New regulation on maternity leave is on the way
The AKP government, which has declared 2025 as the Year of the Family, is preparing to increase maternity leave for female civil servants to 24 weeks and paternity leave to 15 days with a new regulation prepared in response to declining birth rates.
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Seeking a solution to the decline in birth rates, the government is working on a new regulation that will extend maternity and paternity leave for public personnel. According to the prepared draft, it is planned to grant 24 weeks of maternity leave to female civil servants and 15 days of paternity leave to male civil servants.
According to a report by Türkiye Gazetesi, within the scope of the regulation aimed at encouraging birth rates, maternity leave for female civil servants, which is currently 16 weeks, will be increased to 24 weeks. The new draft envisions a total of 24 weeks of leave, consisting of 8 weeks before birth and 16 weeks after birth. In cases of multiple pregnancies, the practice of adding 2 more weeks to the 8-week pre-birth period will continue.
There will also be an increase in leave duration for fathers. Paternity leave, which is currently 10 days, will be increased to 15 days with the draft. In addition, civil servants who become foster parents to a child under the age of 3 will be granted 15 days of leave upon request, starting from the date the child is handed over.
The justification for the draft recalls that birth rates in Turkey are falling and that the country has begun to fall into the "very old population" category according to United Nations criteria. The new regulation aims to both support families and contribute to population policies by extending maternity and paternity leave periods.