Maternity leave and benefits in Hungary

Maternity leave: the official and the colloquial definition

Officially, maternity leave is the 24 weeks a woman can take off work right before and after childbirth. Colloquially, however, maternity leave can include the unpaid leave for childcare, which is allowed until the child turns 3 years old.

During this time, the employment relationship of the mother cannot be terminated. If the mother is a third-country national whose residency is dependent on their employment, they can stay in Hungary and even apply for an extension of her permit, since legally her employment relationship is maintained.

When to go on maternity leave

The 24-week maternity leave may start 4 weeks before the child is supposed to be born. Usually, mothers take the last 2-3 weeks off work, depending on how they feel. The leave must be at least 6 weeks long, so mothers can return to work 2 weeks after giving birth the earliest if they took the last 4 weeks of the pregnancy off. Also, the maternity leave must be taken in one bulk. The mother cannot go back to work for just a week and then return to maternity leave; when the mother first returns to work, the leave is over.

When the maternity leave ends, an unpaid leave becomes available to mothers until the child turns 3 years old. Many women take this opportunity and decide to spend at least some of these formative years at home with their children.

Paternity leave

When their child is born, fathers also become eligible for 5 days of fully paid paternity leave, and an extra 5 days at 40% of their absence pay (absence pay is the name of the salary during PTO). The paternity leave must be taken in the first 4 months after the child is born.

Parental leave

Beside the above, parents are eligible for an additional 44 days of parental leave until their child turns 3. Parents receive only 10% of their absence pay on these days, which are not considered together with the annual leave. However, the annual leave is increased too in line with the number of children (by 2 days for 1 child, 4 days for 2 children, and 7 days for 3 or more children).

Maternity benefits

During and after maternity leave, the mother is eligible for the following allowances paid by the state. They are available not only to the mother, but also to the primary caregiver of the child if the mother is not available; this can be the father, a grandparent, a foster parent or an adoptive parent. The availability period of each benefit may be longer due to additional factors of fairness. To read about them in more detail, watch out for our next article.

• Maternity allowance: one-time allowance after the baby is born
• CSED: monthly allowance during the 24 weeks of the maternity leave
• GYED: monthly allowance after the maternity leave until the child turns 2
• GYES: monthly allowance after GYED until the child turns 3
• GYET: monthly allowance for families raising 3 children, until the youngest turns 8

Under specific conditions, mothers might also be eligible for certain tax benefits:

• NÉTAK: mothers of 4 or more children are exempt from personal income tax
• Tax benefit of mothers under 30: a personal tax exemption up to the average salary

Additional child benefits

Beside the above, the parents are eligible for additional benefits. Before applying for them, however, they should decide which of them will receive the benefits.

• Family allowance: a monthly allowance from birth until the child finishes school or until they turn 20
• Family tax benefit: a tax base reduction that increases the monthly net salary of the parent

How to prepare for the arrival of your child

To take advantage of maternity leave as well as the available child benefits and tax allowances, make sure to discuss your plans with your employer. Their accountant, payroll specialist, or HR specialist can help you decide when to go on a leave, when to go back to work, apply for allowances and calculate how each decision will affect your finances.

The Helpers Team has 20+ years of experience supporting foreigners living, working, and doing business in Hungary. As such, we are in a unique position to offer assistance in HR related matters even if the employees concerned are foreign nationals. Should you need help in accounting, payroll, HR compliance, or residency matters, feel free to contact us.

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