Portugal's government rejects unconditional six-month parental leave, insists on shared leave to curb costs and gender gap

Two competing proposals

The hearing, requested by the Social Democratic Party (PSD), examined a citizens' initiative signed by over 40,000 people that would extend initial parental leave to 180 days at 100% pay, with no requirement for parents to share the leave. The government's own plan, already budgeted in the 2026 State Budget, also extends leave to six months at full pay but makes the final 60 days conditional on equal sharing between mother and father. The labour reform package that contained the government's proposal was rejected in Parliament in June, but the parental leave component remains under discussion.

The cost gap

According to figures presented by the Ministry of Labour, the government's shared-leave model would cost between €226 million and €230 million per year. The citizens' initiative would push that to between €485 million and €500 million, roughly €275 million more. The extra cost breaks down into €107 million for the progressive extension of leave time and €150 million for the father's exclusive leave, on top of the €228 million baseline. "There is no financial sustainability for this proposal at this moment," Palma Ramalho told lawmakers, adding that the government only has budgetary room for the measures already planned.

The government had already foreseen this increase of 228 million, which is not so little, and is available to accommodate something similar to this because it is already there.

Gender equality at stake

The minister argued that unconditional leave would deepen existing inequalities. Social Security data for 2024 show that the average initial parental leave lasts 152 days, but women take 138.9 days on average while men take just 34.5 days. In the same year, 72,041 processes were opened for the father's exclusive leave in the obligatory period, compared with 54,000 in the optional period. Palma Ramalho warned that without a sharing requirement, women would continue to bear the career costs: hiring discrimination, dismissal during pregnancy or leave, slower career progression, and a widening pay gap.

Any measure that increases the potential for this to continue is a measure that violates the principle of equality between men and women.

The sharing model as a safeguard

The government's proposal ties the 100% pay rate to the last 60 days being split equally. Palma Ramalho cited Sweden as an example of policies that incentivise shared leave and stressed that the European Union also imposes the promotion of balance. She rejected the idea that limiting breastfeeding leave to two years reflects prejudice, saying the issue is not breastfeeding time but the cost to employers of paying for eight hours while the employee works six.

We have to keep our feet on the ground. There is no feeding of prejudice against breastfeeding mothers. It is not the breastfeeding time that is at stake, but the time the employer pays: eight hours a day for six hours of work.

What comes next

The parliamentary debate on parental leave continues without consensus. The government has signalled it will not support the citizens' initiative in its current form, while the initiative's backers maintain that families should have the option of a longer fully paid leave without mandatory sharing. No vote has been scheduled.