In the Netherlands, you can take parental leave to take care of your child. You can do this until your child is 8 years old.
In the Netherlands, you can take parental leave to care for your child. This could be your biological child, adopted child, acknowledged child, foster child or stepchild, or a child you hope to adopt. You can do this until your child is 8 years old. Some leave is paid. You and your employer agree when you will be on leave. You can take this leave flexibly, for example on a fixed day every week, or take several weeks of leave in one go.
You have a right to parental leave if:
Your leave entitlement is 26 times the number of hours you work each week. For example, if you work 36 hours a week, you can take 936 hours of leave. You and your employer agree when you will do this.
For nine of the 26 weeks of parental leave, you receive a benefit that is equal to 70% of your daily wage. You must take these nine weeks during your child’s first year. If you have an adopted child or foster child, you can take this leave in the first year that your child lives with you so long as the child is aged under 8.
The other 17 weeks of parental leave are unpaid. You can take these weeks until your child is 8 years old. Your CAO might state, however, that your employer pays you at least some of the time you are on leave.
Send your employer a letter or e-mail requesting parental leave at least two months before you want to go on leave. Your employer is usually not allowed to refuse your request. It can only say no if your leave would cause major problems for the company.
During your nine weeks of paid parental leave you build up holiday days. You do not build up holiday days during the weeks when you are on unpaid leave.
Yes, you can. You need to work in the Netherlands and have a Dutch contract of employment.
No. Your employer cannot refuse to let you go on parental leave. The only thing your employer can do is adjust the work roster. In that case, your employer must come up with a different proposal. You have a right to parental leave at all times.
For the first nine weeks (nine times your working hours each week), you receive a benefit equal to 70% of your daily wage. This is a benefit paid by the government, and not wages paid by your employer. You can take these weeks in the year following your child’s birth. The remaining 17 weeks are unpaid, unless your CAO contains different rules.
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