AK service tip

Maternity protection: Who is entitled to special weekly allowance?

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Adobe Stock; AK Stmk)

Women who become pregnant again during maternity leave and no longer receive childcare allowance were previously not entitled to a weekly allowance. This is now changing, as AK expert Bianca Liebmann-Kiss explains. 

Women who become pregnant again during their parental leave and no longer receive childcare allowance were previously not entitled to maternity pay. However, this is now changing: the special weekly allowance will be introduced with retroactive effect from September 1, 2022. On the one hand, the allowance is payable if the mother has not worked or has worked for less than three months in the last three months before maternity leave.

On the other hand, if the mother worked marginally or part-time (parental) before the child's 2nd birthday, maternity protection begins before the 2nd birthday and the special weekly allowance would be higher than the regular weekly allowance.

Special regulation for caesarean section or premature birth
The special weekly allowance corresponds to the increased sickness benefit. This is 60 percent of the last earnings before maternity leave. It is paid for the last eight weeks before the expected date of birth until eight weeks after the birth.

In the case of a caesarean section, premature birth or multiple birth, it is paid up to twelve weeks after the birth. It applies retroactively to mothers whose maternity leave began on or after September 1, 2022. An application must be submitted to the relevant social insurance institution.