When a woman gives birth to her second child, she is entitled to 7 months of maternity leave. How is this calculated?

VTV.vn - The Vietnam Social Security (BHXH) announced that it will implement a 7-month maternity leave policy for female workers giving birth to their second child once guidance is received from the Government.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan ( Bac Ninh ) stated that she expects to give birth to her second child after July 1, 2026. According to the new regulations, female workers giving birth to their second child from this date onwards will be entitled to 7 months of maternity leave. However, Ms. Lan is concerned that the maternity allowance for this leave will still be only 6 months.

Regarding this issue, the Vietnam Social Security stated that, according to the Population Law 2025, effective from July 1, 2026, point a, clause 1, Article 14 stipulates: "In the case of a second child, the maternity leave period for female workers is 7 months; for male workers, it is 10 working days when their wife gives birth."

Clause 2 of Article 14 also stipulates that the Government will issue guidelines on the conditions and procedures for implementing this policy.

At the same time, Clause 1, Article 29 of the 2025 Population Law amends and supplements Article 139 of the Labor Code, stipulating that female workers are entitled to 6 months of maternity leave before and after childbirth; in the case of a second child, they are entitled to 7 months of leave. The maximum pre-natal leave period is no more than 2 months.

For twins or more, starting from the second child, the mother is entitled to an additional month of leave for each child.

However, Vietnam Social Security stated that there are currently no specific government guidelines on the conditions and procedures for implementing the 7-month maternity leave regime for female workers giving birth to their second child.

Upon receiving guidance from competent authorities, Vietnam Social Security will instruct provincial and city social security agencies to implement the regulations accordingly.

The agency also stated that any difficulties encountered during the policy implementation process will be compiled and reported to the competent authority for consideration and appropriate amendments or additions.

Source: https://vtv.vn/sinh-con-thu-hai-duoc-nghi-7-thang-tinh-che-do-the-nao-100260522204742702.htm