More parents taking paid parental leave; 40% of last year's applications from fathers

More and more parents are making use of the paid parental leave scheme implemented two years ago, NU.nl reports based on figures from the UWV. The scheme also seems to be encouraging more gender equality in parenting. Last year, 40 percent of applications came from dads, up from 33 percent the year before.

The scheme, implemented in August 2022, gives parents nine weeks of leave at 70 percent of their salary, which they can take in the first year after the birth of their child.

In the first year, the UWV received over 140,000 applications. Between August 2023 and August 2024, that increased by over 20 percent to more than 170,000 applications. The benefits agency approved around 90 percent of the applications.

In 2023, parents took an average of 8.2 weeks of the 9 weeks of paid parental leave. Parents with a lower level of education used the scheme less often than those with a medium or high level of education. Part-time workers used the scheme more often than employees with permanent contracts.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Social Affairs called the increased use of paid parental leave “a positive development.” He attributed the increase to more parents and employers becoming aware of the scheme.