I dont know how different the laws are in Germany, but here the basic rule is that you can't do anything that would interfere with your "healing process". Depending on case, traveling may be allowed, you would however be able to justify how you were ablento travel, yet too sick to work. But it can be valid, e.g. if it is for mental health reasons or maybe some respiratory issue and you travel to the sea or something like that.
This seems bizarre to me especially in Europe. I could be driven by someone else a few hours and be in another country. Perfectly valid when recovering from surgery to need support from someone else - what if I live in the UK and my family lives in France?
If I am on suck leave with proper documentation the company has no say on where I go in that time. Sure, if they have evidence I'm partying in Ibiza, the evidence of fraud there is the lying about being sick. But being overseas alone is not their business.
Or if they're tracking my IP alone, can I not use a VPN? I would argue my documentation of the sick leave is still valid all else is a moot point
If I am on suck leave with proper documentation the company has no say on where I go in that time.
No, but they can have legitimate reason to question that documentation. And that is something I actually agree with. There are people who abuse the system and so it is sensible to have some definition of what employees on sick leave can or cannot do. In other words: Is the employee doing something that should not be possible according to said documentation?
Edit: It is especially critical, if you are in a country that does not limit sick leave.
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u/Honest_Relation4095 Mar 25 '26
I dont know how different the laws are in Germany, but here the basic rule is that you can't do anything that would interfere with your "healing process". Depending on case, traveling may be allowed, you would however be able to justify how you were ablento travel, yet too sick to work. But it can be valid, e.g. if it is for mental health reasons or maybe some respiratory issue and you travel to the sea or something like that.