OBJECTIVES: The financial basis of sick pay is provided by health insurance premiums paid by employers and employees in Hungary. Due to the economic crisis in 2007, the number of people employed significantly decreased.  The aim of our study was to analyse the changes of nationwide sick-pay expenditures of the National Health Insurance Fund Administration of Hungary. METHODS: We used the data of National Health Insurance Fund Administration of Hungary and statistical reports of Nr. OSAP 1514, as well as data of Hungarian Central Statistical Office from the years of 2005-2013. We analysed the following indicators: average daily sick-pay expenditure and the nationwide sick-pay expenditures National Health Insurance Fund Administration, and the number of days spent on sick-leave. RESULTS: In the investigated period the expenditure for one day of sick-pay gradually increased between the years of 2005 and 2009, from 2420 to 3101 Hungarian Forint (HUF). This is closely correlated with the changes of the average general wages. The general daily amount of sick-pay between 2010-2012 stagnated on 2700 HUF, then increased to 2929 HUF in 2013. Sick-pay expenditure of the National Health Insurance Fund Administration was around 100 billion HUF between 2005-2008, in 2009 it reached 108 billion HUF. Tthen due to governmental actions after the economic crisis it fell by 26% in 2010 (79 billion HUF), with further decline to 57 billion HUF in 2012 and 60 in 2013. In the investigated period the number of days spent on sick-leave decreased from 37.4 million to 19.8 million. CONCLUSIONS: We can conclude that the amount spent on sick-pay paid by the National Health Insurance Fund in Hungary between 2005 and 2013 significantly decreased. Thus the sick-pay expenditures were strongly influenced by the economic crisis.