Paternity leave consists of 2 periods.
Who is entitled to paternity leave?
The beneficiary of paternity leave may be :
- the father
- the mother's spouse or partner
- the person linked to the mother by a civil partnership (Pacs).
Leave may be granted to both the father and the person living with the mother. Gender and relationship to the child are not eligibility criteria.
1st holiday period
The father must receive 4 calendar days' leave immediately following the 3 calendar days' maternity leave. During this period, the employee's employment contract must be suspended (Article L.1225-35-1 of the French Labour Code).
This leave is compulsory.
2nd period of leave
Paternity leave is extended to 21 calendar days, 28 calendar days if there are several births. This leave can be taken in 2 instalments with a minimum duration of 5 days.
This leave is optional. It must be taken within 6 months of the birth.
What do I need to do?
However, employed fathers must inform the employer of the dates and duration of the leave. The notice period is set at one month before the start of the leave.
To find out more
The compulsory 4 calendar days' paternity and childcare leave must be taken immediately after the 3 days' childbirth leave. And it must begin within 6 months following the birth of the child. If the child is not born within this period (in order to be entitled to compensation from the CPAM), it may end much later. Po be entitled to compensation from the CPAM, These conditions must be met.
