- A general tendency, especially for fathers, is that we see a greater effect both for those who have previously taken out relatively many days with parental allowance, but also for the group of fathers who do not usually spend so many days, says Susanne Fahlén, investigators and researchers at ISF.
In 2014, a new rule change was introduced regarding parental allowance. This means, among other things, that parents of children born from January 1, 2014 can only save a maximum of 96 days with parental benefit after the child reaches the age of four.
"Setting the frames"The aim is to get parents to spend more days when the child is younger and to make the withdrawal more equal. The breakdown of days with different levels of compensation was also changed. Each parent receives 195 days at the sickness benefit level or the basic level and 45 days at the lowest level.
And the reform has had the intended effect, according to the ISF. Parents have increased their withdrawal of days of parental benefit until the child reaches the age of four.
- It has to do with the limitation that one must not save as many days with parental allowance after the child's four-year anniversary. It somehow sets the framework for how many days you can use it, says Susanne Fahlén at ISF.
The proportion of fathers increased
The increase is greatest among fathers, who after the reform took an average of eleven more days for children up to four years. But it is still the women who take out the vast majority of parenting days.
After the reform, the grandparents of children born in January-March 2014, took an average of 90 days with parental benefit when the child reached four years. The multi-grandmothers of children born in January-March 2014, took out significantly more, 291 days.
The father's share of parental days taken out has, overall, increased, according to the Swedish Social Insurance Agency. From 16% in 2005 to 30% in 2019, when women took out 70% of the parental allowance.