From 1 July 2026, female employees giving birth to their second child are entitled to 7 months of maternity leave instead of 6, while male employees receive 10 working days off when their wife gives birth to a second child. This is one of the replacement-fertility measures under Population Law 113/2025/QH15 — Vietnam first dedicated population statute — detailed by Decree 168/2026/ND-CP.
1. Legal basis
- Population Law 113/2025/QH15 — passed 10 December 2025, effective 1 July 2026.
- Point a, Clause 1, Article 14: for a second child, maternity leave is 7 months for female employees and 10 working days for male employees when the wife gives birth.
- Decree 168/2026/ND-CP (15 May 2026) details implementation; Clause 1, Article 2 sets eligibility conditions.
2. Eligibility conditions
Employees qualify for second-child maternity benefits subject to social insurance law, specifically:
- Female employees: giving birth to the second child, with one living biological child at the time of birth.
- Male employees: currently participating in compulsory social insurance, the wife gives birth to the second child, and the wife has one living biological child at the time of birth.
3. Leave durations
- Female employees: 7 months total (before and after birth); prenatal leave may not exceed 2 months. Multiple births: from the second child, one extra month per child.
- Male employees: 10 working days when the wife gives birth to the second child; triplets or more: from the third child, 3 extra working days per child.
4. Benefit amounts
Under the 2024 Law on Social Insurance:
- Maternity allowance = months of leave × one-month allowance, where one month equals 100% of the average salary used as the compulsory SI contribution base over the preceding 6 months.
- Lump-sum birth allowance: 2 × the reference level per child (currently VND 2,530,000 per month).
- Male employees on 10-day leave receive SI-paid allowances for the leave period (the employer does not pay salary for these days).
5. “Second child” vs “second birth” — a critical distinction
The policy follows the birth order of the child, not the number of deliveries:
- First delivery: one child; second delivery: one child → the later child is the second child → eligible.
- First delivery: twins (already two children); second delivery: one child → this is the second delivery but the third child → not eligible.
6. Other fertility-support measures (Article 14)
- Financial support for ethnic-minority women of very small groups giving birth;
- Financial support for women in provinces/cities with below-replacement fertility;
- Financial support for women giving birth to 2 children before age 35;
- Priority access to social housing purchase/lease for persons with 2 or more biological children.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is the maternity leave for a first child?
A: First-child maternity benefits remain under the Law on Social Insurance (6 months for female employees). The 7-month rule applies only to second children from 1 July 2026.
Q: My husband does not participate in compulsory social insurance. Is he entitled to the 10 days?
A: No. Current participation in compulsory social insurance is a mandatory condition.
Q: Is the 7-month leave fully paid?
A: Employees receive SI-funded maternity allowances (100% of the average SI contribution salary over the prior 6 months), not employer-paid salary.
Legal sources
- Population Law 113/2025/QH15 (Point a, Clause 1, Article 14; effective 1 July 2026) — thuvienphapluat.vn
- Decree 168/2026/ND-CP (Clause 1, Article 2; 15 May 2026)
- Law on Social Insurance 2024 (maternity regime, lump-sum allowance)
Transparency note: This article was prepared and reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council (an artificial-intelligence council), not by a human lawyer. It is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice for any specific case. This article is pending QA Council review.