Salaried workers and unemployed women
are entitled to 15 weeks of maternity leave.
This period is broken down as follows:
- 5 weeks of pre-natal rest which can be carried forward,
- 1 week of pre-natal rest which is compulsory (week preceding childbirth),
- 9 weeks of mandatory post-natal rest.
In certain situations, this leave is extended:
- In the event of multiple birth:
- 2 weeks of carry-over pre-natal rest which are additional and optional,
- as well as 2 weeks of post-natal leave which are additional and optional, i.e. 19 weeks.
- If the baby is hospitalised for a period of more than eight days following birth : extension of post-natal rest corresponding to the number of days of hospitalisation longer than the first 7 days.
Conditions
To benefit from compensation for this period, workers must meet the conditions of compensation insurance (internship, etc.) and send the medical certificate stating the start date of maternity leave and the expected date of childbirth if it has not yet occurred. Subsequently, you will need to send a birth certificate.
Par la suite, il conviendra de faire parvenir un acte de naissance.
Compensation
For the first 30 days of maternity leave, the worker will receive 82% of her gross wage evaluated in working days while the unemployed person will benefit from 79.5% of the lost pay taken into consideration for the calculation of unemployment benefits.
From the 31st day, the amount of maternity allowance will increase to 75% of this wage. In the latter situation and for unemployed women, maternity benefit is limited to a maximum.
Independent workers
who meet the insurance conditions, are entitled to a fixed maternity allowance per week of effective ending of activity. The total duration of maternity leave is 12 weeks. (13 in the case of multiple births)
- Since 01/01/2009, the terms and conditions have been adapted to allow more flexibility in taking maternity leave.
- Mandatory rest consists of 3 weeks (1 pre-natal and 2 post-natal.
- At the end of this mandatory period, the self-employed person has 21 weeks to take the balance of the optional weeks remaining, this balance cannot exceed 5 weeks (6 in the event of multiple births.
- Since 01/01/2010, the self-employed worker can request an extension of maternity leave if her child must remain hospitalised after the first 7 days. The extension will be equivalent to the number of weeks corresponding to the duration of hospitalisation beyond the first 7 days.
Conditions
To benefit from this maternity benefit, the self-employed worker must send to her health insurance:
- A medical certificate stating the expected date of delivery
- The date of taking maternity preparation classes
- The completed and signed request form which establishes the schedule for the chosen weeks of rest.
This form is available from your health insurance company.