Maternity Protection and Parental Leave

Turkish employment law affords female employees comprehensive, multi-layered protection in connection with pregnancy and childbirth. The relevant provisions are found primarily in Articles 5, 13, 18, 25 and 74 and Additional Article 2 of Labour Law No. 4857 (İş Kanunu), in Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510, in Occupational Health and Safety Law No. 6331 and in supplementary regulations. The protection covers maternity leave supported by a social security benefit, employment prohibitions and facilitations during pregnancy and breastfeeding, nursing leave, unpaid leave, half-time work and the right to part-time work after childbirth, as well as the prohibition of discrimination and protection against dismissal.

Contents

• How long is statutory maternity leave?
• What financial entitlements exist during maternity leave?
• Which protective rules apply during pregnancy and breastfeeding?
• What is nursing leave?
• How does half-time work immediately after childbirth work?
• What right to unpaid leave exists after childbirth?
• What is the right to part-time work until the child reaches school age?
• What rights apply in the case of adoption, to foster families and to fathers?
• What protection against dismissal do female employees enjoy?
• What should employers bear in mind in practice?
• Conclusion

How long is statutory maternity leave?

Under Law No. 7578, which entered into force on 1 May 2026, female employees are entitled to a total of 24 weeks of maternity leave (analık izni), eight weeks before and sixteen weeks after childbirth; female employees may not be employed during these periods. In the case of a multiple pregnancy, two weeks are added to the pre-natal period and the total period increases to 26 weeks. An employee whose state of health permits may, with a physician's approval and at her own request, work until two weeks before childbirth; the time worked is added to the post-natal leave. The post-natal leave can thus extend to up to 22 weeks in a single pregnancy and up to 24 weeks in a multiple pregnancy. In the case of premature birth, the pre-natal periods that could not be used are added to the post-natal period; if the mother dies during or after childbirth, the periods she could not use may be used by the father. The leave periods may be extended by a medical report where the employee's state of health and the nature of the work so require. These provisions of Article 74 of the Labour Law apply to all employees working under an employment contract, whether or not they fall within the scope of the Labour Law.

What financial entitlements exist during maternity leave?

The employer has no obligation to pay wages during maternity leave; instead, provided the insurance conditions are met – in particular the required number of premium days before childbirth – a temporary incapacity benefit is paid by social security for the maternity periods. Many employers top up these payments voluntarily or on the basis of the employment contract or a collective labour agreement. In addition, there is an entitlement to a one-off breastfeeding allowance under the statutory conditions. Maternity leave counts towards length of service and is treated as time worked when calculating the entitlement to paid annual leave.

Which protective rules apply during pregnancy and breastfeeding?

Under the Regulation on the Working Conditions of Pregnant or Breastfeeding Women and on Nursing Rooms and Childcare Centres, the employer must, once the pregnancy or breastfeeding has been notified, assess the specific risks to which the employee may be exposed and take the necessary measures. The main protective rules are as follows:

• A pregnant employee may not be required to work at night from the time the pregnancy is established by a medical report until childbirth; an employee who has recently given birth may not be employed at night for one year following childbirth. Night work is also prohibited after the end of that year for the period during which a medical report establishes that it is inadvisable.
• Pregnant and breastfeeding women may be employed for a maximum of seven and a half hours per day.
• If the risk assessment reveals a hazard, the working conditions or hours must be temporarily adjusted; if this is not possible, the employee must be transferred to another job. If lighter work is deemed necessary by a medical report, the wage may not be reduced. If a transfer to another job is not possible either, the employee is deemed to be on unpaid leave for the necessary period at her request.
• Paid leave is granted for periodic medical examinations during pregnancy.

These obligations form part of the employer's OHS responsibility. The risk assessment must take into account the employee's particular situation, including psychosocial and medical factors, and the employee must be informed of the outcome of the measures taken.

What is nursing leave?

A female employee is granted paid nursing leave (süt izni) of a total of one and a half hours per day to breastfeed her child until the child reaches the age of one. The employee herself determines at what times and in how many parts this time is used; nursing leave counts as working time, may not be deducted from wages and may not be offset against rest breaks. Nursing leave is a daily entitlement, and unused periods of nursing leave cannot be taken collectively.

Although in practice nursing leave is sometimes granted in weekly or monthly blocks, the Labour Law does not provide for this form of use. The Court of Cassation classifies nursing leave as a daily right that cannot be deferred and holds that the employee cannot request to accumulate the leave periods and take them collectively. For this reason, a written request by the employee or an agreement between the parties does not fully eliminate the legal and administrative risks that collective use may entail for the employer. By contrast, the daily leave of one and a half hours may be taken, at the employee's choice, in a single block within the same working day, for example by starting work later or leaving earlier.

The employer must nevertheless not make the actual use of nursing leave impossible or excessively difficult for reasons arising from its own organisation, such as shuttle services, shifts or work schedules; where necessary, it must develop reasonable organisational solutions enabling the employee to exercise this right effectively. Practices to the contrary may, depending on the circumstances of the specific case, be examined not only as a violation of the right to nursing leave but also under the prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sex and maternity.

How does half-time work immediately after childbirth work?

From the end of post-natal maternity leave, a female employee may, provided the child is alive and at her request, take unpaid leave amounting to half of the weekly working time; this right does not depend on the employer's consent. The same right is granted to a female or male employee who adopts a child under the age of three; no independent right to half-time work is provided for the biological father. The period is 60 days for the first birth, 120 days for the second birth and 180 days for subsequent births; 30 days are added in the case of multiple births, and if the child is born disabled, the period is 360 days. During this period, the female employee is not granted nursing leave in addition. The right to half-time work and the half-time work benefit paid by the Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR) are distinct: the benefit requires at least 600 days of unemployment insurance premiums in the last three years before the birth or adoption, actual work amounting to half of the weekly working time and an application within 30 days from the end of maternity leave.

What right to unpaid leave exists after childbirth?

After the end of maternity leave, a female employee may, upon request, take unpaid leave of up to six months; the employer has no discretion to refuse. The same right is granted, following the eight-week adoption leave, to one of the spouses adopting a child under the age of three or to a person adopting alone. This period is not counted as time worked for the purposes of paid annual leave and, as a rule, is not taken into account in calculating severance pay (kıdem tazminatı) either. The exercise of this right may not be made a ground for termination.

What is the right to part-time work until the child reaches school age?

Under Article 13 of the Labour Law, one of the parents may, at any time after the end of the leave under Article 74 of the Labour Law, request part-time work until the beginning of the month following the date on which the child reaches compulsory primary school age. The request must be made in writing at least one month before the start date. As a rule, both parents must be in employment; the exceptions listed in the regulation, such as a chronic illness of the other parent requiring continuous care and treatment, custody being granted to one parent alone and the adoption by a single person of a child under the age of three, remain reserved. Except for certain jobs made subject to the employer's consent in the regulation, the employer cannot refuse the request. The employer must reply in writing within one month; otherwise, the request takes effect on the date specified in the application or on the first working day thereafter. A request for part-time work does not constitute a valid reason for termination. The employee may return to full-time work by giving the employer at least one month's written notice, but may not use this right again for the same child.

What rights apply in the case of adoption, to foster families and to fathers?

In the case of the adoption of a child under the age of three, one of the spouses or a person adopting alone is granted eight weeks' leave from the date on which the child is actually handed over; the rights to half-time work, unpaid leave of up to six months and part-time work also apply under the statutory conditions. With the amendment that entered into force on 1 May 2026, the paid special leave granted to a father when his wife gives birth has been increased to ten days. In addition, an employee who acts as a foster family for one or more children may, upon request, take ten days of unpaid leave after the child is handed over. The leave regime for public sector employees is, however, subject to separate legislation.

What protection against dismissal do female employees enjoy?

Under Article 18 of the Labour Law, pregnancy, childbirth and the use of the leave under Article 74 of the Labour Law do not constitute a valid reason for termination. Furthermore, the employer may not treat an employee differently, directly or indirectly, on grounds of sex or pregnancy in the conclusion, terms, performance and termination of the employment contract.

Turkish law does not provide for an absolute prohibition of dismissal during pregnancy; termination may be possible if the employer can specifically demonstrate a valid reason or just cause unrelated to the pregnancy, childbirth or use of leave. Conversely, in the case of a termination based on a prohibited ground, an employee covered by job security may bring a reinstatement claim. In the event of a breach of the prohibition of discrimination, discrimination compensation of up to four months' wages together with the rights forgone may be considered; for an employee outside the scope of job security, bad-faith compensation may arise depending on the specific case. Even in the case of absences due to pregnancy and childbirth extending beyond the period under Article 74, the employer's right of termination without notice under Article 25/I of the Labour Law arises only if the absence that begins after the end of the period under Article 74 exceeds the notice period determined according to the employee's length of service by six weeks. In the case of dismissals close in time to a pregnancy or childbirth, the genuineness of the reason and any allegation of discrimination are examined with particular care.

What should employers bear in mind in practice?

• Management of deadlines and applications: maternity leave, half-time work, unpaid leave and part-time work are subject to different starting points, application periods and documents; tracking these rights within a structured HR process prevents errors in implementation.
• Documentation and notifications: medical reports, employee requests, nursing leave schedules, the İŞKUR half-time work document, SGK notifications and payroll records must be kept consistent with one another.
• OHS: the risk assessment must be updated immediately upon notification of the pregnancy; changes of duties must not be combined with a reduction in pay.
• With regard to dismissals that coincide with pregnancy and parenthood, it is particularly important that the reason is unrelated to the pregnancy, childbirth or use of leave, specific and documented.

Conclusion

Maternity protection under Turkish employment law is a multi-layered system consisting of 24 weeks of maternity leave (26 weeks in the case of a multiple pregnancy), employment prohibitions, nursing leave, half-time work, unpaid leave and the right to part-time work, which may extend until school age. This system is supplemented by the prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sex and pregnancy and by protection against dismissal. Failure by employers to comply with the rules on time limits and procedure may lead to administrative fines, claims for wages and compensation, reinstatement and the consequences associated with it.

At the same time, the organisational challenges – in particular through part-time and replacement models – can be managed without difficulty if the rights are integrated into workforce planning at an early stage.

GEMS Schindhelm advises employers on the legally compliant implementation of maternity legislation, on part-time and replacement models and on sensitive termination processes, and supports female employees in asserting their rights. This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute a legal opinion or legal advice; each dispute must be assessed separately in light of the specific circumstances of the case and the legislation in force.