Parental leave by country / Bulgaria
Maternity, paternity and parental leave in Bulgaria
How long each parent can be away, who pays and how much, the notice rules and the job protection — in plain English, whether you run a team in Bulgaria or work on one.
Bulgaria gives the mother 410 days of pregnancy and childbirth leave for each child under article 163 of the Labour Code, 45 of them compulsory before the due date, paid by the National Social Security Institute at 90% of average daily insurable income where she has 12 months of insurance record. The father takes 15 days from the child's discharge from hospital and, under article 164в, two further non-transferable months before the child turns eight. Leave to raise a child to age two is paid at a flat €398.81 a month in 2026.
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How it works
Article 163(1) of the Labour Code gives 410 days of leave for pregnancy and childbirth per child, of which 45 must be taken before the expected birth, and article 49 of the Social Insurance Code pays it at 90% of the average daily gross remuneration or insurable income — one of the most generous replacement rates in the EU, though article 48а conditions it on 12 months of insurance record for the maternity risk. Article 163(8) gives the father 15 days from the date the child leaves hospital. Once the child is six months old, article 163(10) lets the mother transfer the remainder of the 410 days to the father or to a grandparent. Article 164 then provides additional leave until the child turns two, transferable on the same logic under article 164(3), paid at a flat monthly amount rather than a percentage. Article 164в, in force since August 2022, adds two months of non-transferable leave for the father or adoptive parent at any point before the child's eighth birthday, implementing the EU work-life balance directive.
Worth knowing: The childcare amount is fixed each year by the social insurance budget act rather than tied to earnings. The enacted 2026 act sets the benefit for raising a child to age two, and the father's leave for a child up to eight, at €398.81 a month — a proposal to raise it to €460.17 did not make it into the final law. It is the first such figure set in euro, Bulgaria having joined the euro area on 1 January 2026.
If you run a team in Bulgaria
Keep the job open: these are long absences by EU standards, with 410 days of birth leave and up to two years of childcare leave on top. The cash comes from NOI, not from you, but you file the paperwork and must reinstate the employee to the same post. Remember the father's two months under article 164в can be requested any time up to the child's eighth birthday, so plan for requests that arrive years after the birth.
If you work in Bulgaria
You need 12 months of insurance record for the maternity risk to be paid the 90% benefit — check it before you plan. Forty-five days must be taken before the due date. After the child is six months old you can transfer the rest of the 410 days to the father or a grandparent, and the leave to age two can be transferred the same way. Fathers: 15 days from the child's discharge, and two months of your own at any time before the child turns eight.
Parental leave and annual leave
Time on pregnancy, childbirth and childcare leave is recognised as service, so paid annual leave keeps accruing across these absences.
The annual leave entitlement itself is covered on our Bulgaria annual leave page — 20 working days minimum.
Keeping the record straight
Long leaves are where leave records go wrong quietly: holiday that kept accruing for months and was never credited, a return date nobody diarised, a reduced entitlement applied where the law forbids it. In Bulgaria the rules above decide what is owed on return, and the record has to show it. A tracker like Leavo keeps the leave, the accrual and the approvals in one place so the return is a date, not a dispute. We compare the options in our leave management software guide, and the policy side — carryover, payout, accrual — in our guides.
Parental leave in Bulgaria: common questions
How long is Bulgarian maternity leave?
410 days for each child under article 163(1) of the Labour Code — about 58 weeks — of which 45 days are compulsory before the expected date of birth.
Can the father use the mother's leave?
Yes. Once the child is six months old, article 163(10) allows the mother to transfer the remainder of the 410 days to the father or to a grandparent, with her consent. The father also has 15 days of his own at the birth and two non-transferable months before the child turns eight.
How much is the second-year benefit in 2026?
€398.81 a month, fixed by the 2026 social insurance budget act. The same amount applies to the father's two-month leave for a child up to eight.
Does annual leave accrue during maternity or parental leave in Bulgaria?
Time on pregnancy, childbirth and childcare leave is recognised as service, so paid annual leave keeps accruing across these absences.
Source
Primary source: Кодекс на труда, чл. 163, 164 и 164в; Кодекс за социално осигуряване, чл. 48а, 49 и 53. Benefit rates and ceilings change every year and collective agreements frequently improve on the statutory scheme — confirm against the current text before acting. See our methodology.