Countries › Uruguay › Guide › 7. Labor and employment › Maternity, paternity, parental care and special paid leave in Uruguay

Maternity, paternity, parental care and special paid leave in Uruguay

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Changing

Employees must stop work six weeks before and eight weeks after birth (never less than 14 weeks in total, up to 18 weeks or longer in complex cases), paid by the BPS on the average of the last six months' pay with a floor of 2 BPC a month. Fathers get three days paid by the employer plus 17 days of BPS paid leave from 1 January 2026, and either parent can then work half time on a half subsidy until the child is six months old; dismissal within 30 days of return from paternity leave costs three months' pay on top of severance. All private sector workers also have paid study, marriage, bereavement and disability care leave, and a pregnant worker dismissed during her absence is owed six months' pay plus severance.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026, retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 27 October 2026; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Minimum maternity rest	14 weeksLey Nº 19.161 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maternity rest for multiple or low weight births, up to	18 weeksLey Nº 19.161 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum monthly maternity subsidy (2 BPC in 2026)	13728 UYULey Nº 19.161 art. 6; Decreto Nº 11/026, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Paternity leave for private employees from 1 Jan 2026 (3 employer paid days plus 17 BPS days)	20 daysLey Nº 19.161 art. 8; Ley Nº 18.345 art. 5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Extra payment for dismissal within 30 days of return from paternity leave	3 months of salaryLey Nº 19.161 art. 8 BIS, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Half time parental care subsidy until the child is	6 months oldLey Nº 19.161 art. 12, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Marriage leave	3 daysLey Nº 18.345 art. 6, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Bereavement leave	3 business daysLey Nº 18.345 art. 7, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Study leave for a 48 hour week	12 days a yearLey Nº 18.345 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Extra severance for dismissal during pregnancy absence	6 months of salaryLey Nº 11.577 art. 17, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Private sector employees (and some self employed workers) must stop all work six weeks before the expected birth and may not resume until eight weeks after it; with BPS authorization the split can change, but rest may never be shorter than 14 weeks. Multiple births or a birth weight of 1.5 kg or less allow up to 18 weeks, and serious conditions of the newborn allow extension until the child is six months old, without notice to the employer.Ley Nº 19.161 as amended by Ley Nº 20.000, Art. 1, 2 and 2 BIS, 2021-11-18 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: Ley Nº 20.000 (18 November 2021) reworded art. 2 and 3 and added art. 2 BIS with the extensions for multiple, low weight, premature and complex births.

2. During maternity leave an employee receives from the social security system the monthly or daily average of her pay over the last six months, plus the proportional share of the year end bonus, leave and vacation bonus; the subsidy is never less than 2 BPC a month. Benefits continue in full even if the job is suspended or ends during pregnancy or postnatal rest. The BPS withholds the personal contribution on the subsidies and no employer contributions are due on them.
Cost to do it: No salary and no employer contributions during the subsidized period; the subsidy itself includes the shares of year end bonus, leave and vacation bonus.
Example: The floor of 2 BPC is UYU 13,728 a month in 2026 (BPC UYU 6,864, Decreto 11/026). / About US$341 a month.Ley Nº 19.161, Art. 1, 6 and 17, 2013-11-01 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. Fathers who are private sector employees take paternity leave paid by the BPS subsidy: 17 continuous days from 1 January 2026 for those who also have the three day employer paid paternity leave of Ley 18.345 (starting right after it), 20 days for others, and 30 days for multiple, premature, low weight or complex births. They must notify the employer of the expected date at least two weeks before. The subsidy is the daily average of the last six months' pay plus proportional bonus, leave and vacation bonus shares.
Example: A father on UYU 90,000 a month takes 3 days paid by the employer plus 17 BPS days, 20 days in total. / UYU 90,000 is about US$2,238.Ley Nº 19.161 as reworded by Ley Nº 20.312; Ley Nº 18.345, Ley 19.161 art. 7, 8, 9 and 10; Ley 18.345 art. 5, 2024-08-02 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: Ley Nº 20.312 (2 August 2024) reworded art. 8, raising paternity leave from 14 to 17 days (or 15 to 20 days) from 1 January 2026 and adding 30 days for complex births.

4. Workers returning from paternity, adoption or adoptive legitimation leave may not be dismissed until at least 30 days after they return; otherwise the employer owes three months' salary on top of the legal severance, unless it proves notorious misconduct or that the dismissal is unrelated to the leave.
Example: Dismissing a father on UYU 90,000 two weeks after his return costs UYU 270,000 plus ordinary severance. / UYU 270,000 is about US$6,714.Ley Nº 19.161 art. 8 BIS as reworded by Ley Nº 20.364, Art. 8 BIS, 2024-09-20 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: Ley Nº 20.364 (20 September 2024) set the current wording of art. 8 BIS.

5. After maternity leave ends, either parent (alternately) can receive a care subsidy until the child is six months old (nine months in complex cases), working no more than half the usual schedule and never over four hours a day; the subsidy is half the maternity or paternity amount. Beneficiaries of maternity, paternity or care subsidies may not do other paid work during the subsidized hours.Ley Nº 19.161, Art. 12, 13, 14 and 15, 2021-11-18 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Every private sector worker has paid special leave that is additional to annual leave and cannot be replaced by money: study leave of 6, 9 or 12 days a year depending on weekly hours (more than six months of seniority, proof of exams), three days for the birth of a child, three days for marriage (30 days' notice), three business days for the death of a parent, child, spouse, partner or sibling, up to ten days a year for medical checks of a child with a disability, and 96 hours a year to care for relatives with a disability or terminal illness, of which the employer pays up to 64 hours. These leaves do not generate vacation bonus.
Cost to do it: Employer paid days at normal salary.Ley Nº 18.345 (Special paid leave), Art. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, 2008-09-11 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. A pregnant worker may be absent for the time prescribed by her doctor and must keep her job if she returns in normal conditions; if dismissed during that absence the employer owes six months' salary plus the legal severance. A pregnant worker, or one who gave birth up to a year before, may ask for daytime hours without losing night compensation.
Example: Dismissing a worker on UYU 70,000 during pregnancy absence costs UYU 420,000 plus ordinary severance. / UYU 420,000 is about US$10,444.Ley Nº 11.577; Ley Nº 19.313, Ley 11.577 art. 16 and 17; Ley 19.313 art. 2, 1950-10-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Leave	Length	Paid by	Norm
Maternity	6 weeks before + 8 after, min 14 weeks (18 or more in special cases)	BPS subsidy	Ley 19.161 art. 2, 6
Paternity (birth)	3 days	Employer	Ley 18.345 art. 5
Paternity (subsidy)	17 days from 2026 (30 in complex cases)	BPS subsidy	Ley 19.161 art. 8
Parental care	Half time until child is 6 months	BPS, half subsidy	Ley 19.161 art. 12 to 14
Study	6, 9 or 12 days a year	Employer	Ley 18.345 art. 2
Marriage	3 days	Employer	Ley 18.345 art. 6
Bereavement	3 business days	Employer	Ley 18.345 art. 7
Child with disability, medical checks	Up to 10 days a year	Employer	Ley 18.345 art. 10
Relative with disability or terminal illness	96 hours a year	Employer up to 64 hours	Ley 18.345 art. 11

Leave entitlements and who pays

Worked example

An employee on UYU 80,000 a month (about US$1,989) gives birth in March 2027. She is off for at least 14 weeks on a BPS subsidy based on her six month average plus bonus and leave shares; the employer pays no salary or employer contributions for that period. Afterwards she or the father can work half time on a half subsidy until the baby is six months old.
A father notifies the employer two weeks before the due date, takes three employer paid days and then 17 BPS days; the employer cannot dismiss him without the three month penalty until 30 days after he returns.

Step by step

1. Receive the worker's notice (two weeks before birth for fathers) and the medical certificate.
2. Process the BPS maternity, paternity or care subsidy request and stop salary for subsidized days.
3. Pay employer funded special leave days at normal salary.
4. Adjust schedules for parental care half time work and daytime work requests.
5. Block dismissals during protected periods unless notorious misconduct can be proven.

Common traps

Maternity rest is mandatory: the worker cannot work, and the employer cannot let her, during the protected weeks.
Paternity protection covers 30 days after return; the burden is on the employer to prove misconduct or an unrelated reason.
Special leaves cannot be paid in cash instead of taken.
Subsidy beneficiaries who do other paid work lose the subsidy for that time.

Sources

← Annual leave, vacation bonus and year end bonus in Uruguay: how much, when and how to calculate themSocial security in Uruguay: BPS contributions, FONASA health rates and the 2023 pension reform →