Amendments to the Leaves = (Paternity, Parental, Carer, Force Majeure) and Flexible Working Arrangements for Work-Life Balance (Amendment) Act, 2025
The Law on Leave (Paternity, Parental, Care, Force Majeure) and Flexible Working Arrangements for Work-Life Balance (Amendment) Law of 2025 was passed by the House of Representatives and published in the Official Gazette on 31 March 2025.
Based on the amendment, in the case of (a) a parent of a child with a disability or a parent of a person with a disability, the duration of parental leave is extended to twenty (20) weeks and in the case of (b) a widowed parent or single parent either due to removal of parental custody by the other parent or failure of the other parent to recognize the child, the duration of parental leave is extended to twenty-three (23) weeks.
It is noted that the right to take parental leave is an individual and non-transferable right for each parent, except that up to nine (9) weeks of one parent's leave balance may be transferred to the other parent's leave balance. Provided, that the right of transfer shall apply to the period of parental leave for which no parental leave allowance is provided under the provisions of the Act.
In addition, parental leave is taken between the period between the expiry of the maternity or paternity leave taken, as the case may be, and the fifteenth (15th) year of the child's age, while in the case of a parent of a person with a disability, subject to the provisions of the Law on Persons with Disabilities, the right to parental leave is extended until the twenty-first (21st) year of the age of the person with a disability.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
