Parents’ leave – ouderschapsverlof
28 April 2022Currently, new parents in the Netherlands do not receive payment for ouderschapsverlof (parental leave). This is changing due to a new European Directive that provides for 2 months paid leave for parents in the first year of their child’s life. The Wet betaald ouderschapsverlof (law on paid parental leave) will enter into force on 2 August 2022.
Employers can, from 2 August 2022 onwards, submit applications to the Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen – UWV (Employee Insurance Agency) for benefits for employees who take partial paid parental leave. However, this can only be applied for after the leave has been taken.
Parents will soon receive a UWV benefit equal to 70% of their daily wage (up to 70% of the maximum daily wage) during 9 weeks of parental leave. The condition is that they take these 9 weeks in the child's first year of life.
This gives parents more time to get used to the new family situation, and to make conscious choices about the division of work and care together.
The parental leave also applies to some parents who have a child before the introduction of the law. The child must be younger than 1 year old at the time the law takes effect. Also, parents must be working (employees) at that time and have not yet taken the full right (26 times the working hours per week) to parental leave.
In case of adoption or foster parenthood, paid parental leave is also possible for children under the age of 8. This only applies to the first year after the day of the actual adoption or placement.
Example sum
An employee is a parent of a child (6 months) at the date of introduction of the law. They have already taken 19 weeks (statutory unpaid) parental leave. This employee has 6 months left to take 7 weeks parental leave. Then the child is 1 year old. During those 7 weeks, they are entitled to a benefit.
