.
  • From 1 January of the fourth year after the year of the initial authorisation your benefit reduction will be aligned to your professional income as a self-employed person from three years prior.

For example: You will be self-employed part-time from 01/04/2021.

  • From 01/04/2021 to 30/09/2021, there will be no reduction in daily benefit allowance.
  • From 01/10/2021 to 31/12/2024: daily benefit allowance will be reduced by 10%.
  • From 01/01/2025, the reduction in income will be based on professional earnings as a self-employed person received in 2022.

For municipal councillors or CPAS council members*:

Your benefit will not be reduced.

*Not valid for the council chair position holder

You have the same employer at the start of your incapacity for work and at the start of your part-time activity

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During the period in which you are receiving severance pay, you may not receive benefits. Inform us immediately if you are receiving severance payments so that we can block your benefit during that period. Send us your C4 digitally or send it by post to Helan Health Insurance Fund - Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid,Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk.

As you currently no longer have an employer, we do not need to receive monthly statements either. Your part-time authorisation will therefore lapse automatically.

If you subsequently wish to return to work part-time with another employer, you must again provide us with another application form.

You have a different employer at the start of your incapacity for work and at the start of your part-time activity?

  1. Your severance pay will be paid by the employer that employed you at the start of your incapacity for work. You may not receive benefits during your severance pay period. Inform us immediately if you are receiving severance payments so that we can block your benefits during that period. Send us your C4 digitally or send it by post to Helan Health Insurance Fund -Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid,Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk.
  2. Your severance pay will be paid by the employer that employed you at the start of the part-time activity. Your benefit will be recalculated, taking into account the severance payments you will receive. Your employer will submit it with the monthly declarations or with the C4 document, which you must provide to us. So, your benefit will be blocked only for the part for which you receive a severance payment.

Your progressive employment has an impact on your holiday pay and possibly also on the accrual of your holiday entitlement. Contact your employer or the National Office for Annual Holidays (if you are a worker) about this.

You should only receive a holiday certificate if you are engaged in a part-time activity as a wage earner.

If you still have an active authorisation from our advising physician to perform an activity during your incapacity for work until 31 December of this year, then you will receive a 'holiday leave certificate authorised activity' at the end of November.

We do recommend that you take your remaining holidays by 31 December at the latest, as you will receive partial benefits for the holidays taken. Not taking up your holiday leave days? Then we cannot pay you your benefit for this in the month of December. You will receive a lower benefit in December in that case.

  • Please ask the employer(s) where you are currently performing the authorised activity to  forward the monthly statement of authorised activity to Helan. This can be done digitally.
  • You or your employer must also provide us with the 'holiday leave certificate authorised activity'. Your employer can do this digitally. You can also send us the holiday leave certificate digitally  or by post to Helan Independent Health Insurance Fund, Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid, Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk.

Helan must receive both documents on 2 January of next year at the earliest. Both documents are needed to calculate your benefits for the month of December.

Did you permanently stop performing your authorised activity this year and are you again completely incapacitated for work?
You may not take the remaining holiday leave from the date you stopped performing your authorised activity. However, to avoid the unjustified deducion of 24 days from your benefit in December, we will need to receive your completed holiday leave certificate. That is how we can establish your true holiday leave balance and can correctly calculate your benefit for the month of December.

Download the sworn statement of non-resumption. Send it to us digitally or fill in the document and send it by post to Helan Health Insurance Fund - Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid, Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk.

As soon as we have processed your document, the advising physician's authorisation will be cancelled and your full-time benefit will continue to be paid.

If you then wish to work part-time again during your incapacity for work period, remember to reapply to your health insurance fund in advance.

Download the sworn statement of non-resumption. Send it to us digitally or fill in the document and send it by post to Helan Health Insurance Fund - Dienst arbeidsongeschiktheid,Boomsesteenweg 5 in 2610 Wilrijk. 

As soon as we have processed this document, the advising physician's authorisation will be terminated and you will receive an authorisation by post with the correct end date. After this end date, your employer no longer needs to provide us with monthly statements. From the end date your full-time benefit will continue to be paid.

If you then want to work part-time again during your incapacity for work, remember to reapply to your health insurance fund in advance.

Have you received a convocation letter from the advising physician, but are scheduled to work part-time at that moment with the advising physician's authorisation? You are required to attend this appointment. In order to minimise disruption to the strict schedule of the advising physicians and paramedics, it is not possible to take into account your schedule.

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So, please let your employer know immediately that you will not be coming to work at that time. Have the convocation letter stamped by the advising physician and submit it to your employer as proof of legal absence.

If you have multiple employers, you should submit as many applications for part-time work as places where you wish to return to work part-time.

Example 1

You used to work 20 hours a week for employer 1 and 20 hours a week for employer 2. Now you want to work part-time for both employers for 10 hours a week for each employer, you submit 2 applications, one for each employer.

Example 2

You used to work 20 hours a week for employer 1 and 20 hours a week for employer 2. Now you want to resume part-time with employer 1 for the full 20 hours per week. Then you submit an application for part-time work resumption for your activity with employer 1.

You can. Then you submit an application for part-time work resumption for your activity with this new employer. We assume that you yourself inform your pre-disability employer.

The end date of your agreement part-time work resumption remains.

Has your current employer changed its name, e.g. due to a merger or takeover? Notify us. You don't have to submit the application form again.

But if you are employed by an employer other than the one listed on the authorisation, you will have to submit the application form again.

Refer your employer to:

  • The Social Security website.
  • The Social Security contact centre: T. 02 511 51 51, available every working day from 7am to 8pm.
  • Or the administrative office that manages the payroll for your employer.

Track and manage your benefit file on My Helan

  • initiating your benefit file
  • track your benefit payments
  • add documents to your benefit file digitally
  • request holidays, return to work, voluntary work
  • and so much more!

Tracking on My Helan

Helan Independent Health Insurance Fund is the insurance agent (n° CDZ 5006c) for ‘MLOZ Insurance’, the VMOB of Independent Health Insurance Funds, (Register of Legal Entities in Brussels, 422.189.629, recognised under no. CDZ 750/01 for branches 2 and 18). View the data sheet and the General Terms and Conditions. Belgian law applies to the insurance contract. The term of the contract is whole life. In the event of any complaint, contact the complaints department of Helan Health Insurance Fund or the insurance ombudsman. For more information about purchasing this/these product(s), please contact Helan Health Insurance Fund. Helan Onafhankelijk ziekenfonds, Boomsesteenweg 5, 2610 Wilrijk, 0411.696.011, RPR Antwerpen, www.helan.be.