Guide to CASS on sick leave benefit: the codes the contribution is withheld on (01/07/10), the exempt codes, the calculation base and how it is reported in D112.
Translated from Romanian. This article covers Romanian labour and tax law; the Romanian version is canonical and is updated first.
Not all sick leave benefits are treated the same way for tax purposes. CASS (contribuția de asigurări sociale de sănătate — the health insurance contribution) of 10% is withheld on some and not on others — and the difference comes down to the benefit code written on the medical certificate. This is exactly the kind of detail that is easy to get the wrong way round, producing either a withholding that is not due or the omission of a mandatory one. Here is how to do it correctly.
Withholding CASS on sick leave benefits was introduced by OUG 115/2023. The general rule: CASS of 10% applies to the gross sick leave benefit, but with important exceptions, depending on the type of incapacity.
CASS is withheld, as a rule, on benefits for “ordinary” sick leave:
For these codes, 10% CASS is deducted from the gross benefit, alongside the other applicable withholdings.
Certain benefits are exempt from CASS, precisely because they protect special situations:
CASS is not withheld on these codes. Applying the withholding where it is not due means unjustifiably reducing the employee’s benefit; not applying it where it is mandatory means an error in the returns.
Where CASS is due, the calculation base is the gross sick leave benefit, and the 10% is deducted from it. The effect on net pay is direct: a gross benefit with CASS withheld reaches the employee noticeably lower than an exempt one, for the same gross amount. That is why classifying the code correctly is not an accounting formality — it changes the amount received.
The mechanism follows the general logic of sick leave: the part borne by the employer and the part from FNUASS (the national health insurance fund). The CASS due is withheld at source and reported through Declarația 112 (the monthly return), with the insured-person code matching the type of benefit. The correlation between the code on the certificate and the code in the return is what the authorities check.
Two employees have the same gross sick leave benefit, but different codes: one for ordinary illness (code 01), the other for care of a sick child. CASS of 10% is withheld on the first, so their net is lower; no CASS is withheld on the second, so they receive more from the same gross base. The difference comes solely from the code, not from the amount.
This is where manual error is easy: someone ticks the wrong code and the CASS withholding comes out backwards. The Workly payroll module automatically applies the correct benefit code and the corresponding withholding per code — CASS where it is due, exemption where it is not — and carries the already-aligned bases into the SAGA-format export, from which the accountant files Declarația 112. The calculation is deterministic, so it removes the “withheld vs. exempt” reversals that are hard to correct afterwards.
Informational article, accurate at the date of publication. Not tax or legal advice. The CASS regime on sick leave benefits and the list of codes may be amended by legislation — always check the classification at source (ANAF, CNAS, the Fiscal Code, Monitorul Oficial) or consult a specialist before taking a decision.
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