Paternity leave

Men bringing up children are entitled to parental leave amounting to maximum two weeks. Fathers may use this leave in one or two parts at any moment of their choice. They have time for this until the child reaches the age of 24 months.

The same period applies in the case of adoption. The time-limit counts from the effective date of the decision adjudicating adoption. Remember, however, that the child’s father should take his parental leave until the children reaches the age of 7 or – if a decision on the postponement of compulsory education was made towards this child – 10 years.

Parental leave is the father’s sole and independent right. The employer is obliged to grant paternity leave upon the written request of the employee being a father. Remember that such a request must be submitted not later than seven days before the commencement of leave.

Childbirth leave

The employees who have just become fathers are also entitled to two days of childbirth leave. Because this right applies according to the law, the employer is obliged to grant leave to the man to whom a child has been born with the right to remuneration.

Rights shared with the mother

A father bringing up a child has also rights that he can share with his toddler’s mother. These include:

• Right to a part of maternity leave or leave on conditions of maternity leave

Only the mother is entitled to the first 14 weeks of maternity leave. The unused rest of leave may be shared in any way between her and the father bringing up the child. Leaves are granted in full weeks.

• Parental leave

After using maternity leave or maternity benefit for the period corresponding to the maternity leave period, the child’s father as an employee is entitled to parental leave amounting to 32 (if the mother bears one child at one childbirth) or 34 weeks (if more children are born at one childbirth).

Parental leave may be used by both parents or, if they jointly make such a decision, to one of them. It is granted as a one-off benefit or in maximum four parts.

• Childcare leave

A person employed for at least 6 months is entitled to take childcare leave in order to provide personal care of the child. The length of this leave is maximum 36 months. It is granted for a period not longer than until the end of the calendar year in which the child reaches the age of 6 years, in maximum five parts. The number of the parts of leave is determined on the basis of the number of submitted applications for leave.

• Possibility of reducing the length of working time

An employee entitled to childcare leave may submit to the employer a written application for the reduction of working time to the length not shorter than one half of the full length of working time during the period in which he would be entitled to take such leave. The employee should submit such an application not later than 21 days before the commencement of work in the reduced working time system.

• Prohibition to employ a father taking care of a child in overtime hours, at night time or in the interrupted working time system and to delegate him outside his regular place of work

Without the father’s consent, the employer must not employ him in overtime hours, at night time or in the interrupted working time system and delegate him outside his regular place of work. However, this applies only to fathers taking care of a child up to the age of 4 years. Please remember that if both parents (or guardians) of the child are employed, only one of them may exercise the aforementioned rights.

• Exemption from work in respect of bringing up a child up to the age of 14 years

Each parent is entitled to two days of leave from work in each calendar year in respect of bringing up at least one child not older than 14 years. It is important that parents decide by themselves whether they want to use the leave in days (2 days) or hours (16 hours). The employee retains the right to remuneration for the period of such leave.

Takeover of a part of maternity leave by a father bringing up a child

After the amendment of the Labour Code and some other acts dated 24th July 2015, solutions promoting the more active participation of the employee being a father in childcare came into force. The new regulations enlarged the circle of employees entitled to take over a part of maternity leave or parental leave in part or as a whole. The amended law also provides for new situations that entitle employees to take such leaves.

According to legal provisions, a father bringing up a child may take over a part of maternity leave in the case of:

• resignation from a part of maternity leave by an employee having a diagnosed disability to live independently after using at least 8 months of maternity leave after childbirth
• resignation from a part of maternity leave by an employee staying in a hospital or another healthcare facility providing stationary round-the-clock medical services because of health problems preventing her from taking personal care of the child. This right is subject to the use of at least 8 weeks of maternity leave by the mother after childbirth.
• an employee's death during her maternity leave or the death of an insured employee being a mother at the time of receiving a maternity benefit for the period corresponding to the maternity leave period. It is, however, required that the employee or insured mother use at least 8 weeks of, respectively, maternity leave or benefit.
• abandonment of a child by an employee during her maternity leave The same applies to the abandonment of a child by its insured mother at the time of receiving a maternity benefit for the period corresponding to the maternity leave period
• death of a child’s mother not being covered by social insurance in the case of illness and maternity from the social insurance system or not being entitled to such insurance, and in the case of abandonment of a child by such mother
• impossibility of providing personal care of a child by a mother not being covered by social insurance in the case of illness and maternity or not being entitled to such insurance who has a diagnosed disability to live independently.

In each of the aforementioned circumstances, an employee-father bringing up a child or an employee of another member of the nearest family is entitled to take over part of leave on conditions of maternity leave or part of parental leave.

Use of a part of maternity leave by a father bringing up a child

An employee–father bringing up a child may use a part of maternity leave in the case of resignation by the insured mother of the child from the receipt of maternity benefit for a period corresponding to the maternity leave period if she uses this benefit for a period of 14 weeks after childbirth.

When a child's mother not being entitled to social insurance in the case of illness and maternity from the social insurance system takes up employment in a length not shorter than one half of full working time, this right will also apply to the father.

In both cases, an employee–father bringing up a child is entitled to use a part of leave on conditions of maternity leave or a part of parental leave.

Fathers make use of their rights

Men bringing up children are aware of their rights and willingly make use of them. Until the end of May this year, 83,400 men receiving a maternity benefit were registered – this means an increase of over 3,000 towards the analogous period of the last year. Until now, almost 5,000 persons have taken basic maternity leave, 77,400 persons have taken paternity leave and 2,100 persons have taken parental leave.

Supplementary parental benefit also for fathers

The Mother 4+ programme is a supplementary family benefit available to persons who have borne and brought or only have brought at least four children. The benefit is aimed at providing necessary subsistence to those persons who have given up work in order to bring up children or who have worked too short to acquire the right to minimum pension. In special cases – i.e., in the case of the mother’s death, abandonment of children by the mother or a long-term break in their upbringing by the mother – this benefit is also available to the father.

Big Family Card available to everyone

At the beginning of 2019, the catalogue of persons entitled to hold the Big Family Card has been enlarged – today it is available to everyone who maintained at least three children in the past, irrespective of the present age of these children.