The year has started with good news for parents: since January 1, 2021, paternity leave has been fully equated with maternity leave, so they will have more time to be able to care for their children, a right they had. long time requesting.
This license, paid one hundred percent, and with a duration of 16 weeks , places Spain at the forefront in this type of rights. We tell you its peculiarities and what to do to request it.
Same rights and obligations for fathers and mothers
This permit, contemplated in the Royal Decree Law on urgent measures to guarantee equal treatment and opportunities between women and men in employment and occupation, approved in March 2019, equalizes the two parents and establishes that the benefit for birth, adoption, custody for adoption and foster care is an individual and non-transferable right.
This license covers 16 weeks, of which six must be enjoyed simultaneously and obligatorily immediately after delivery. The other 10 can be added to the compulsory six or taken interrupted in minimum weekly periods during the baby’s first year.
The first section will be enjoyed full-time, while the second can be distributed full or part-time, but cannot be assigned, and will require an agreement between the company and the worker.
In addition, the extension of the permit is contemplated if:
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There is multiple birth, adoption or foster care, a week will be extended for each parent for each child, from the second.
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A child has a disability, it increases by one week for each parent.
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Preterm delivery and hospitalization (for a period greater than 7 days) occurs after delivery: a maximum of 13 weeks.
According to Social Security data, this extension in 2021 is expected to benefit 236,000 parents and to face the equalization of permits, 2,784 million have been provided in this item, 11.4% more than in 2020.
Requirements to meet to request the benefit and how to do it
The father has the right to a period of leave or work rest for birth or adoption, for which he receives 100% of his regulatory base and is exempt from personal income tax.
Requirements to receive the benefit are required to have contributed for at least 180 days in the last seven years or 360 days in the entire working life.
The economic benefit of paternity leave is equivalent to 100% of the regulatory base, which will be the one that corresponds to the benefit of temporary disability for common contingencies, taking as the start date of rest.
This regulatory base is calculated taking into account the contribution base for common contingencies of the month prior to the enjoyment of the permit, excluding contributions for overtime, divided by the number of days to which said contribution corresponds.
This daily amount is multiplied by the number of days of enjoyment of the leave, in this case, 90. Paternity and maternity leave are exempt from personal income tax , so there is no obligation to apply withholdings to these benefits or pay taxes for them.
This amount is, therefore, the one received in net terms, and will be the one that reaches our bank account.
In the portal Your Social Security you can request electronically the provision with a digital certificate or username and password in permanent Cl @ ve.
Since August, the Social Security Institute (INSS) has expanded its service to electronically request successive rest periods if the parents choose to divide this period and check the status of this request.
If you do not have a digital certificate or permanent Cl @ ve, you can request the successive rest period at a Social Security Information and Service Center (CAISS) by appointment. It can be requested by presenting this application form for use in multiple periods and the rest of the documentation.
If you have questions about how to apply for this permit, you can consult the practical guide of Social Security, which includes a step-by-step explanatory video.
Maternity and paternity leave at European level
Paternity leave has been increasing progressively in recent years. A parental leave was approved for the first time in 2007, of 13 days plus the two recognized by the Workers’ Statute. In 2017 it became four weeks and five in 2018, eight weeks in 2019, 12 in 2020 and now, 16.
But the Platform for Equal and Non-transferable Birth and Adoption Permits (PPiiNA), which promoted the achievement of this right in Spain, still criticizes some points, such as that the first six weeks have to be taken simultaneously, and that the remaining 10 weeks will be enjoyed , “On a full-time or part-time basis, by prior agreement.”
Without a doubt, it is a very important step, but there are still rights to be able to provide our children with the best care, without penalizing mothers. Maternity leave has barely undergone changes in the last 30 years , so various associations and groups continue to demand that it be improved.
They continue to be those who are absent the most from work when children become ill or those who take leave of absence to take care of them. According to the September data from Social Security, out of every 10 people who request leave of absence for the care of a child, foster child or family member, between eight and nine are women. Specifically, of the 43,855 leaves of absence requested, 87.6% have been requested by women.
And, although from January 1, Spanish parents will have one of the longest and best paid paternity leave in Europe, the 16 weeks represent one of the shortest maternal leave. The total duration of the permits between both parents in northern European countries does exceed the Spanish, but they usually include several weeks that they can take one or the other. For this reason, as they are transferable, they are usually used by women. This is the case of Finland, which has a maternity leave of 105 days and a paternity leave of 54 days. However, only 11 percent of parents enjoy their full leave.
For this reason, we still have to increase the allowances for the mother, since the four months are too short to reach the six months of breastfeeding recommended by the World Health Organization.
But let’s go step by step: for now this equalization of maternity and paternity leave is an opportunity for men to become co-responsible for the care of children, and not just helpers.
Via | Social Security
Photos | iStock
In Babies and More | A single mother will enjoy 24 weeks of leave for the birth of her child by adding the maternity and paternity benefit, France will extend the paternity leave from 14 to 28 days from July 2021
