Non-standard profiles
Borrowing while pregnant or on sick leave: your rights vis-à-vis the bank and the insurer
Mortgage while pregnant, on maternity leave or on sick leave: what the bank reads, what the insurer may request, and what the law prohibits.
Pregnancy or sick leave does not prevent you from applying for a mortgage. The bank reads your income and employment contract, not your state of health; each institution decides how to interpret replacement income. The insurer may not ask any health-related questions when the conditions of the Lemoine Act are met. The Criminal Code lists pregnancy and state of health among the grounds for discrimination.
By Sandy MASCART, mandataire d'intermédiaire en opérations de banque et en services de paiement ORIAS 26000541 sous le mandat de CDV PATRIMOINE & ASSURANCE (ORIAS 14005573)
Key points
- Pregnancy or sick leave does not prevent you from applying for a loan: the bank assesses your income and employment contract, not your state of health.
- During maternity leave or sick leave, your current income is no longer always your usual salary; each bank decides how to interpret it.
- When the conditions of the Lemoine Act are met, the insurer may not request any information relating to your state of health.
- The Criminal Code lists pregnancy and state of health among the grounds for discrimination; its exception for insurance names only state of health.
- What this exception allows an insurer to do in the case of a borrower who is currently pregnant is not settled here: no document read determines it.
- The bank reads your income and dates; medical documents go only to the insurer, when it has the right to request them.
A pregnancy or a sick leave does not prevent you from applying for a mortgage. The lender reviews your income and your contract; the insurer, a risk, within the limits of the law. See also unusual situations and, after the birth, parental leave.
Mortgage while pregnant or on sick leave: it is possible
No text reserves credit to full-time employees. The lender assesses solvency “by referring in particular to verifiable documents” (Article L. 313-16 of the Consumer Code): your current payslips and contract.
The lending budget does not change; the income base may narrow for the duration of the leave.
Le ratio rapporte les charges d'emprunt, assurance comprise, aux revenus définis par la décision : revenu net avant impôt, hors ressources qui ne sont ni stables ni récurrentes. La manière dont chaque banque lit un revenu de remplacement pendant un congé ou un arrêt relève de sa politique de crédit.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Décision D-HCSF-2021-7, art. 1er — Légifrance
How the lender reviews your income
| Your situation | What the documents show | Possible interpretations |
|---|---|---|
| Pregnant, employed, no leave | Ordinary payslips | Calculation unchanged; the instalment must be affordable during the leave |
| On maternity leave | Absence, daily allowances, sometimes salary maintenance | The usual salary if the return is written and imminent, otherwise the current income |
| On short leave, dated return | A line of absence | A temporary setback, explained in writing |
| On long leave, no dated return | Allowances, sometimes life insurance | A temporary income: the co-borrower carries the application, or it waits |
| On return to part-time therapeutic work | Reduced salary and limited supplement | The reduced salary; the supplement is poorly read |
The limited duration of the allowances makes the analyst cautious: the income retained by the lender.
Contract and probationary period
Under a permanent contract, maternity leave suspends the employment contract; upon return, the Labour Code (Article L. 1225-25) provides for a similar position with at least equivalent remuneration. The employer’s certificate demonstrates this.
Article L. 1225-1 prohibits the employer from taking pregnancy into account “to terminate the employment contract during a probationary period”. It does not apply to the lender: the probationary period remains read as such (non-permanent contracts).
What to tell the bank, what to keep for the insurer
To the bank: income and dates, not a diagnosis. Explain in advance any leave or sick period visible on the payslips. Health answers go only to the insurer, when it is permitted to ask them.
What the insurer may ask
If both conditions are met, no health question is permitted. Does a question about pregnancy fall within this? Ask the insurer in writing (the removal of the questionnaire).
Otherwise, you must “answer exactly the questions asked” (Article L. 113-2 of the Insurance Code): misrepresentation. The insurer may accept, exclude, surcharge, defer or refuse; the delegation opens up other contracts (the AERAS agreement).
De plein droit, selon le code de la santé publique : aucune adhésion à demander, aucun formulaire à réclamer.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Article L. 1141-2 du code de la santé publique — Légifrance
What the criminal code prohibits
Distinguishing individuals on the basis of "their pregnancy" or "their state of health" constitutes discrimination (Article 225-1 of the Criminal Code), punishable when it involves "refusing the supply of a good or a service" (Article 225-2).
The exception under Article 225-3 concerns state of health and insurance against risks, not pregnancy or the granting of credit. Refusing a loan solely on the grounds of pregnancy falls within the scope of Article 225-2. The situation of a deferred insurance decision linked to pregnancy remains unresolved.
Suspicious refusal? Request the reason in writing and contact the Defender of Rights.
Four steps before submission
As a mandate holder for a mortgage intermediary, I do not decide on the approval, the interest rate, or the insurance.
- Two budgets: income during maternity leave or sick leave, then the restored salary.
- Written confirmation from the employer: contract, length of service, dates, and expected return to work.
- Breakdown of benefits and any salary maintenance, along with other supporting documents.
- The insurance policy, section on incapacity.
Fees. Please clarify your dates by telephone.
Create your file before the preliminary sale agreement, with dates in hand.
Sources
- Légifrance — Article 225-1 du code pénal
- Légifrance — Article 225-2 du code pénal
- Légifrance — Article 225-3 du code pénal
- Légifrance — Article L. 313-16 du code de la consommation
- Article L. 113-2-1 du code des assurances — Légifrance
- Légifrance — Article L. 113-2 du code des assurances
- Article L. 1141-2 du code de la santé publique — Légifrance
- Légifrance — Article L. 1225-1 du code du travail
- Légifrance — Article L. 1225-25 du code du travail
- economie.gouv.fr/hcsf/mesures/mesure-relative-loctroi-de-credits-immobiliers
- Défenseur des droits
- Service-Public.fr — Congé de maternité d'une salariée du secteur privé
Read next
- Mortgage in Lyon: frequently asked questions
- Parental leave and mortgage: borrowing at the right time, on the right income Borrowing on parental leave remains possible: the lender assesses income on the day of review. Choosing the submission date, the documents, the insurance.
- Mortgage without a permanent contract: fixed-term contracts, temporary work, probationary period – what the banks accept No permanent contract? The bank assesses income continuity: length in the trade, multi-year average, temp work, end of probation, documents that unlock it.
- Health questionnaire: when it truly disappears, and when it returns The exemption is calculated per insured person, on their share of the cumulative outstanding balance: the table that tells you, person by person, if exempt.
- Mortgage insurance refused or surcharged: the AERAS agreement, appeals and solutions Refusal, exclusion or surcharge: the three levels of AERAS review, the capping mechanism, appeals, and the realistic alternatives when nothing works out.
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