Birth Leave in Spain: 19 Weeks and How to Split Them Up

Birth leave in Spain lasts 19 weeks for each parent, and 32 weeks in single-parent families. But it cannot be taken just any way: the law sets which weeks are mandatory, which can be spread out during the baby’s first year and which can be saved for later. In this article I explain how it works, how to tell your employer and what protection you have against dismissal, through the case of Valeria and Bruno.

If you are expecting a baby and want to plan your weeks well, or your employer is making things difficult, you can write to Fernanda Vargas, employment lawyer in Madrid, on WhatsApp or book an appointment on Calendly.

“We’ll See About the Rest”: Valeria and Bruno’s Plan

Valeria is 29, Argentinian, holds a residence and work authorization and works as a nurse at a private clinic in Seville. Her partner, Bruno, works as a designer at an advertising agency. They are expecting their first daughter in March.

They have a clear plan: they want the baby to be at home with one of them for as much of her first year as possible, and to save a few weeks for when she starts school. The problem comes when Bruno mentions it at the agency. His boss replies: “you take the six weeks when she’s born, and we’ll see about the rest when there’s less work”.

Valeria, for her part, has other questions: she does not know whether she can start her leave before the birth or how much notice she has to give the clinic. Let’s go through them one by one, because the law answers all of them and, as you will see, Bruno’s boss does not have the final say.

How Many Weeks You Are Entitled To: 19 per Parent and 32 in Single-Parent Families

Birth leave is regulated in article 48.4 of the Workers’ Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores). Its starting point is this:

“Birth, which includes childbirth and the care of the child, shall suspend the employment contract of the biological mother and that of the parent other than the biological mother for nineteen weeks. In the case of single parenthood, where there is only one parent, the period of suspension shall be thirty-two weeks.”

In other words, the biological mother has 19 weeks and the other parent has another 19 weeks of their own. When the law speaks of the biological mother, it also includes trans people who give birth. If your case is adoption, guardianship or foster care, the length is equivalent, although it is regulated in a different section (article 48.5).

What “Suspension of the Contract” Means

When we talk about suspension of the contract, we mean that your contract does not end: during those weeks you stop working, but you remain bound to your employer. While the suspension lasts, if you meet the requirements, you receive the Social Security (Seguridad Social) birth and childcare benefit, which you have to apply for when the time comes.

What “Single Parenthood” Means

Single parenthood exists when there is only one parent. In that case, since there is no other parent who can take their own weeks, the law extends that person’s leave to 32 weeks.

An Individual Right That Cannot Be Transferred

Each parent has their own weeks and cannot pass them to the other. If Bruno does not take his 19 weeks, Valeria cannot add them to hers. The law says so expressly: the right belongs individually to the worker and its exercise cannot be transferred to the other parent. That is why the most useful approach is for each parent to plan their own weeks with the shared calendar in mind.

The 19 weeks are divided into three blocks, set out in letters a), b) and c) of article 48.4:

“The suspension of the contract of each parent for the care of the child is distributed as follows: a) Six uninterrupted weeks immediately following childbirth shall be mandatory and must be taken full time. b) Eleven weeks, twenty-two in the case of single parenthood, which may be distributed at the worker’s discretion, in weekly periods to be taken consecutively or with interruptions, and exercised from the end of the mandatory suspension following childbirth until the son or daughter turns twelve months old. However, the biological mother may bring forward their exercise up to four weeks before the expected date of birth. c) Two weeks, four in the case of single parenthood, for the care of the child, which may be distributed at the worker’s discretion, in weekly periods, consecutively or with interruptions, until the son or daughter turns eight years old. This right belongs individually to the worker and its exercise may not be transferred to the other parent.”

This is a summary of how the weeks are split:

Block	Each parent	Single parenthood	When it is taken
a) Mandatory	6 weeks	6 weeks	Consecutively, right after the birth, full time
b) Flexible	11 weeks	22 weeks	In whole weeks, consecutive or not, until the baby turns 12 months
c) To save	2 weeks	4 weeks	In whole weeks, consecutive or not, until the child turns 8
Total	19 weeks	32 weeks

The Six Mandatory Weeks After the Birth

The first six weeks are not optional. They must be taken without interruption, immediately after the birth and full time. This applies to both parents: Valeria and Bruno will both be at home at the same time during those six weeks.

Here Bruno’s boss is right about one thing: the six weeks are taken when the baby is born. But that is not a favor from the employer, it is a legal obligation. Bruno cannot waive them or split them, and the agency cannot ask him to come back earlier.

The Eleven Flexible Weeks: How to Spread Them Over the First Year

After the six mandatory weeks come eleven more (twenty-two in single parenthood) that each parent can distribute as they wish. They are taken from the end of the six mandatory weeks until the baby turns twelve months old.

What “Weekly Periods” Means

The law says these weeks are split into weekly periods, taken consecutively or with interruptions. In practice, this means the minimum unit is a full week: you cannot take single days, but you can take all eleven weeks in a row, or divide them into several blocks of one or more weeks with periods of work in between.

Can You Start Before the Birth?

This was one of Valeria’s questions, and the answer is yes. The biological mother can bring forward these flexible weeks up to four weeks before the expected date of birth. Note: those weeks taken in advance come out of the eleven flexible weeks, they are not added to them. If Valeria starts, for example, two weeks before the birth, she will have nine flexible weeks left for after the six mandatory ones.

Full Time or Part Time

The flexible weeks and the weeks to save can be taken full time or part time. The difference is that full time is your decision, while part time requires prior agreement with the employer. If Bruno wanted, for example, to work half days during part of his leave, he would have to agree it with the agency.

The Two Weeks to Save Until the Child Turns Eight

The last block is two weeks per parent (four in single parenthood) for the care of the child, which are also split into whole weeks, consecutive or not, and can be used until the son or daughter turns eight.

This is exactly what Valeria and Bruno were looking for: saving some weeks for when their daughter starts school. Each of them can keep their two weeks for that moment, or for any other time before their daughter turns eight.

Separately from birth leave, article 48 bis of the Workers’ Statute recognizes a different parental leave of up to eight weeks, continuous or discontinuous, which can be taken until the child turns eight and requires ten days’ notice. It has its own rules and is not part of the 19 weeks, so it is best not to confuse the two.

How to Tell Your Employer and What It Can Decide

Valeria’s other question was how much notice she has to give. Article 48.4 sets it out as follows:

“The worker must notify the company, at least fifteen days in advance, of the exercise of this right under the terms established, where applicable, in collective agreements. When the two parents exercising this right work for the same company, management may limit their simultaneous exercise for well-founded and objective reasons, duly justified in writing.”

The fifteen days’ notice refers to how you are going to take the flexible weeks and the weeks to save. Your collective agreement (convenio colectivo) may specify how to do it, so it is worth checking. The safest approach is always to give notice in writing, so there is a record of the date.

What the Employer Cannot Do

The employer does not decide when you take your weeks. The flexible weeks are distributed at the worker’s discretion, not the employer’s. That is why Bruno’s boss’s “we’ll see about the rest when there’s less work” has no support in the law: if Bruno gives written notice, at least fifteen days in advance, of when he will take his weeks, the agency cannot postpone them because there is a lot of work.

What the Employer Can Do

• Limit simultaneous leave, but only if both parents work for the same company, for well-founded and objective reasons, justified in writing. That is not the case for Valeria and Bruno, who work for different companies.
• Accept or refuse that you take weeks part time, because that requires agreement.

If you are also worried about what happens to your vacation in the year your child is born, you may find this article useful on when unused vacation days are lost in Spain.

Premature Births and Hospitalization of the Baby

The law provides two adjustments for when the baby is born early or has to stay in hospital:

• In premature births, or when the newborn has to remain in hospital, the period can start counting from discharge. The exception is the mother’s six mandatory weeks, which still follow the birth.
• If the hospital stay lasts more than seven days, the leave is extended by as many days as the stay lasts, up to a maximum of thirteen additional weeks.

So if Valeria and Bruno’s daughter were born prematurely and stayed in hospital for three weeks, the leave would be extended by those days, so that the time in hospital does not eat into the time at home.

Your Protection Against Dismissal

Requesting or taking birth leave cannot cost you your job. Under articles 53.4 and 55.5 of the Workers’ Statute, a dismissal during the birth leave is null and void, and so is one notified in such a way that the notice period ends within that leave. The same protection covers anyone who has requested the leave. The only exception is when the dismissal is declared fair for reasons unrelated to the leave.

If you are pregnant and worried about your situation at work, here is more information on when the dismissal of a pregnant employee is null and void and what to do.

Sample Calendar: How Valeria and Bruno Cover the First Year

With all of the above, Valeria and Bruno sit down before the birth to draw up a shared calendar. They decide that Valeria will not bring any weeks forward before the birth, so she has more time afterwards, and that they will take their flexible weeks one after the other, first her and then him. Counting from the birth:

Weeks from birth	Valeria	Bruno	Who is with the baby
1 to 6	6 mandatory weeks	6 mandatory weeks	Both
7 to 17	11 flexible weeks	Working	Valeria
18 to 28	Working	11 flexible weeks	Bruno
Until age 8	2 weeks saved	2 weeks saved	For the start of school

With this split, the baby is at home with at least one of her parents for about 28 weeks, more than half a year. That is a good part of the first year, though not the whole year: for the rest they will need to consider other options, and each case is best looked at individually.

For the plan to work, each of them has to do their part:

1. Give their employer written notice, at least fifteen days in advance, of the dates of their flexible weeks. Bruno, moreover, does not have to wait until “there’s less work”.
2. Check their collective agreement in case it specifies how to give that notice.
3. Apply to Social Security for the birth and childcare benefit when the time comes.
4. Also give fifteen days’ notice when they decide to use the two saved weeks.

If your employer puts obstacles in your way like Bruno’s boss, or you are not sure how to fit your weeks together, Fernanda Vargas, employment lawyer in Madrid, can review your case. You can see how she works on her page on employment law advice.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you want to plan your birth leave or are having problems with your employer, write to Fernanda Vargas on WhatsApp or book an appointment on Calendly.