Country Reports 2026

Information on each of the countries listed below is available in a common format, covering the following sections:

  • Basic demographic, economic, employment and gender information.
  • Details of policy for four main types of leave – maternity, paternity, parental and care for sick dependents (covering biological and adoptive parents) – and for flexible working (i.e. are parents entitled to work reduced hours or otherwise adapt their work to meet their care needs?). This section focuses on statutory entitlements, although collective agreements or individual employment policies may supplement these basic entitlements for certain groups.
  • The relationship between leave policy and early childhood education and care policy (ECEC)
  • Recent changes in leave policy (including those relating to COVID-19) and if proposals for future change are under discussion;
  • Information on take-up of various forms of leave.

Unfortunately, the Annual Review and all related documents are not yet accessible to everyone including people with disabilities.

This information is prepared by network members and updated each year. The notes available here were last updated in April 2026. 

If citing an individual country note, please use the citation given as a footnote on the first page of that country note.