Sick leave for high earners
This guide covers you if you earn more than the SGI cap, which sits around 49,333 SEK/month before tax. Above that level, Försäkringskassan stops scaling sickness benefit, so it's the same whether you earn 55,000 or 100,000 SEK/month.
One detail many people miss: sick pay for the first 14 days is not capped, it follows your full salary. The big drop only comes at day 15, when Försäkringskassan's sickness benefit takes over.
Where the cap sits
The SGI cap is ten times the prisbasbelopp, which for 2026 is 592,000 SEK/year (10 × 59,200). That's the equivalent of 49,333 SEK/month before tax. Salary above that amount still appears on your pay slip but isn't counted when Försäkringskassan sets your SGI.
Sick pay isn't capped, but sickness benefit is
For the first 14 days your employer pays sick pay at 80% of your full salary, with no cap. From day 15 sickness benefit takes over, and it's 77.6% of SGI up to the cap, at most SEK 1,259 per day. That works out to a little over 38,000 SEK/month, no matter how high your salary is. If the sick leave runs past 364 days, the cap drops further to SEK 1,180 per day at the continuation level. So for a high earner, the gap against salary opens up at day 15.
What you can do about it
What mainly lifts compensation back toward salary level is your collective agreement. Below the cap it typically adds around 10% on top of sickness benefit, but it's above the cap that agreements differ most: some step in with a much higher share of the salary that Försäkringskassan doesn't cover, others with less. Since that's the part that decides the size of your gap, it's worth finding out exactly what your agreement pays above the cap before you need it.
Frequently asked questions
The SGI cap is 592,000 SEK/year, or about 49,333 SEK/month before tax. It's calculated as ten times the prisbasbelopp (59,200 SEK for 2026) and is adjusted annually. Salary above the cap produces no additional sickness benefit.
At the cap, sickness benefit is about SEK 1,259 per day at the standard level, roughly a little over 38,000 SEK/month. After 364 days it drops to SEK 1,180 per day at the continuation level.
Not for the sickness benefit from day 15, which is the same as long as both salaries are above the cap. It does show in the sick pay for the first 14 days, which is 80% of your full salary and so higher the more you earn.
Often partly. Below the cap the agreement typically adds around 10% on top. Above the cap, where Försäkringskassan pays nothing, some agreements step in with a considerably larger share. How much varies, so check with your employer or union for what your specific agreement offers.