In recent years, increased attention has been paid to demography in our country, because its future power and prosperity directly depend on the birth rate and population growth. Concern for additional provision for women, the time given for development, gestation and nursing of the born child will have an impact on its further health and development.

Extension of sick leave for pregnancy and childbirth by 16 days

About sick leave for pregnancy and childbirth

In 2021, additions and changes were made to the legislation of the Russian Federation to increase and expand assistance to families with children. Articles 255 and 266 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provide for the provision of maternity leave to women.

It is the responsibility of each manager to provide a woman who is about to give birth to a child with leave within the time limits required by law.

Child care time is divided into periods:

• maternity leave;
• additional leave for complicated childbirth;
• care leave until the child reaches 1.5 years of age;
• parental leave until the child reaches 3 years of age.

Note ! These holidays are paid on the basis of separate regulatory documents.

If a woman works while carrying a child, she is granted maternity leave - 70 days. The date is set by the decision of the gynecologist of the Women's Consultation on the expected date of birth of the child at 30 weeks of pregnancy. At birth without postpartum complications, a woman is entitled to another 70 days to restore her health and care for her baby. But childbirth is a difficult, difficult procedure for mother and child, which often involves medical complications and injuries. In such cases, the woman will have 16 days added to her maternity leave, making it 86 days in total.

Article 10 of Federal Law No. 255

If a happy mother’s doctors, using an ultrasound, have determined that two or more fetuses have been conceived, then maternity leave is extended to 84 (70+14) days, and at their birth by 110 (70+40) days.

Note ! Unfortunately, there are many cases where pregnancy and childbirth occur with deviations and are difficult for mothers and children to tolerate. They often end in a major operation or caesarean section, which can cause additional harm to the woman and prolong her recovery period.

A sick leave certificate issued by a medical institution is the basis for payments for all days due for pregnancy and postpartum leave, including additional days for complications. The amount of payments depends on the average salary calculated from the income received over the last two years.

Attention:

• sick pay for pregnancy and childbirth should not be lower than the minimum wage at the time of accrual.
• in accordance with Art. 217 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, sick leave and other payments for children are not subject to taxes and fees.

Excerpt from Article 217 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

If a woman voluntarily works until the birth of the child, without serving the required leave after the birth of the child, this is not prohibited by law and only the actual time spent on sick leave is paid.

Note ! During pregnancy, a woman must be released from hard work and transferred to light work with mandatory retention of earnings calculated on average.

For the entire period of maternity leave and time to care for a child, the employee retains his job. Every month the employee is paid a child benefit established by the state. The first 1.5 years of child care are included in the continuous insurance period of the Pension Fund.

The first 1.5 years of child care are included in the insurance period

All women giving birth have the right, in the event of any complications, to additional maternity leave - this is provided for by law, and few managers will decide to violate them.

Note ! Women's rights are protected and protected by the state.

How to extend maternity leave by 16 days (54 days)?

Extension of maternity leave is possible not only before the birth of a child, but also after . This is often associated with complications. Since the obstetrician-gynecologist cannot foresee these circumstances in advance, the sick leave will need to be extended if they arise.

In case of complications of labor (for example, caesarean section), the labor and labor leave will be extended by 16 days and will be 156 days instead of the standard 140. In case of premature birth, the mother and child also need a longer recovery period, sick leave will also last a total of 156 days .

Modern technologies make it possible to recognize multiple pregnancies before the birth of children. If this did not happen and it became clear only during childbirth, the sick leave will be extended by 54 days . The total duration of leave under the BiR will be 194 days (70 before and 124 after the birth of children).

Application for extension of maternity leave by 16 days (54 days)

If complications arise or the fact of a multiple pregnancy is discovered directly during childbirth, an additional sick leave certificate will be issued by the medical organization where the child was born . The period will be increased by 16 or 54 days, respectively. In order for this period of incapacity to work to also be paid, the woman must personally write a statement to the employer and attach a second sick leave to it.

Extension of sick leave is carried out at a medical institution. It is necessary to immediately check that the certificate of incapacity for work is filled out correctly in order to avoid problems with receiving payments:

• all entries start from the first cell of the row;
• the necessary notes are in the lines specially designated for them;
• Capital block letters are used, printing devices may be used;
• For manual filling, a gel, capillary or fountain pen with black ink is used; the use of a ballpoint pen is unacceptable;
• the new sick leave is a continuation of the initial one.

Incorrectly filled out sick leave will not be accepted for payment . If errors are found, it must be replaced with a new one .

1 - the number of the previous sheet, which established the standard period of 140 days; 2 - name and address of the medical organization where the birth took place; 3 - the date of issue of the current (additional) certificate of incapacity for work must correspond to the date of the medical report on the complicated process of childbirth, requiring an extended recovery period; 4 - additional code “020” indicating the fact of extension of maternity leave (or the so-called additional maternity leave); 5 - period of release from work (in this case lasting 16 days), added to the previous sick leave;

6 is a new date from which you can go back to work or take parental leave.

Expert opinion

Lebedev Sergey Fedorovich

Practitioner lawyer with 7 years of experience. Specialization: civil law. Extensive experience in defense in court.

In order for the employer to accept additional sick leave, the employee must write an application to extend maternity leave . It should contain the following information:

1. Full name and position of the subordinate and manager.
2. Name of the organization.
3. Duration and dates for which additional sick leave was issued.
4. Reason (difficult childbirth, multiple pregnancy).
5. Date of writing and signature of the employee.

The application is accompanied by a sick leave certificate issued by the maternity hospital or other medical organization where the birth took place. It is advisable to provide documents within 1-2 months after birth.

Annual paid leave after maternity leave

An additional opportunity to extend maternity leave after the birth of a child is the annual paid leave granted to the mother. The Labor Code gives a woman this right, regardless of her length of service in a given workplace.

Management is obliged to provide a woman with paid leave, regardless of the general vacation schedule of employees. However, using two vacations at the same time by one employee is unacceptable; accordingly, it is impossible to simultaneously receive benefits for employment and labor (or care for up to 1.5 years) and regular vacation pay.

To individually calculate the most suitable combination of holidays from a financial point of view, a woman can consult an accountant .

Moreover, in accordance with Art. 262.2 of the Labor Code, employees who have three or more children under 12 years of age can go on annual leave at a time convenient for them ; management must take into account their wishes on this issue in the first place.

What is included in the concept of complicated childbirth and how are they interpreted by doctors and legislation?

The Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, in instruction No. 01-97, determined the procedure for how and by whom the issue of providing additional leave in connection with postpartum complications is decided. It lists possible complications after which the mother in labor needs additional days to recover her health.

All issues related to the provision of additional leave are assigned to the commission of the Maternity Hospital (medical institution), consisting of the chief physician, the attending physician and a specialized physician according to the type of complication.

Note ! The commission examines how the birth took place and how complications affected the postpartum condition of the mother and child.

Excerpt from the instruction of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation No. 01-97

What does the list of postpartum complications include?

Childbirth is always painful, and it is a difficult ordeal for a woman and her baby. Much depends on physical health, the absence of chronic diseases, as well as the readiness of the mother in labor to give birth to a child. Experienced gynecologists and obstetricians help a woman during childbirth, take all measures to prevent complications, but sometimes they are simply objective. Additional sick leave for pregnancy and childbirth (BIR) for 16 days is given for recovery after major operations and postpartum pathologies.

Postpartum complications can be divided into:

• pathological childbirth;
• prenatal abnormalities;
• birth injuries and pathologies;
• postpartum illnesses and complications;
• multiple pregnancy.

There are several types of postpartum complications

Pathological birth

What is considered a pathological birth:

1. Complicated childbirth entails the need for planned and sometimes emergency surgery to remove the baby. This operation is called a “caesarean section”. The woman will need additional time to recover from deep anesthesia, to protect herself while the internal and external sutures fuse.
2. Before giving birth, there may be a need for another surgical intervention, episiotomy, cutting the walls of the vagina to facilitate the birth of the child naturally. The patient needs additional time for the incisions to heal and heal.
3. Surgical methods also include manual separation of the placenta in cases of its fusion with the walls of the uterus. This is a painful procedure and is difficult for women in labor to endure.

Multiple pregnancy

When a woman is pregnant with two, in rare cases three or even more babies, the birth takes place in a tense environment for the woman in labor and for the obstetrician. In such cases, caesarean section is often used. Babies are born with low weight, weakened, and require additional care and attention. Mom needs recovery after a difficult birth. The BIR leave for such cases increases and amounts to 84 (70 + 14) before childbirth and 110 (70 +40) after the birth of children. If during the nursing process twins were not identified by doctors, prenatal leave does not increase and is 70 days.

In case of multiple pregnancy, mothers must increase their BIR leave.

Prenatal abnormalities

What is considered to be prenatal abnormalities:

1. Early discharge of amniotic fluid without contractions for a long time indicates a rupture of the membrane, which threatens the loss of the child, so an emergency cesarean section is performed.
2. The baby may be born prematurely - a week or several months in advance - premature with low weight. The future health and life of the child depends only on medical care, medical personnel and the care of the mother.
3. Post-term pregnancy lasting more than 42 weeks. If stimulation does not produce results, surgery is performed.
4. Another dangerous pathology is the absence of intense contractions or a slow pregnancy. This condition cannot last for a long time and without surgery it will end tragically for the baby.
5. In case of irregularities in the heartbeat or breathing problems, urgent measures are taken for surgical intervention. Otherwise, the child in the womb simply does not have enough strength to be born naturally.
6. The incorrect position of the fetus in the womb will prevent it from being born on its own, and if it is not possible to turn the baby, a caesarean section is performed to save the mother and child.

If there are prenatal abnormalities, the BIR leave is increased by 16 days

Birth injuries and pathologies

Postpartum complications that affect the further well-being of the mother and newborn child require special consideration.

1. When the fetus has difficulties along the way of birth with obstruction of the shoulders, it gets stuck, the obstetrician takes measures to intervene and extract with assistive means, which can subsequently affect the health of the born child.
2. During a stormy, rapid birth, the placenta can prematurely exfoliate, causing prolapse of the umbilical cord - this threatens a large loss of blood in the woman in labor and hypoxia of the child. With such a pathology, obstetricians resort to emergency surgery.
3. If a child swallows amniotic fluid at birth, an embolism occurs - it can cause serious consequences. Resuscitation and long-term treatment will be required.
4. Lack of oxygen can cause fetal hypoxia. They are taking all measures to ensure a quick delivery; a prolonged lack of oxygen threatens the baby with irreversible consequences.

Birth injuries are also a reason to extend BIR leave

Postpartum illnesses and complications

For mothers, childbirth is also a very difficult test, which can result in the acquisition of various diseases.

1. Difficult-to-stop uterine bleeding may occur. If it continues for more than 15 days, the discharge is foul-smelling, this is a signal that you should immediately contact a gynecologist so as not to trigger the condition.
2. Inflammation of the uterus and endometritis are difficult for women to tolerate. Their temperature rises, the inflammatory process of internal organs begins, which will require long-term treatment.
3. During pregnancy, inflammation of the amniotic membranes may occur, which is accompanied by a sharp increase in body temperature, purulent discharge from the uterus, and ichor. Urgent delivery is required.
4. Breastfeeding mothers often experience postpartum mastitis, which can be caused by dangerous bacteria and microbes. With severe inflammation of the mammary gland, a woman may lose milk.
5. After a cesarean section, there is a threat of inflammation of the entire abdominal cavity, which can lead to peritonitis; all organs become infected with toxins, leading to disruption of their functions.
6. Infectious kidney damage, pyelonephritis, after childbirth often occurs when microbes and bacteria enter the bladder through the genital tract. Causes sharp pain and fever.

If the mother suffered in any way during childbirth, her sick leave must be extended

Order to extend maternity leave in free form

Sample order to extend leave under the BiR (free form)

If the order to extend maternity leave is drawn up in free form, it must include the following information:

• date and document number;
• place of drawing up the order;
• name of the employer (name of the organization or full name of the individual entrepreneur);
• title of the document (order to extend maternity leave);
• an order to extend the employee’s leave for employment and labor regulations;
• the number of days for which the leave is extended and the period from which date additional leave is granted (in accordance with the certificate of incapacity for work);
• documents that are the basis for drawing up the order and their details (application and sick leave);
• position, signature and transcript of the signature of the director or individual entrepreneur.

About providing sick leave

During maternity leave (BIR), a woman can be issued sick leave twice:

• for the standard, prescribed period - 140 days;
• for complications during childbirth, extended for a period of 16 days or 40 days for the birth of two or more children.

Note ! BIR leave is provided to working women, students, military personnel and those registered with the employment and employment service. Unemployed people are not entitled to leave under the BIR.

Paid leave under the BIR cannot be received by unemployed women or those who are not registered with the Labor Protection Center.

The registration of a sick leave certificate according to the BIR is carried out in the antenatal clinic, where a pregnant woman initially applies, regardless of the stage of pregnancy. She takes tests and registers. The gynecologist issues a sick leave certificate for BIR for 140 days after determining the gestational age of 30 weeks.

A sick leave certificate is drawn up on a standard form at the antenatal clinic, which indicates:

• Full name of the pregnant woman;
• the full name of the institution of her place of work where the sick leave will be sent;
• code of the reason for issuing a sheet with the start date of the vacation according to the BIR and the end date;
• signature and seal.

Sick leave according to BIR

For timely payment, it must be given without delay to the employer with an application attached.

There is no developed standard form for applying for leave under the BIR, but it must include the following data:

• name of the institution or enterprise where the woman works;
• Full name of the head of this organization;
• Full name and position of the applicant;
• request for leave under the BIR for compulsory social insurance.

The date and signature of the applicant are affixed at the bottom.

Example of an application for leave under the BIR

Note ! If the birth of a child occurred with at least one of the complications described above, then, in accordance with Article 255 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the mother in labor at the medical institution where the birth took place is given a deadline for extending sick leave.

Additional sick leave is issued to extend disability leave resulting from complications in childbirth or the birth of two or more children.

An additional sick leave certificate is issued when the woman in labor provides the following documents:

• a photocopy of the passport with its original attached;
• a photocopy of the first sick leave certificate issued at the antenatal clinic;
• an exchange card issued at the antenatal clinic, in which the head physician makes a note about the completion of the birth and indicates the cause of the complication.
• a copy of the child's birth certificate.

An additional sick leave is issued on the standard form of a medical institution, which must indicate:

• Full name of the woman in labor;
• the full name of the institution of her place of work where the sheet will be sent;
• code of the reason for renewal;
• extension period with expiration date;
• signature and seal.

A woman is provided with additional sick leave if it is necessary to extend sick leave according to the BIR

A sick leave certificate according to the BIR is submitted to the organization with an application attached in person or through an authorized representative. You can send them by registered or certified mail, but it will take much longer. If a woman resigns of her own free will during a BIR leave or in connection with the liquidation of an organization, additional sick leave is paid by the Social Insurance Fund.

The rules for calculating payment for main and additional leave under the BIR are the same - it all depends on the average salary for the two previous years. Payments are calculated based on the dates indicated on each sick leave.

Note ! In this case, the date of birth of the child does not matter, even if he was born before or after the calculated date in the antenatal clinic.

The amount of payments depends on the average salary of a woman

When is additional sick leave issued?

Additional days of sick leave for pregnancy and childbirth can be added to the main days. Their number is 16 calendar days.

The decision to provide additional days can only be made by the doctor monitoring the woman.

Extension of vacation by 16 days and issuance of additional sick leave is possible:

• if there are complications during childbirth, only a doctor can assess the woman’s condition, her level of health in the postpartum period and decide to issue a certificate of incapacity for work (complications may include nephropathy, purulent mastitis, ruptures, endometritis, eclampsia and others);
• in the presence of certain types of diseases - diabetes mellitus, diffuse diseases and some others.

Extension of maternity leave by 54 days is possible if a multiple pregnancy is detected during childbirth. This situation is rare, but possible. If a woman does not undergo an ultrasound and other studies and does not know the number of expected children, takes 140 days of maternity leave, and as a result two or more children are born, then 54 days of sick leave will be added to the postpartum period.

Does it last longer with a caesarean section?

A caesarean section is not always a reason for extending maternity leave. If this operation is planned and proceeds without complications, then there is no reason to provide additional maternity days.

If the caesarean section was accompanied by complications, or this operation was a consequence of a complicated birth, the doctor may decide to issue another certificate of incapacity for work for 16 days.

That is, during a caesarean section, maternity leave can be extended only if this is accompanied by complications for the woman’s health.

Registration procedure - step-by-step instructions

A woman’s receipt of another sick leave serves as the basis for receiving benefits and extending maternity leave at work.

To apply for an extension, you need to perform a number of actions:

• Step 1. The doctor decides about the presence of a complicated birth and issues a certificate of incapacity for work.
• Step 2. The woman writes a statement and submits it to work along with a sick leave certificate (by mail or in person).
• Step 3. The employer issues an extension order.
• Step 4. Within 10 days, the employer calculates the amount of benefits for additional days of maternity leave.
• Step 5. On the next day of settlement with the staff, the woman receives accrued maternity benefits (on a card or in cash).

At the end of the extended leave under BiR, you can apply for maternity leave with a child. The accrual of monthly child benefits will begin only after the completion of maternity leave under the BiR.

The benefit for additional days is calculated according to the formula:

Benefit = Average daily earnings * Additional days.

Average daily earnings = (Earnings for the 1st year + Earnings for the 2nd year) / (730 (731) - Excluded days).

When calculating maternity benefits, it is important that the average daily earnings are no less than the minimum and no more than the maximum. Follow the links to view the current values ​​for 2021.

Sample documents

To apply for a maternity leave extension, you will need the following documents:

• sick leave - filled out by the doctor and the employer, subsequently the sheet is transferred to the Social Insurance Fund for reimbursement;
• application - drawn up by a woman in free form, containing a request for an extension;
• order - drawn up by the employer on the basis of the above documents and is the basis for the extension and assignment of benefits.

Download an application for an additional 16 days of sick leave according to BiR - sample.

Download the order to extend maternity leave - sample.

Changes in legislation

In 2021, the Russian Federation introduced significant changes in payments to women who gave birth to one or more children.

The list of financial assistance payments and their amount has been significantly changed and expanded. Payments are provided on the following grounds to support the family during the pregnancy and birth of a child:

• payment for medical registration at the antenatal clinic for up to 12 weeks;
• one-time payment upon the birth of one or more children;
• payment for maternity leave and complicated childbirth;
• payments at the birth of the first child monthly until one and a half years;
• monthly care payments from 1.5 to 3 years for each child;
• maternity capital at the birth of the second and/or subsequent children.

Articles 6, 9 Federal Law No. 81

Attention ! Guardians and adoptive parents have the same rights to payments and maternity leave.

Payments

Payment of maternity leave for basic and additional sick leave depends on the average monthly salary for the last two years for working women.

1. If it exceeds the current minimum wage, 100% is paid.
2. If it is below the minimum wage, then it is paid from 05/01/2018 in the amount of 11,163 rubles.
3. For full-time students and registered unemployed women, the minimum wage is 11,163 rubles.
4. For women registered at the antenatal clinic before 12 weeks of pregnancy, an incentive payment of 628.47 rubles is paid (613 rubles in 2021). It is accrued along with the main payments under the BIR.
5. The amount of one-time payment for each child has been increased to 16,759.09 rubles.

Payment for maternity leave depends on the average monthly salary of a woman

In 2021, the minimum and maximum amounts of payments have been determined, which are paid at the place of work with the provision of a copy of the child’s birth certificate issued by the registry office.

The monthly benefit for a child under 1.5 years old is 40% of the average salary for the last two years. If the average family income is small, then the woman is entitled to payment according to the minimum wage at the birth of her first child.

The monthly minimum allowance for the birth of one child is 4512 rubles, for two - 6554.9 rubles.

Maternity capital is accrued at the birth of the second and/or subsequent children, and in 2021 it amounts to 453.026 thousand rubles. It can be spent:

• to improve living conditions,
• for children's education,
• for support and treatment if the child has been disabled since childhood,
• for mother's pension in future old age.
• for the construction of a house.

Maternity capital can be used for specific purposes determined by law

Order to extend maternity leave T-6

Form of order to extend leave under BiR (Form T-6)

Sample order to extend leave under BiR (form T-6)

To avoid possible controversial situations with regulatory authorities, we recommend using a unified order form - T-6. It contains all the necessary details and significantly reduces the chances of making a mistake when drawing up a document.

In the order to extend the leave for the BiR, the same lines and blocks are filled in as when drawing up a document for the main leave for the BiR. In particular, you will have to fill in the following lines:

• Employer's name.

We enter the name of the organization in full and abbreviated form.

• OKPO code.

We indicate in accordance with the letter received from Rosstat.

• Document number and date of preparation.

We fill in the date of preparation of the document and its serial number.

• Full name, structural unit, position and personnel number.

We enter information about the employee who is granted additional leave.

• Block B.

We indicate the name of the leave (additional maternity leave) and the details of the certificate of incapacity for work, on the basis of which the order is drawn up.

• For... calendar days.

We enter the number of calendar days for which the vacation is extended.

• From... to...

We indicate the period from which to which date additional leave is granted.

• Head of the organization.

Rules, provision of documents and terms of payment of maternity and other payments

Receiving the required payments, with the exception of maternity benefits under the BIR, including for complicated childbirths, is possible not only for mothers, but for fathers or other close relatives who will care for the child. To do this, you need to collect a package of documents and submit it to management.

Within the statutory deadlines for payment of leave under the BIR, when all documents are provided to the organization, the administration is obliged to:

• issue an order for leave under the BIR, including additional leave for complicated childbirth;
• within 10 days, calculate all vacation pay according to the BIR, including payment for timely registration in the antenatal clinic;
• payment is made on the day the salary is received, but can be made on the next date of transfer of the total salary;
• the entire amount is accrued and paid, according to the submitted documents, at the same time.

The employer is obliged to make the required payments

To receive a calculation and receive benefits, a woman must collect a complete package of documents. It should include:

• a certificate completed by a gynecologist at the antenatal clinic confirming timely registration for pregnancy registration up to 12 weeks;
• sick leave for BIR and additional sick leave for complicated childbirth;
• application addressed to the manager;
• original and copy of the child's birth certificate. The manager has the right to verify its authenticity;
• a certificate from the place of work of the child’s father stating that he has not been paid child benefits;
• For those who are not working, but are registered with the employment and employment service of women at their place of residence, all payments are made by the Social Insurance Fund.
• Full-time students submit documents to the administration of the educational institution at their place of study.

If a pregnant woman is a full-time student, she must provide documentation to the administration of the educational institution

Advice ! Sick leave certificates must be carefully checked for correctness in medical institutions. Errors are not allowed in them.

What is needed to draw up an order to extend maternity leave

The provision of additional maternity leave is based on:

• Employee statements.

This document is drawn up in writing, indicating the mandatory details of the primary documents. You can familiarize yourself with the procedure for drawing up this document and its sample in the article “Application for extension of maternity leave in 2021”.

• Sick leave.