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Child benefit, parental leave and sick pay in Denmark – the 2026 rates and who pays them

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

Denmark pays child benefit every quarter and gives parents who live together 24 weeks each of leave with benefit after a birth – but some payments depend on how long you have lived or worked here. Here are the 2026 rates, the conditions and who pays what, from Udbetaling Danmark to your employer.

Father holding his sleeping baby
Photo: Monkey Business/Adobe Stock

Family benefits in Denmark, child benefit included, are paid by Udbetaling Danmark, the public authority that also handles barselsdagpenge (parental leave benefit), and they land in your NemKonto – part 4 explains that account. Two rule changes matter for newcomers. Since 1 January 2022, child benefit is split 50/50 between parents with joint custody instead of going mainly to the mother. From 1 January 2026, Udbetaling Danmark can also pay it wholly or partly to the child, if it judges that best for the child.

How much child benefit do you get in Denmark in 2026?

Børne- og ungeydelse (child and youth benefit) is paid per child. Børneydelse for children under 15 comes every quarter, on 20 January, April, July and October. Ungeydelse for 15- to 17-year-olds comes monthly on the 20th, up to and including the day your child turns 18.

Child's ageFull amount 2026Per year
0–2DKK 5,370 a quarterDKK 21,480
3–6DKK 4,248 a quarterDKK 16,992
7–14DKK 3,342 a quarterDKK 13,368
15–17DKK 1,114 a monthDKK 13,368

Source: Udbetaling Danmark and Skattestyrelsen, read 23 September 2026.

The benefit is reduced if your indtægtsgrundlag (income base) is above DKK 961,100 in 2026. If you disagree with a decision, your complaint must reach Udbetaling Danmark no later than 4 weeks after you received it.

Who qualifies – and which benefits can affect your permit?

The catch for newcomers is the optjeningsprincip (accrual principle). To receive child and youth benefit automatically you must, among other conditions, have lived or worked in Denmark for at least 6 of the last 10 years – or at least 2 years if you received the benefit before 1 January 2018. Life in Denmark, the English-language guide on Denmark's public citizen portal, gives the same rule for børnetilskud (child allowance).

For EU citizens, SIRI (the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration) says that if you meet the conditions for being a worker under EU rules, you have the same rights to public benefits as a Danish citizen, and receiving them will normally not end your right to live here. Ask Udbetaling Danmark how the rules apply in your case before you count on the money.

Some benefits can also cost you later, especially if you hold a national permit. The rules below concern certain benefits under the Active Social Policy Act or the Integration Act, such as kontanthjælp (social assistance).

If you have received…It can affect
Certain benefits at any time in the past 3 yearsYour right to sponsor a spouse or partner for family reunification
Certain benefitsPermanent residence: as a rule, only 4 years after your last payment
Certain benefits in the last 2 years, or for more than 4 months in total in the last 5 yearsDanish citizenship
State pension or disability pensionNot in itself an obstacle to citizenship

Source: New to Denmark (SIRI and the Danish Immigration Service) and Udlændinge- og Integrationsministeriet (the Ministry of Immigration and Integration), read 23 September 2026.

How does parental leave work in Denmark?

If you live together when the baby is born, each parent has a basic right to 24 weeks of leave with barselsdagpenge after the birth. Part of it is earmarked and cannot be handed over.

MotherFather or co-mother
Right after the birth2 weeks, not transferable2 weeks, not transferable
Within the child's first year9 weeks, not transferable9 weeks, not transferable
Can be transferred to the other parent8 weeks and 5 weeks13 weeks

Source: Udbetaling Danmark, read 23 September 2026.

As an employee you can hand over up to 13 weeks, and some weeks can be postponed or extended until your child turns 9 if you meet the conditions. In 2026, barselsdagpenge is at most DKK 5,085 a week before tax for a full 37-hour week, up from DKK 4,865 in 2025 – or DKK 137.43 an hour.

To qualify as an employee, you must be employed on the first day of leave or the day before, have worked at least 160 hours in the 4 full calendar months before, with at least 40 hours a month in at least 3 of them, and have daily physical contact with the child. Apply within 8 weeks: after your salary stops if you are paid during leave, otherwise after the birth for mothers or after the first day of leave for fathers and co-mothers. The legal processing time is 11 working days; over the past year Udbetaling Danmark averaged 10.

What happens if you fall ill?

Report sick to your employer as soon as possible, and no later than 2 hours after your working day begins, unless a staff agreement says otherwise. For the first 30 calendar days your employer pays sygedagpenge (sickness benefit), provided the conditions below are met.

QuestionThe rule in 2026
Your employer pays the first 30 days if…You have been employed there without a break for the last 8 weeks and worked at least 74 hours in that period
The municipality can pay if…You have worked at least 240 hours in the last 6 completed calendar months, with at least 40 hours in each of at least 5 of them
Maximum rateDKK 5,085 a week or DKK 137.43 an hour, before tax

Source: Udbetaling Danmark, read 23 September 2026.

What is ATP, and who pays what?

ATP Livslang Pension (ATP Lifelong Pension) is the mandatory labour-market supplementary pension. You pay 1/3 of the contribution and your employer 2/3, and you keep paying as long as you work, whatever your age – even once your ATP pension has started, which raises it further. Of every contribution, 20 per cent goes to a collective bonus pool that can lift members' guaranteed pensions. In 2025, ATP's costs averaged DKK 377 per member.

From 1 January 2026, young people pay no AM-bidrag (labour market contribution) until 1 January of the year they turn 18 – including the 8 per cent normally deducted from ATP contributions.

PaymentWho paysWhere to ask
Child and youth benefit, child allowanceUdbetaling DanmarkUdbetaling Danmark, family benefits
Parental leave benefitUdbetaling DanmarkUdbetaling Danmark, barselsdagpenge
Sickness benefitYour employer for the first 30 days; otherwise your municipalityYour employer or municipality
ATP pension contributionsYou 1/3, your employer 2/3ATP Livslang Pension
Unemployment benefitYour A-kasse (unemployment insurance fund), which is voluntary – see part 6Your A-kasse
Blue EU health card, special health cardUdbetaling Danmark+45 70 12 80 81

Source: Udbetaling Danmark, ATP Livslang Pension and Life in Denmark, read 23 September 2026.

Udbetaling Danmark has no single hotline for newcomers. Denmark's public citizen portal routes you to separate contact points for housing benefit, pension, parental leave benefit, family benefits, debt collection and holiday pay.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Designate a NemKonto so payments can reach you (part 4)As soon as you have a CPR number
2Check whether you meet the 6-in-10-years rule for child benefitBefore you budget with it
3Parents-to-be: check the employment requirement, then apply for barselsdagpengeWithin 8 weeks of the birth, your first day of leave or the end of your salary
4Report sick to your employerNo later than 2 hours after your working day begins
5Complain about a child benefit decision you disagree withWithin 4 weeks of receiving it
6Consider joining an A-kasse, since unemployment insurance is voluntaryWhile you are working

Source: Udbetaling Danmark, read 23 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.