On September 28, 2023, Law 21.614 was published in the Official Gazette, which introduces amendments to Law 21.063, commonly known as the SANNA Law.
The new Law 21,614 modifies and broadens the scope of insurance under the SANNA law, highlighting the following aspects:
I.Definition of parents.
It takes up the definition of father and mother (or parents) of Article 34 of the Civil Code. This definition recognizes since 2021 as such the parents with respect to whom a filiation relationship has been determined, whether they are the mother and/or father, both mothers or both fathers of the minor.
II.Contingencies protected by the Insurance.
The pathologies and serious illnesses of children and adolescents covered by the SANNA Law were originally the following:
a) Cancer
b) Solid organ and hematopoietic progenitor transplantation;
c) Terminal phase or stage of life
d) Serious accident with risk of death or serious and permanent functional sequelae;
Law 21.614 incorporated a new paragraph, increasing the coverage of this insurance to the case of:
e) Serious illness requiring hospitalization in an intensive care or intermediate treatment unit.
The latter case is restricted to children over one year of age and under five years of age. Likewise, the law details the documents required to access the benefit granted by the law and the term for which the leave will be granted in the case of a serious illness.
III.Extension of the term of leaves of absence and labor leave.
a) Permits.
Law 21,614 increases the leave of absence for workers in case of cancer in one of their children, from the 90 days granted by the original law to 180 days, distributed in up to two continuous periods of 90 days for the same diagnosis.
It also provides for an increase in the number of days of leave in any of the contingencies contemplated in the law, in the event that a state of constitutional exception of catastrophe is declared due to public calamity, or sanitary alert decreed by the authority as a result of a pandemic or epidemic, or due to the occurrence of a natural disaster. The term of this permit varies according to the characteristics of the eventual situations that justify the declaration of a state of exception.
b) Inapplicability of the "Business Necessities" cause and jurisdiction.
The SANNA Law in its article 14, final clause, provided that during the use of the established leaves, the working parent(s) may not be dismissed due to the needs of the company or eviction of the employer. Law 21.614 provided for the extension of the protection period depending on the pathology affecting the minor, as follows.
| Disease of the causal agent | Permit period |
| Cancer | Up to 180 days, in up to two consecutive periods of 90 days maximum. |
| Solid organ and hematopoietic progenitor transplantation | Up to 180 days. |
| Terminal phase or stage of life | Until the death of the son or daughter. |
| Serious accident | Up to 45 days from the event that generated it. |
| Serious illness | Up to 15 days in relation to the event that generated it. |
III. Extension of the term of leaves of absence and labor leave.
On the other hand, the legal amendment establishes a labor leave for working parents who enjoy this leave, which extends from the effective date of the leave and up to 180 days after the expiration of the last medical leave issued for the corresponding treatment.
This benefit shall be applicable to working parents whose children have suffered from any of the following pathologies: cancer, solid organ and hematopoietic progenitor transplant, terminal phase or stage of life, or serious accident.
In the case of workers hired for a fixed term or for a specific work or task, the leave of absence shall not extend beyond the foreseen duration of the contract, and the termination of the contract shall be effective as of right, once the conditions for the termination of the contract have been fulfilled, as appropriate.
IV. Use of leave in case of death or absence of the parent.
In the event of the death of a parent, the law provides for the possibility of transferring the days that would have corresponded to the surviving parent, so that the child has a longer period of accompaniment.
It also provides for the same possibility when one of the parents is absent, understood as one who has abandoned the home, when there is a lack of determination of filiation with respect to the missing parent or in the case of parents convicted of crimes of domestic violence.
V. Administrative modifications.
Another of the changes incorporated by the new law amending the SANNA Law is the reform of the procedure for granting insurance benefits, particularly with respect to the qualification process for accessing the benefit.
Likewise, the entity in charge of the financial administration of the fund is modified from a private law legal entity with the exclusive purpose of administering the SANNA Law fund, to the Employers' Mutual Benefit Societies and the Labor Security Institute (ISL).
The amendments incorporated by Law 21,614 become fully effective as from November 1, 2023.
