How Long Parental Leave Lasts in Different Countries (Croatian Women Are Really Lucky)

Psychologists and pediatricians always say that it’s really important for parents to communicate with their newborns and spend as much time as possible with them in their first months of life. Governments of different countries support this opinion and let moms take maternity leave. But the length of this kind of leave really differs depending on the particular country.

Bright Side has calculated how many days maternity leave lasts in different countries and found out what conditions governments offer (or dictate) for moms and dads.

11. Great Britain

Parental leave length: 365 days.

British parents are allowed to divide the parental leave between them: mom is only bound to take a 2-week-long maternity leave, the rest of the time, dad, as well as mom, may take care of their baby.

10. Sweden

Parental leave length: 240 days.

Swedish parents may split their parental leave between each other. By the way, 60 days belong to the father only and if he doesn’t use them, they “expire.”

9. Croatia

Parental leave length: 410 days.

In this country, the maternity leave is really great: it lasts for more than one year and the Health Insurance Fund pays moms 100% of their monthly salary until their baby turns 6 months old.

8. Kazakhstan

Parental leave length: 126 days.

In case of labor complications or if 2 or more babies are born, the part of the leave after delivery extends for up to 10 weeks. Moms are also allowed to take childcare leave until their child turns 3 years old.

7. Finland

Parental leave length: 126 days.

Instead of maternity leave, mothers may bring their children to a preschool or hire a nanny provided by the government.

6. Portugal

Parental leave length: 120 days.

According to the law, dad should not spend less than 5 days with his baby and he'll be fined if he tries to avoid performing his duties.

5. France

Parental leave length: 112 days.

This period may be divided into 2 parts (2 months before delivery and 2 months after) or moms can just have more time after the birth. If a woman is healthy and feels great, she might only have a 3-week-long leave before giving birth. A woman is allowed to work as long as she's not more than 36 weeks pregnant.

4. China

Parental leave length: from 90 days.

"From" means that the length of maternity leave depends on woman's age: the older she is, the longer her leave will be.

3. Iceland

Parental leave length: 90 days.

If maternity leave is granted to the mother only, childcare leave follows the "3-3-3" formula: 3 months are given to the mother, 3 months are given to the father, and 3 months remain to share between both parents.

2. India

Parental leave length: from 84 days.

"From" means that the length of maternity leave in India depends on the number of children. Women will have a 182-day leave only if they are expecting their 1st or 2nd baby. If a woman's going to give birth to her 3rd+ child, her maternity leave will only be 84 days long.

1. The United Arab Emirates

Parental leave length: from 45 days.

"From" means that maternity leave in the UAE depends on a woman's job. A woman who works for a private company may have a 45-day-long leave, including before and after delivery. If a woman works with the government, she has a 90-day-long maternity leave.

According to International Labor Standards, nowadays, the governments of most countries protect mothers' rights by letting them spend time with their newborns and regulating the necessary financial support.

In only 2% of countries (which includes the United States), financial support regulations and maternity allowances aren't governed by law.

Which country's system do you like the most? Why?