Parental leave
Salary and benefits when on parental leave in Denmark
When you become parents, you have the right to parental leave.
Whether you, as an employee and mother, father, or co-mother, receive full salary or maternity/paternity benefits during your leave depends on your terms of employment.
Have you had a child before 2 August 2022?
Read about the old rules for leave, salary, and benefits
PRIVATE EMPLOYEE: Salary and benefits during parental leave
As a private sector employee, your salary and pension savings during parental leave are regulated by the Salaried Employees Act, your employment contract, a local agreement, a private collective agreement, or the company's personnel policy.
See IDA's agreements in the private sector (in Danish)
The right to pay will, as a general rule, depend on whether your employer can get a full reimbursement for maternity/paternity benefits during the period in which you are paid - and the employer can only do this if you are entitled to benefits.
You can learn more about the requirements for being entitled to benefits further down this page.
As a privately employed mother, you have the right to the following:
Leave before the birth: As a mother, you have the right to absence with half pay (however, no less than the benefit rate) for 4 weeks before the expected birth, unless you have better terms in your terms of employment.
Leave after the birth: As a mother, you are entitled to half pay for 14 weeks after the birth. The period covers leave for the first 10 weeks after birth + a further 4 weeks for the period after the first 10 weeks after birth.
As a father/co-mother, your right to pay depends on your contract, collective agreement, or employer's guidelines.
EMPLOYED IN A MUNICIPALITY OR REGION: Salary and benefits during parental leave
As an employee in the public sector, your parental leave is covered by IDA's collective agreements.
See IDA's collective agreements in municipalities (in Danish)
See IDA's agreements in regions (in Danish)
The right to pay is generally dependent on whether your employer can get a full reimbursement for your benefits during the period in which you are paid - and the employer can only do this if you are entitled to benefits.
You can learn more about the requirements for being entitled to benefits further down this page.
The mother is entitled to full salary:
- 8 weeks before birth
- 14 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If the child is born after 1 April 2024, the father or co-mother is entitled to full salary:
- 2 weeks before birth
- 10 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If the child is born before 1 April 2024, the father or co-mother is entitled to full salary:
- 2 weeks after birth
- 7 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If both parents are employed in the municipality/region, you are entitled to 22 weeks' leave with full pay.
If you as parents are each covered by a different parental leave agreement, for example if one of you is employed in a region and the other in a municipality, mother is entitled to 6 + 6 weeks' salary and father is entitled to 10 + 6 weeks' salary.
The leave can be freely distributed between you and can be taken at any time within the first 46 weeks after the birth of the child. However, you must take paid leave before unpaid leave.
Since the periods with the right to pay according to the collective agreement and the right to parental benefits (barselsdagpenge) do not coincide, you as a mother must be aware of agreeing on a minimum of 2 weeks' leave with the right to maternity pay transferred from the father, so that you can use the right to full pay during the 26 weeks' pay and leave , to which you are entitled according to the collective agreement.
STATE EMPLOYEE: Salary and benefits during parental leave
As an employee in the public sector, your parental leave is covered by IDA's collective agreements.
See IDA's agreements in the state (in Danish)
The right to pay is, as a general rule, dependent on whether your employer receives a full benefit refund during the period in which you receive salary - and the employer can only do this if you are entitled to benefits.
You can learn more about the requirements for being entitled to benefits further down this page.
The mother is entitled to full salary:
- 6 weeks before birth
- 14 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If the child is born after 1 April 2024, the father or co-mother is entitled to full salary:
- 2 weeks before birth
- 10 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If the child was born before 1 April 2024, the father or co-mother is entitled to full salary:
- 2 weeks after birth
- 7 weeks after birth
- 6 weeks to be shared between mother and father (joint right to pay)
If both parents are employed by the state, you are entitled to 22 weeks' leave with full pay.
If you as parents are each covered by a different parental leave agreement, for example if one of you is employed by the state and the other by a municipality, the mother is entitled to 6 + 6 weeks' salary and the father is entitled to 10 + 6 weeks' salary.
The leave can be freely distributed between you, and the leave can be taken at any time within the first 46 weeks after the birth of the child. However, you must take paid leave before unpaid leave.
Since the periods with the right to pay according to the collective agreement and the right to maternity/paternity benefits (barselsdagpenge) do not coincide, you as a mother must be aware of agreeing on a minimum of 2 weeks' leave with the right to maternity pay transferred from the father, so that you can use the right to full pay during the 26 weeks' pay and leave , to which you are entitled according to the collective agreement.
Am I entitled to maternity/paternity benefits during parental leave?
Regardless of whether you receive benefits (dagpenge) or full salary during part or all of your parental leave, you must be entitled to benefits.
The right to full pay during leave in connection with parental leave is conditional on the employer being able to be reimbursed for the full amount of paternity/maternity benefits to which you are entitled during the period.
You are entitled to paternity/maternity benefits as a private employee or employed in a municipality, region, or state if you meet the employment requirement comprised of the following requirements:
- You are employed the day before the absence or on the first day of absence, and you have been employed for at least 160 hours within the last 4 completed calendar months prior to the period of absence and in at least 3 of these months have been employed for at least 40 hours in each month
- You would have been entitled to unemployment benefits (arbejdsløshedsdagpenge) or a benefit that replaces this, cf. Act on unemployment insurance etc., if there had been no access to benefits under the Maternity Act,
- You would have been entitled to temporary labour market benefit, cf. Act on unemployment insurance etc.,
- You have completed a vocational education of at least 18 months' duration within the last month.
- You are a student in a paid internship in a programme that is regulated by or in accordance with law or
- You are employed in a flexible job according to Section 120 of the Act on active employment.
The employment requirement must also be met at the time of taking postponed parental leave.
It is Udbetaling Danmark that decides on the right to maternity/paternity benefit. If you are dissatisfied with the decision, you can appeal to Udbetaling Danmark.
Read more about paternity/maternity benefit at borger.dk
How much do I get in benefits during parental leave?
You will receive maternity/paternity benefit on the basis of your weekly working hours during leave and the weekly hourly wage that you have had on average in the last 3 completed calendar months prior to the start of the leave.
The calculation is made on the basis of your employer's report to the income register.
Remember to check whether the employer reports your parental leave
In order to receive unemployment benefits during parental leave, your employer must apply for benefits for you at Udbetaling Danmark. You will then receive a notification letter from Udbetaling Danmark, which you must fill out and send back.
It is your responsibility that Udbetaling Danmark has the information before the application deadline expires. The application deadlines are:
- 8 weeks after the birth, if you are not paid during the leave,
- 8 weeks after the salary payment from the employer has ceased,
- 8 weeks after the first day of absence, when you start the leave at a later time, e.g. when taking paternity leave without pay.
Are you resuming work or taking another kind of leave during your parental leave?
You have a duty to notify Udbetaling Danmark if there are changes in your personal or work situation that have consequences for your parental leave, for example if you resume work in whole or in part or your partner takes leave.
This applies regardless of whether you receive maternity/paternity benefit or salary during the leave.
Unemployed and on parental leave
You can receive maternity/paternity benefits during your leave if you have registered as unemployed in your unemployment insurance fund and have made yourself available as a job seeker in your job centre, i.e. if you meet the requirements for being entitled to unemployment benefit.
As a mother, you must tell your social security when you expect to give birth and when you will go on leave.
As a father, you must tell your unemployment insurance fund when you expect to go on leave.
In addition, it is a good idea that you inquire with your job centre and your unemployment insurance fund about the conditions for availability when you are going on parental leave.