Law No. 7578 on the Social Services Law and Amendments to Certain Laws entered into force upon publication in Official Gazette No. 33240 dated 1 May 2026. It introduces substantial changes to working life and the social security system.

The main measures introduced by the Law include the following:

• For both public and private sector employees, postnatal maternity leave is increased from 8 to 16 weeks, and total maternity leave from 16 to 24 weeks.
• For employees who gave birth before 1 April 2026 and have not yet completed the 24-week period, Transitional Article 1 provides a transition mechanism allowing an additional 8 weeks of maternity leave.
• The legal cap for carrying unused pre-birth leave into the post-birth period is reduced from three weeks to two weeks.
• Under the Labour Law, paternity leave within excused absence is extended from 5 to 10 days.
• Temporary incapacity benefit periods under maternity insurance are aligned with the extended maternity leave durations.

This bulletin summarises the main changes in labour and social security law following Law No. 7578.

1) Amendments under Labour Law No. 4857

1.1 Extension of maternity leave

Pursuant to Article 15 of Law No. 7578, Article 74 of the Labour Law on work during pregnancy and breastfeeding leave has been reorganised. For workers:

• Postnatal maternity leave is increased to 16 weeks.
• Total leave covering the periods before and after birth is increased to 24 weeks.

The reference period limiting work before birth is changed from "three weeks" to "two weeks". Foster parents are granted 10 days of unpaid leave upon delivery of the child upon request. References to "16 weeks" and "18 weeks" in related leave provisions following maternity leave are updated to "24 weeks" and "26 weeks" respectively.

1.2 Additional leave for employees whose maternity leave had already ended

Under Transitional Article 1, even if maternity leave had already ended under the law in force on 1 May 2026, employees whose period since birth was still less than 24 weeks as of 1 April 2026 are entitled to a further 8 weeks of maternity leave, provided they apply within 10 working days from 1 May 2026.

1.3 Extension of paternity leave

Article 16 of Law No. 7578 amends Additional Article 2 of the Labour Law: paternity leave used within excused absence is extended from 5 to 10 days.

2) Law No. 5510 on Social Insurance and General Health Insurance

Article 18 of Law No. 7578 harmonises Article 15 of Law No. 5510 on sickness and maternity. In line with the Labour Law, postnatal maternity duration is increased to 16 weeks, and wording on multiple pregnancies referring to the "first ten weeks" is removed from the text.

Article 19 updates the basis for temporary incapacity benefit: the definition "eight weeks before and eight weeks after birth" becomes "eight weeks before and sixteen weeks after birth". The three-week rule on carrying unused pre-birth leave forward is reduced to two weeks here as well.

3) Civil Servants Law No. 657

Article 2 of Law No. 7578 amends civil servants' maternity leave entitlements:

• Postnatal leave is 16 weeks and total leave 24 weeks.
• The last period in which work may continue before birth is reduced from three weeks to two weeks; foster parents receive 10 days' leave upon delivery of the child.

4) Armed forces, gendarmerie and coast guard personnel

Article 24 aligns maternity leave rules in the legislation applicable to military and security personnel with the above: postnatal leave 16 weeks, total leave 24 weeks, and the three-week carry-forward rule is replaced by two weeks.

You may access the full text of Law No. 7578 through official channels.