Dutch senate approves Paid Parental Leave Act

On 10 October 2021, the Dutch Senate approved the Paid Parental Leave Act (“Wet betaald ouderschapsverlof"), which will come into force on 2 August 2022. 

The bill adheres to the provisions of the EU directive on the work-life balance of parents and carers and introduces a two-month (nine weeks) period of paid parental leave, which is non-transferable from one parent to the other. Parents will receive compensation of a maximum of 70% of their daily wage.

Parents who have a child before August 2022 can also make use of this new paid parental leave on the condition that, on 2 August 2022:

•    the child is younger than one year old;
•    both parents are employees; and
•    the parents have not yet taken the full right to parental leave (26 times the working hours per week).

To read the bill and the Explanatory Memorandum in Dutch, please visit the dedicated page on the Government’s website here.