In the current legislative framework of the Russian Federation, such a concept as maternity leave is not used. The fact is that this designation is rather a popularly used phenomenon, which refers to two different holidays entitled to expectant mothers. What kind of vacations are we talking about, what the law says about their registration, and what documents are needed for maternity leave, we will consider in this article.
What documents are needed for maternity leave?
Maternity leave: what kind of leave for expectant mothers is actually included in it
So, as we have already said, a decree as such is a colloquial concept and is not mentioned in the law. Moreover, in fact, we are not even talking about one vacation period, but about two, which are considered to be a single period due to the fact that they follow each other. So, we are talking about holidays of the following two varieties.
Table 1. Which holidays constitute the familiar concept of “maternity leave”
| Vacation name | Nuances of provision |
| Maternity leave | This leave is issued even before the child is born, at a certain stage of pregnancy, through the mother’s registration of sick leave for a specific period. |
| Holiday to care for the child | This leave is granted for a longer period, until the child turns three years old. At the same time, the mother’s accrual of work experience, as well as the length of service counted towards work in her specialty, is not interrupted. |
Any mother who works in any organization can get leave, since it is provided for her by law
The right to receive the above-described leaves for expectant mothers and women who have already become mothers is assigned at the legislative level and is recorded directly in the Labor Code of our country.
The right sought may be applied to women of all the following categories, namely:
- working women;
- women military personnel;
- unemployed mothers;
- students;
- citizens who are officially unemployed and are registered directly at the labor exchange;
- female employees of military departments working in civilian positions.
During the period of leave, which is given to a pregnant woman who is about to give birth, mothers are paid a benefit related to social insurance. The amount of this benefit is 100% of the woman’s average salary that she received over the previous 24 months.
Please note: provided that a woman has the right to compulsory social insurance, and belongs to the category of those who are subject to it, subject to temporary disability due to maternity, she will receive a benefit that cannot in any way be less than:
- the average salary of a given woman;
- minimum wage.
In the last stages of pregnancy it is unrealistically difficult to be at work, which is why the mother is entitled to legal rest
Provided that the woman, before becoming pregnant, worked not for two full years, as initially assumed, but only for about six months, she is entitled to benefits in any case. However, the calculation of its value will be carried out based on the minimum wage that is current at the time of determining and establishing the payment due to it.
If a pregnant woman is employed in several places at once, each employing organization must:
- provide her with maternity leave, provided that the woman issues a certificate of incapacity for work;
- pay the benefit we mentioned above.
In this case, everything will help ensure that the woman is relieved of her pregnancy as quickly as possible, raises a healthy baby and returns to work full of strength.
Terms of maternity leave
According to the Labor Code of our country, maternity leave granted to women has certain periods, divided into two periods:
- time before birth;
- time after childbirth.
Labor Code of the Russian Federation Article 255. Maternity leave
Labor Code of the Russian Federation Article 256. Parental leave
Once the number of maternity leave days after the birth of the child has expired, parental leave will begin, during which the mother will continue to stay at home, but officially on a different basis.
The duration of maternity leave may vary due to certain circumstances
However, if everything is simple with determining the period of parental leave (it has a specific period during which a woman can stay at home), then maternity leave needs to be sorted out. Its duration will vary depending on the circumstances surrounding, in fact, the entire period of gestation of the baby and its birth.
Table 2. For how long maternity leave can be assigned, and what circumstances influence its duration
| Duration | Cause |
| 70 calendar days before birth + 70 days after the birth of the child | Traditional period of maternity leave |
| 70 calendar days before birth + 86 days after the birth of the child | This period is given provided that any complications have arisen during childbirth, and the mother or baby needs more time to recover |
| 84 calendar days before birth + 110 days after birth | Provided that the mother had a multiple pregnancy (that is, two or more children), she is entitled to receive the BIR leave period indicated in the left column. |
The start of the type of leave we are interested in is determined by the date that appears directly on the certificate of incapacity for work, which is issued to the mother in the medical institution to which she goes at a certain stage of pregnancy. This period is determined by law and is 30 weeks from the moment the baby is conceived. Provided that the mother has any complications, or she is carrying several babies in her belly at once, the certificate will be issued earlier - at 28 weeks or even earlier if there are medical indications.
If the birth occurs prematurely or, conversely, later than desired, neither you nor the employer will be compensated for unused or overused days.
Please note: childbirth that occurs prematurely, or, conversely, that occurs later than expected, cannot automatically lead to an extension of the vacation period or a reduction in it. If there are appropriate medical indications, confirmed by a certificate of incapacity for work provided to the mother, the woman can officially apply for additional leave.
How to apply for maternity leave
The procedure for registering maternity leave has been established for a long time, and has already been completed by many women who have become mothers in our country. He'll be next.
- The woman waits until the 30th week of pregnancy (if all is well).
- Then she goes to the antenatal clinic, where she underwent examinations, and receives a certificate of incapacity for work there.
- She goes with the sick leave to the employer and passes it on to the HR department.
That's all, actually. The employer issues her leave, and she goes home with a calm soul in order to “build a nest” before the birth of the child.
Sick leave must be provided to the employer
After the long-awaited baby is born, a woman needs to take out parental leave - the second part of maternity leave. You need to understand that, unlike the BIR leave, which is due only to the mother due to purely physiological natural things, the required part of the leave can also be issued to the other parent.
The law provides for the opportunity to immediately move from one maternity leave to a second. But for this you need to know all the legal features in order to get maximum sick leave. What does that require? Read in the special article.
About payments
What to do if you decide to go from maternity leave to maternity leave? How to get a large amount of money as “compensation” from the state and employer? This is the question that worries many. Indeed, in some cases, there is no point in taking out a second maternity leave; it is easier to simply leave the workplace and not force the employer to suffer losses.
The answer here is extremely simple: to get good maternity benefits, you need to work hard. And for a long time. Maternity leave after maternity leave is a common phenomenon. For it to make sense, you will need to worry about your continuous work experience in advance.
Oddly enough, the longer you work and the higher your salary, the more profitable the maternity leave will be. Both the first and the second. Therefore, before you even get involved in paperwork and pregnancy planning, try to work for a long time in the same company. Show yourself as an experienced and valuable employee who is not just going to go on maternity leave, only receiving payments required by law from the employer and giving nothing in return, except for losses.
What documents are needed for maternity leave?
To apply for maternity leave, you will need to contact the human resources department of the organization that employs the expectant mother and provide there a package of certain documents prepared in advance, as well as a statement from the mother, which will indicate the following two requests:
- one about granting her maternity leave;
- the second is about the payment of compulsory social insurance benefits due to mothers.
Apply for leave by contacting the HR department
Please note: you will need to provide documents not once, but twice:
- before the birth of a child;
- after the end of the second half of maternity leave in order to register the second part of maternity leave intended for child care.
After an employee of the organization working in the HR department receives all the documents, he will have to start filling out an order stating that a particular employee is going on leave due to becoming a mother. Immediately from the day indicated in the order, the mother has the official right not to appear at work.
However, you need to understand that everything is not as simple as it seems.
Even women who are in the last stages of pregnancy may have difficulties with paperwork
Even pregnant working women may experience difficulties and delays when preparing documents, which can ultimately delay her departure for a well-deserved vacation, and only the mother herself will be to blame for not taking care to collect or complete the necessary documents in time.
To avoid such situations in your life, you need to timely, while you still have the strength and enough energy for this, go through all the bureaucratic procedures aimed at collecting the necessary papers. Let's look at the list of documents that you will first need to collect.
List of required documents
So, as we have already said, documents will need to be submitted to the HR department in two stages:
- before the baby is born;
- after he is born.
So, for the first part of the maternity leave (maternity leave), you need to prepare and take the following papers to the HR department:
- sick leave issued in accordance with official requirements
- certificate of registration at the antenatal clinic before 12 weeks;
- an application issued in the name of the employer;
- passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;
- bank account number or card number to which the organization should credit you with funds.
In some cases, the employer may request additional documents
As you can see, the list of documents is simple, small, and can be dealt with in the shortest possible time if each of the papers is completed or prepared in a timely manner.
Now let’s look at what papers need to be brought to the HR department for those who are already receiving leave and child care benefits:
- passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;
- the child’s birth certificate in the form of an original and a copy so that one can be compared with the other;
- bank account or card number;
- application for leave and benefits.
Citizens who are officially employed employees of any organizations can provide documents directly at the place of employment or directly to the Social Insurance Fund, if the region is a participant in the “direct payments” project.
How to write an application for maternity leave: instructions
So, in order to better understand how to draw up an application for this type of leave, let’s put it together. Of course, in reality you will be drafting it under the guidance of an HR employee, but the knowledge you have regarding the preparation of this document will only speed up the process.
Application for maternity leave - sample
Step No. 1 – creating a header
The statement that interests us has a standard type of structure, so it begins with a “header” - a block of text located in the upper right corner of the document, into which is written:
- name of company;
- last name, first name, patronymic and position of the person running the company;
- surname, name, patronymic and position of the person who is the applicant, that is, the future mother.
Then, a little lower in the middle of the sheet, the word “Statement” is written in capital letters, without a dot. Next we will write the finished text.
How should a hat be designed?
Step No. 2 - compiling the main text
In the main text, the citizen must state in correct language the request to provide her with:
- maternity leave, indicating specific time periods
- corresponding cash benefit.
There is no need to write this text according to any template, since it does not exist as such. Just write your request competently, in business language, omitting emotional moments. Clear and to the point.
How to format the main text correctly
Step No. 3 – specifying additions and completing the application
Next, you will need to list all the documents that are attached to the requested application. We have provided you with a list of them above. Just list them in a numbered list so that later there is no confusion in the document flow, and so that if something happens, you can confirm that you have submitted all the specified documents.
After the list of documents is completed, in the lower right corner the citizen writing the application must put the date of submission of the document, and also endorse the paper with a personal signature.
After the employer receives the application you have drawn up, the HR department will initiate a procedure for issuing an order, according to which you will receive everything that is due to you.
How to properly complete a document
FSS
All that remains is to contact the FSS. This is done directly by the employer. As already mentioned, within 10 days from the moment of consideration and signing of the order, the relevant information is transferred to the Social Insurance Fund. Now the main task falls on their shoulders.
In addition to the order, you will need to indicate the account (card) number of the pregnant employee where to transfer cash payments. The FSS will check the correctness of filling out the documents, and will also indicate the necessary changes and amendments, if any. There is nothing difficult or special about it. As a rule, if the order was approved and the bank details really belong to the maternity leaver, no problems arise.
What benefits do mothers receive during maternity leave?
The law of our country determines that women who will soon become mothers or have already become mothers have the right to receive various types of cash benefits.
Table 3. What benefits are citizens of our country who become mothers entitled to?
| Benefit | Nuances |
| Maternity benefit | This benefit is calculated on the basis of a sick leave certificate, which indicates the number of days of absence from work. The calculation of the amount of the required payment is determined on the basis of the average daily earnings and the number of days indicated on the certificate of incapacity for work. The amount of this payment for one calendar month cannot be the minimum wage (11,280 rubles from January 1, 2021), and the maximum cannot exceed 265,827.63 rubles. |
| Additional benefit for maternity leave with early registration at the antenatal clinic | If a woman registers with a antenatal clinic in the early stages of pregnancy, she is subsequently paid a fixed amount, the amount of which is 613.14 rubles. |
| One-time benefit for the birth of a child | The amount of this benefit will be calculated as follows: 17,479.73 rubles (base) + regional coefficient. |
| Child care allowance | Paid monthly until the month when the baby turns 1.5 years old. The amount of this benefit is 40% of the mother’s average earnings for the two years preceding her maternity leave. The minimum amount of such payment is 3,065.69 rubles for the first child or 6,131.37 rubles for the second and subsequent ones, and the maximum is 23,120.66 rubles per month. |
a doctor's note
Another feature worth considering is obtaining a special certificate from a doctor. Not every woman should present it, but it is better to worry about its presence. This document will contain recommendations for going on maternity leave - for what period. Even though you have already been on maternity leave, it is better to take this document and present it.
Is anyone getting ready from maternity leave to maternity leave? How to issue an order to implement this idea? This is a HR problem. And yours is collecting documents. Any woman can receive a certificate from a doctor without any problems at a consultation where pregnancy is being carried out. The corresponding document is required for female students, as well as female military personnel.
