Updated on
27/11/2025
DECMAL - SECUline
What is DECMAL? - DECMAL is the electronic procedure through SECUline used by employers in Luxembourg to declare periods of work incapacity for their employees to the Joint Social Security Centre (CCSS). This monthly declaration system enables employers to report absences due to illness, accidents, or other incapacity situations, forming the basis for reimbursement claims from the Employers' Mutual Insurance (Mutualité des employeurs).
Who must submit DECMAL declarations? - All employers in Luxembourg with employees must submit DECMAL declarations each month for the previous month's incapacity periods. This obligation applies equally to employers directly managing their payroll and to fiduciaries mandated by employers. The public sector follows specific rules and may not declare certain incapacity periods for employees benefiting from unlimited continuation of remuneration.
What information must be included in a DECMAL declaration? - Employers must report several key elements in their DECMAL declarations:
- Complete periods of work incapacity with exact start and end dates
- Precise number of hours (whole numbers only) during which the employee was absent due to work incapacity
- Type of incapacity based on the reason for absence
- Hours that would have been worked during the absence, including those falling on legal holidays or customary holidays
The claimed hours represent the basis for calculating reimbursement from the Employers' Mutual Insurance and must never exceed the total working hours declared in the salary declaration.
How does DECMAL relate to employer reimbursement? - The DECMAL declaration, combined with the salary declaration (DECSAL procedure), constitutes the reimbursement request to the Employers' Mutual Insurance for amounts paid by the employer as continuation of remuneration during employee incapacity periods. Employers in Luxembourg must continue paying full salary until the end of the month containing the 77th day of incapacity within an 18-month reference period. The Employers' Mutual Insurance reimburses employers at 80% of the contribution base for normal incapacity periods caused by illness or accident, and at 100% for incapacity during probation periods or for family leave reasons.
Can DECMAL declarations be submitted retroactively or corrected? - Yes, the DECMAL system allows both retroactive declarations for periods not previously reported and corrections to existing declarations. Employers can declare incapacity periods from previous months or delete and replace incorrect declarations. However, timing matters significantly because the Employers' Mutual Insurance can only reimburse advanced salaries once the work incapacities have been properly declared through DECMAL and the employee has sent their medical certificate to the CNS.
Synonyms: Work incapacity declaration, ITT declaration (Incapacité Temporaire de Travail), SECUline incapacity procedure, monthly sickness absence reporting