If you become ill during pregnancy or something comes up during childbirth, after childbirth, or during pregnancy, you and/or the other parent may be entitled to payments from the state, a union, or an employer.

Sick leave during pregnancy

Your right to sick leave is protected by collective agreements if you are an employee, regardless of whether you are pregnant or not. See more about sick leave on island.is. If you use up the sick leave you are entitled to, you may be eligible for payments from your union.

Note that rights under collective agreements only apply to employees and not, for example, to self-employed individuals or students.

It’s also worth mentioning cash sickness benefits from the Icelandic Health Insurance for those who are completely unable to work due to illness or accidents. More information can be found on island.is.

Bereavement grant

If a child dies before the age of 18, parents are entitled to so-called bereavement leave or a bereavement grant. This also applies if a child is stillborn after 22 weeks of pregnancy or if a miscarriage occurs after 18 weeks of pregnancy. More information can be found on island.is.

Sick leave due to a child’s illness

If your child becomes seriously ill or has a chronic illness, collective agreements guarantee the right to paid leave due to the child’s illness. See more about sick leave on island.is.

Note that rights under collective agreements only apply to employees and not, for example, to self-employed individuals or students.

If you contribute to a union health fund, you may be entitled to payments from it due to your child’s illness.

Those who have chronically ill children may also be entitled to care payments from the Social Insurance Administration, more information is available at island.is.

All benefits from Pregnancy Insurance are paid regardless of general rights or rights obtained through collective agreements, whether directly from an employer or a union. They are therefore in addition to the payments you are entitled to from other sources, no matter how extensive your existing rights are.

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with your entitlements, especially if you are a student or self-employed/contractor and therefore have more limited rights than employees.

You can absolutely purchase the Pregnancy Insurance on its own, whether you simply don’t have other insurance or have it with a different insurance company.

However, we recommend reviewing your insurance coverage carefully during this important life stage. We always recommend that parents have Life and Critical Illness Insurance. If you already have such insurance, we also suggest reviewing the insured amounts to ensure they align with your circumstances. It may also be a good time to review your household's other insurance coverage as your family grows—for example, checking the value of household contents in your home insurance.

Feel free to contact us for advice tailored to your situation. You can reach one of our advisors via our live chat, by emailing sjova@sjova.is, or by calling us at 440 2000.

When you buy Child Insurance along with Pregnancy Insurance, you ensure continuous and strong protection for your child from the 17th week of pregnancy until the age of 20. No health assessment is required when Child Insurance is purchased with Pregnancy Insurance.

We recommend that all expecting mothers who buy Pregnancy Insurance also choose to buy Child Insurance at the same time. Child Insurance costs 1,079 ISK per month and payments begin only when it takes effect at one month of age.

See more about Child Insurance.

Pregnancy Insurance covers both mother and child during pregnancy, childbirth, and until the child is one month old. After that, if purchased with Pregnancy Insurance, Child Insurance takes over. Child Insurance is intended to cover expenses and potential income loss related to serious illness. It also protects the child from income loss in the future due to accidents or serious illness.

See more about Child Insurance.

Pregnancy Insurance compensates for various incidents with varying benefit amounts.

• Complications related to pregnancy and childbirth: 1,000,000 ISK
• Hospitalization of mother or child lasting 5 days or longer: up to 630,000 ISK
• Congenital diseases diagnosed before the age of one: 1,000,000 ISK
• Late miscarriage after 17 weeks: 750,000 ISK
• Medically indicated abortion: 750,000 ISK
• Stillbirth: 750,000 ISK
• Infant death within one month of birth: 750,000 ISK
• Death of the mother during pregnancy or childbirth: 1,500,000 ISK (note that if the mother has Life Insurance, these benefits are in addition to those from Life Insurance)
• Reimbursement for psychological and/or psychiatric treatment if any of the above benefits are paid: up to 250,000 ISK

The pregnancy and childbirth complications covered by Pregnancy Insurance are:

• Preeclampsia before the 34th week of pregnancy.
• Emergency C-section (bell or red C-section)
• Severe tears (3rd and 4th degree)
• Hysterectomy following birth
• Severe injury to the mother leading to premature birth
• Pulmonary embolism

The child is covered for the following congenital conditions that show symptoms within the first year:

• Heart defects requiring surgery within one year
• Muscular and skeletal abnormalities
• Cerebral palsy
• Blindness and severe vision impairment
• Deafness
• Cleft palate and cleft lip
• Clubfoot requiring casting or surgery
• Spina bifida
• Hydrocephalus
• Abnormalities/blockages in the esophagus and trachea
• Severe oxygen deficiency
• Rare diseases or injuries
• • There must be a confirmed medical diagnosis, and the disease/injury must either:
  • • Involve reduced life expectancy and long-term care needs, or
    • Cause physical or biological impairments that lead to a significant decrease in quality of life and/or function.

Our Critical Illness Insurance is of course valid during pregnancy. It covers many serious illnesses but does not include complications that may arise during pregnancy and childbirth.

Your Critical Illness Insurance also provides your child with some protection from three months of age, covering the same serious illnesses as for you. Pregnancy Insurance, however, covers various congenital illnesses (see above) diagnosed within the first year.

We therefore recommend that you purchase Pregnancy Insurance if you are expecting a child. We also recommend buying Child Insurance with Pregnancy Insurance, which then takes effect when the child turns one month old.

See more about Critical Illness Insurance

See more about Child Insurance