Maternity Leave by Country

How the US compares to 40 countries around the world

0 weeks US Federal Paid Leave
25 weeks Average (40 Countries)
82 weeks Most Generous (Estonia)
Home›Maternity Leave by State›Global Comparison

🌍 The US is an Outlier

The United States is the only OECD country - out of 38 wealthy, developed nations - with no federal paid maternity leave. Globally, only about 7 countries lack a national paid maternity program. The US joins Papua New Guinea, Suriname, and several Pacific Island nations in this group.

While FMLA provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave, it only covers ~60% of workers. Meanwhile, 13 US states + DC have enacted their own paid programs - see your state's benefits.

🇪🇪 Estonia
82 wks
🇸🇪 Sweden
69 wks
🇧🇬 Bulgaria
59 wks
🇩🇰 Denmark
52 wks
🇮🇸 Iceland
52 wks
🇳🇴 Norway
49 wks
🇫🇮 Finland
46 wks
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
39 wks
🇺🇸 United States
0 wks

Sources: OECD Family Database (2025), ILO (2024)

📊 Paid Leave Comparison

Average paid maternity leave: 25 weeks · Average pay rate: 90% of salary

# Country Region Maternity Weeks ▼ Pay Rate Paternity Weeks Who Pays
1 🇪🇪 Estonia Eastern Europe 82 100% 4 Government
2 🇸🇪 Sweden Nordic Countries 69 80% 13 Government
3 🇧🇬 Bulgaria Eastern Europe 59 90% 2 Government
4 🇩🇰 Denmark Nordic Countries 52 100% 11 Government
5 🇮🇸 Iceland Nordic Countries 52 80% 26 Government
6 🇳🇴 Norway Nordic Countries 49 100% 15 Government
7 🇫🇮 Finland Nordic Countries 46 70% 23 Government
8 🇬🇧 United Kingdom Western Europe 39 90% 2 Employer
9 🇨🇱 Chile Americas 30 100% 1 Government
10 🇨🇿 Czech Republic Eastern Europe 28 70% 2 Government
11 🇮🇪 Ireland Western Europe 26 €274/wk 2 Government
12 🇳🇿 New Zealand Asia-Pacific 26 NZ$789/wk 0 Government
13 🇮🇳 India Asia-Pacific 26 100% 0 Employer
14 🇭🇺 Hungary Eastern Europe 24 70% 1 Government
15 🇮🇹 Italy Southern Europe 20 80% 1 Government
16 🇵🇱 Poland Eastern Europe 20 100% 2 Government
17 🇷🇴 Romania Eastern Europe 18 85% 2 Government
18 🇱🇹 Lithuania Eastern Europe 18 77% 4 Government
19 🇦🇺 Australia Asia-Pacific 18 A$916/wk 2 Government
20 🇵🇹 Portugal Southern Europe 17 100% 4 Government
21 🇬🇷 Greece Southern Europe 17 100% 2 Mixed
22 🇧🇷 Brazil Americas 17 100% 1 Government
23 🇿🇦 South Africa Middle East & Africa 17 60% 1 Government
24 🇫🇷 France Western Europe 16 100% 4 Government
25 🇳🇱 Netherlands Western Europe 16 100% 6 Government
26 🇦🇹 Austria Western Europe 16 100% 4 Government
27 🇪🇸 Spain Southern Europe 16 100% 16 Government
28 🇸🇬 Singapore Asia-Pacific 16 100% 4 Mixed
29 🇧🇪 Belgium Western Europe 15 82% 3 Government
30 🇨🇦 Canada Americas 15 55% 5 Government
31 🇮🇱 Israel Middle East & Africa 15 100% 0 Government
32 🇩🇪 Germany Western Europe 14 100% 0 Mixed
33 🇨🇭 Switzerland Western Europe 14 80% 2 Government
34 🇯🇵 Japan Asia-Pacific 14 67% 52 Government
35 🇨🇳 China Asia-Pacific 14 100% 2 Government
36 🇰🇷 South Korea Asia-Pacific 13 100% 3 Mixed
37 🇦🇷 Argentina Americas 13 100% 0 Government
38 🇲🇽 Mexico Americas 12 100% 1 Government
39 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates Middle East & Africa 9 100% 1 Employer
40 🇺🇸 United States Americas 0 - 0 N/A

🗺️ Regional Breakdown

Nordic Countries

🇸🇪 Sweden 69 wks
  • 🇸🇪 Sweden 69 wks · 80%
  • 🇩🇰 Denmark 52 wks · 100%
  • 🇮🇸 Iceland 52 wks · 80%
  • 🇳🇴 Norway 49 wks · 100%
  • 🇫🇮 Finland 46 wks · 70%

Western Europe

🇬🇧 United Kingdom 39 wks
  • 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 39 wks · 90%
  • 🇮🇪 Ireland 26 wks · €274/wk
  • 🇫🇷 France 16 wks · 100%
  • 🇳🇱 Netherlands 16 wks · 100%
  • 🇦🇹 Austria 16 wks · 100%
  • 🇧🇪 Belgium 15 wks · 82%
  • 🇩🇪 Germany 14 wks · 100%
  • 🇨🇭 Switzerland 14 wks · 80%

Southern Europe

🇮🇹 Italy 20 wks
  • 🇮🇹 Italy 20 wks · 80%
  • 🇵🇹 Portugal 17 wks · 100%
  • 🇬🇷 Greece 17 wks · 100%
  • 🇪🇸 Spain 16 wks · 100%

Eastern Europe

🇪🇪 Estonia 82 wks
  • 🇪🇪 Estonia 82 wks · 100%
  • 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 59 wks · 90%
  • 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 28 wks · 70%
  • 🇭🇺 Hungary 24 wks · 70%
  • 🇵🇱 Poland 20 wks · 100%
  • 🇷🇴 Romania 18 wks · 85%
  • 🇱🇹 Lithuania 18 wks · 77%

Asia-Pacific

🇳🇿 New Zealand 26 wks
  • 🇳🇿 New Zealand 26 wks · NZ$789/wk
  • 🇮🇳 India 26 wks · 100%
  • 🇦🇺 Australia 18 wks · A$916/wk
  • 🇸🇬 Singapore 16 wks · 100%
  • 🇯🇵 Japan 14 wks · 67%
  • 🇨🇳 China 14 wks · 100%
  • 🇰🇷 South Korea 13 wks · 100%

Americas

🇨🇱 Chile 30 wks
  • 🇨🇱 Chile 30 wks · 100%
  • 🇧🇷 Brazil 17 wks · 100%
  • 🇨🇦 Canada 15 wks · 55%
  • 🇦🇷 Argentina 13 wks · 100%
  • 🇲🇽 Mexico 12 wks · 100%
  • 🇺🇸 United States 0 wks · -

Middle East & Africa

🇿🇦 South Africa 17 wks
  • 🇿🇦 South Africa 17 wks · 60%
  • 🇮🇱 Israel 15 wks · 100%
  • 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates 9 wks · 100%

💡 Key Facts

  • 82% of Americans support paid maternity leave - making it as popular as chocolate. (Ohio State University)
  • The WHO recommends a minimum of 16 weeks of maternity leave - only 7 countries fail to meet this standard.
  • Bulgaria offers the world's longest paid maternity leave at 410 days (58.6 weeks) at 90% salary.
  • Estonia provides ~82 weeks of paid parental leave at 100% salary - enough time for a baby to learn to walk, talk, and celebrate their first birthday.
  • Spain leads in gender equality with 16 weeks at 100% pay for both mothers and fathers, non-transferable.
  • The global average paid paternity leave is just 4 days - but 35 of 38 OECD countries now offer some form of earmarked leave for fathers.
  • The OECD average paid maternity leave is 18.5 weeks - the US is the only OECD member at zero.

What Can You Get?

While the US has no federal program, 13 states + DC offer paid family leave. See what your state provides and plan your personal leave timeline.

Plan My Leave →
🗺️ Your State's Benefits

📋 Sources

Data last updated April 2026. Individual country sources listed in each country's note.