If your sick leave lasts under 10 days, you can receive alternation compensation for the entire duration of your illness. Nevertheless, report your sick days to the fund.

If you have visited a doctor and you have a medical certificate for a sick leave that lasts more than 10 days, you should apply for sickness allowance from Kela. The sickness allowance is paid after a waiting period, that lasts the day you became ill and the next 9 weekdays.  Kela counts also Saturdays as weekdays, but not public holidays. If you have been receiving alternation compensation when you became ill, the fund will pay you alternation compensation for the waiting period of the sickness allowance.

Inform the fund immediately, if you have become ill and apply for sickness allowance from Kela. It is very important that you inform the fund of a long sick leave as soon as possible and now only after Kela has given a decision of sickness allowance.

You can't claim sickness allowance and alternation compensation for the same time and sickness allowance always takes precedence over alternation compensation. This means that if sickness allowance is paid for a period for which you have already received alternation compensation, your alternation compensation will have to be paid back.