The childcare leave regulations will not change and the opposition’s assertions that this period will be reduced are unsubstantiated, said the head of the Parliament’s commission on social protection, health and family Dan Perciun. According to the PAS MP, the only amendment be to the legislation that is being considered is the possibility for the parents to divide the three-year childcare leave between them so as to enjoy flexibility and return to work when they want. For its part, the opposition says the government intends to shorten the childcare leave, IPN reports.

Dan Perciun noted there are no preconditions for  amending the legislation and for reducing the childcare leave. The social protection rules in the case of the birth of a child remain the same.

“We do not have any intention to change the rules of providing childcare leave. The persons will further be able to get a three-year childcare leave with 30% of the salary for the past 12 months or for a period of 2.2 years but with a higher child benefit. The rules will not be modified. We only intend to enable the mother and the father to divide the leave between them. For example, out of three years, the father can be on childcare leave for a year, while the mother for two years. The goal is to enable the mothers who return to work earlier to get a higher benefit,” Dan Perciun stated in a special edition on the public TV channel.

Fort its part, the parliamentary opposition insists on the bill concerning family capital. According to the PSRM’s initiative, if such a bill is adopted, the state will allocate three average salaries on the birth of the first child, five average salaries on the birth of the second child and seven average salaries on the birth of the third child. Also, a benefit of 150 lei a month will be paid for each child. As the opposition says, the government does not support such a legislative proposal.

“Our party proposed a bill on family capital, but the Government disapproved of it. The note to the bill said the childcare leave in the Republic of Moldova is long and this does not positively influence the birth rate,” said MP of the Bloc of Communists and Socialists Vladimir Odnostalco.

Currently, mothers who gave birth after January 1, 2022 get a one-off childbirth allowance of 10,068 lei.