ⓘ marks a fact that changes often - a price, a deadline, an office rule. Check it with the office before you rely on it.
Tuesday, half past eight, the office kitchen at Pankrác. Marina is holding a mug of chamomile tea that her colleagues noticed weeks ago, while paní Malá from HR feeds a capsule into the coffee machine. Week twenty-six. In many countries all of this is one thing, maternity leave, which payroll arranges; Marina grew up calling it dekret. In Czechia it splits into separate things with separate payers. Mateřská dovolená is the leave your employer must give you; peněžitá pomoc v mateřství is the money, and it is paid not by the company but by the state social security administration, ČSSZ. A third thing, the rodičovský příspěvek from the Úřad práce, comes later and has its own lesson (10).
Since 2025 there is no paper form for the gynaecologist to fill in by hand. Dr Holubová sends an electronic confirmation to ČSSZ, Marina gets a text message with an identifikátor, and that number plus a start date is all HR needs. Provided, of course, that Marina gave the practice her phone number. This lesson covers when and how to tell your employer, what protects you and what does not (probation, fixed-term contracts), how to choose your start date, how to fill in the notice, and what Dima is owed: two weeks of otcovská, which some fathers only hear about once the six weeks have run out.
No law sets a week for it. Most Czech women tell their boss after the first-trimester screening, around week 12-14, and then give HR a short written note with a confirmation from the gynaecologist, so that there is a date on paper. The ban on dismissal applies from the moment you are pregnant, even if nobody knows, but in practice it is the written note that sets everything else in motion: risk assessment, schedule changes, the HR calendar.
Paní Malá, chtěla bych vám oznámit, že jsem těhotná. Potvrzení od lékařky vám přinesu zítra.
Paní Malá, I would like to let you know that I am pregnant. I will bring you the doctor's confirmation tomorrow.
Zákoník práce (§ 53 of zákon 262/2006 Sb.) forbids the employer to give notice to a pregnant employee or to one on mateřská or rodičovská dovolená. What counts is whether you were pregnant on the day the notice was delivered, not whether the boss knew. The exceptions are narrow, chiefly the employer or its part closing down or moving away ⓘ. Výpověď is a dismissal notice (in court, a witness statement).
Dokud jsem těhotná, platí zákaz výpovědi, takže o místo se bát nemusím.
While I am pregnant the ban on dismissal applies, so I do not have to worry about my job.
Since June 2025 a probation can last up to 4 months (8 for managers) ⓘ, and during it either side may end the contract without giving a reason, pregnancy or not. Ending it because you are pregnant is still discrimination, but you would have to prove it. The second hole: a contract na dobu určitou simply expires, and pregnancy does not extend it. Changing jobs while trying for a baby? Read this item twice.
Zkušební doba mi končí v březnu, potom už budu klidnější.
My probation ends in March; after that I will feel calmer.
If your job is forbidden or risky in pregnancy (heavy lifting, chemicals, some lab and hospital work), the employer must move you to suitable work, and if it pays less, ČSSZ tops it up with the vyrovnávací příspěvek v těhotenství a mateřství. Night work is not banned outright: if you work nights, ask to be moved to day work and the employer must agree (§ 239 of the zákoník práce ⓘ). Marina at her desk is not affected; a nurse at Motol is. You can also ask for kratší pracovní doba, which the employer may refuse only for serious operational reasons.
Kolegyně z laboratoře požádala o převedení na jinou práci, s rozpouštědly už pracovat nesmí.
My colleague from the lab asked to be transferred to other work; she may no longer work with solvents.
28 weeks (37 for twins), and in everyday speech Czechs call both the leave and the money „mateřská“: „jsem na mateřské“ covers both. After it you return to your original job and workplace (§ 47 zákoníku práce); after the much longer rodičovská dovolená only to work matching your contract, which is why HR wants to know how long you plan to stay home.
Po mateřské dovolené se vracím na své původní místo, to mi zákon garantuje.
After maternity leave I go back to my original job; the law guarantees it.
70 % of your reduced daily assessment base for 28 weeks, paid by ČSSZ, not by the company, normally to the account your salary goes to. The condition is 270 days of sickness insurance in the last two years, which any employee of nine months has; days with different employers add up. It comes month by month, not as a lump sum, and it is not subject to income tax ⓘ.
Peněžitou pomoc v mateřství mi bude posílat ČSSZ na stejný účet jako výplatu.
ČSSZ will send my maternity benefit to the same account as my salary.
Since 1 January 2025 the gynaecologist issues the Potvrzení o datu porodu electronically and sends it straight to ČSSZ; you receive only its number, by SMS or e-mail if you left your contact at the practice, otherwise printed on paper. That number goes to HR with your start date. Give your mobile number at the next poradna and keep the SMS somewhere you will find it in two months.
Identifikátor mi přišel esemeskou, hned vám ho přepošlu.
The identifier came by text message; I will forward it to you straight away.
You choose the day yourself, anywhere from the start of the 8th to the start of the 6th week before the termín porodu. Czechs say „nastupuji na mateřskou“, the same verb as starting a new job: you do not leave, you take up a new post. If the baby arrives before your chosen day, PPM simply starts on the day of the birth.
Termín mám devatenáctého května, na mateřskou nastupuji prvního dubna.
My due date is the nineteenth of May; I start maternity leave on the first of April.
Your average gross earnings over the twelve calendar months before the benefit starts, turned into a daily figure and then cut by reduction thresholds (redukční hranice) that are reset every year. On an ordinary Prague office salary PPM lands somewhat below your net pay; the higher the salary, the wider the gap ⓘ. A pay rise in the last months helps less than you would hope: it is a twelve-month average.
Vyměřovací základ se počítá z výdělků za posledních dvanáct měsíců.
The assessment base is calculated from earnings over the last twelve months.
ČSSZ pays sickness benefits and pensions; in Prague its local branch is the Pražská správa sociálního zabezpečení (PSSZ). As an employee you will probably never stand at its counter, because your employer talks to it electronically, but the ePortál ČSSZ lets you follow your claim. Colloquially „sociálka“, a word that can also mean the social department at the town hall, so context decides.
Oznámení už šlo na sociálku, teď čekáme, kdy přijdou první peníze.
The notice has already gone to social security; now we are waiting for the first money.
In 2026: 14 calendar days at 70 %, paid by ČSSZ, to be started within six weeks of the birth ⓘ. The father only has to be in sickness insurance on the first day; there is no 270-day rule and no doctor's paper unless mother or baby is in hospital. He tells his own employer the start date and that is it. A father on a živnostenský list needs three months of voluntary sickness insurance first.
Dima si vezme otcovskou hned, jak nás pustí z porodnice.
Dima will take his paternity leave as soon as they let us out of the maternity hospital.
For an OSVČ, self-employed on a živnostenský list, PPM is not automatic: you need at least 180 days of voluntary sickness insurance in the year before the start, on top of 270 days of insurance in the last two years. Freelancers sometimes notice this at week 20, when 180 days no longer fit. If that is you, the rodičovský příspěvek still comes (lesson 10), just without the PPM in front of it.
Jako OSVČ si musíte nemocenské platit aspoň půl roku dopředu, jinak na mateřskou nárok nemáte.
As a self-employed person you have to pay sickness insurance at least half a year ahead, otherwise you have no right to maternity pay.
Week 26, a Thursday afternoon, the small meeting room on the fourth floor of Marina's office building at Pankrác, the one with the dying ficus. Paní Malá has a laptop and a list of everyone who is leaving this year. Marina has her průkazka in her bag and a plan she thought was complete.
Mrs Malá
Pojďte dál, paní Kuznetsová, sedněte si. Tak kdy nám odcházíte?
Come in, Mrs Kuznetsová, sit down. So when are you leaving us?
HR says „Kuznetsová“, with a long á, as if the name were Czech, even though Marina's passport says Kuznetsova. „Kdy nám odcházíte?“ with the ethic dative „nám“ is warm, not bureaucratic: you are leaving us, we will miss you.
Marina
Dobrý den, paní Malá. Termín porodu mám devatenáctého května, takže bych na mateřskou nastoupila prvního dubna.
Good afternoon, Mrs Malá. My due date is the nineteenth of May, so I would start maternity leave on the first of April.
Dates are ordinals in the genitive: „devatenáctého května“, „prvního dubna“. Count back from the TP: 1 April is six weeks and six days before 19 May, inside the 8-to-6-week window.
Mrs Malá
Výborně. Potřebuju od vás jen identifikátor od paní doktorky a písemně datum nástupu. Papírová žádost se už od roku 2025 nenosí.
Excellent. All I need from you is the identifier from your doctor and the start date in writing. Nobody has brought a paper form since 2025.
Since 1 January 2025 the old „Žádost o peněžitou pomoc v mateřství“ that the gynaecologist filled in by hand is gone. The doctor sends the confirmation to ČSSZ; you tell the employer the date and the number in a way that can be proven (a signed note or an e-mail); HR sends it all to ČSSZ electronically.
Marina
Identifikátor? Paní doktorka mi nic takového nedala.
An identifier? The doctor did not give me anything like that.
„Nic takového“ (nothing of the sort) is the polite way to say you are lost without sounding accusing. Note the double negative: „nic ... nedala“, never „nic dala“.
Mrs Malá
Ten vám přijde esemeskou, až vám paní doktorka vystaví potvrzení o datu porodu. Nechala jste jí na sebe telefon?
It comes to you by text once the doctor issues the confirmation of the due date. Did you leave her your phone number?
The doctor issues the Potvrzení o datu porodu when you are close to starting; ask at the poradna before you plan to go, and do not leave it to the last visit ⓘ. „Nechat na sebe telefon“ is the idiom for leaving your number.
Marina
Myslím, že ne. V kartě mají jenom moji adresu.
I do not think so. They only have my address in my file.
„Karta“ here is the patient record at the practice, not a bank card. If you need to ask: „Můžu vám nechat číslo na identifikátor?“
Mrs Malá
Tak to vám ho dají vytištěný. Zavolejte sestřičce, ať vám ho připraví na příští poradnu, a pak mi ho pošlete mailem.
Then they will give it to you printed. Call the nurse, ask her to have it ready for your next check-up, and then e-mail it to me.
The paper route is official: without contact details the doctor hands the identifier over printed. „Sestřička“, the diminutive, is how Czechs speak of the practice nurse; it is affectionate, not condescending.
Marina
Dobře, zavolám tam ještě dneska. A ještě jedna věc: mám zaměstnaneckou kartu. Nepřijdu o ni, když budu doma?
All right, I will call them today. And one more thing: I have an employee card. I will not lose it while I am at home, will I?
„Přijít o něco“ is to lose something you had (a card, a job, money); it is not about arriving, even though přijít on its own means to come. Přijít o práci, přijít o kartu: to lose the job, to lose the card.
Mrs Malá
Nepřijdete. Pracovní poměr vám trvá a místo vám držíme. Až bude karta končit, prodloužíte ji jako vždycky a já vám dám potvrzení o zaměstnání.
You will not. Your employment continues and we are keeping your job for you. When the card is about to expire, you renew it as usual and I will give you a confirmation of employment.
The employment relationship does not end on mateřská. Renewing an employee card while on maternity leave is normally possible, but OAMP checks your situation case by case: ask OAMP with your exact permit type well before the expiry ⓘ.
Marina
To se mi ulevilo. A manžel? Ten je u jiné firmy, IT.
That is a relief. And my husband? He is at a different company, in IT.
„To se mi ulevilo“ is the natural Czech for „what a relief“, an impersonal reflexive with the dative „mi“. A personal „Já jsem se ulevila“, built like English „I was relieved“, does not exist.
Mrs Malá
Ať si otcovskou vyřídí u své personální. Čtrnáct dní během šesti týdnů po porodu, od lékaře k tomu nic nepotřebuje. A zbytek letošní dovolené si klidně vyberte ještě před nástupem.
He should sort out his paternity leave with his own HR. Fourteen days within six weeks of the birth, and he needs nothing from a doctor. And feel free to use up the rest of this year's holiday before you start.
Dima fills in his own one-page notice for his employer (the ČSSZ template asks for the child's details, so it is done after the birth). Taking your remaining dovolená right before mateřská is common practice in Czech offices, and it pushes your last working day earlier without touching the PPM window.
Marina
Děkuju, paní Malá. Identifikátor vám pošlu, jakmile ho budu mít.
Thank you, Mrs Malá. I will send you the identifier as soon as I have it.
„Jakmile“ (as soon as) takes the future here: „jakmile ho budu mít“. The present, „jakmile ho mám“, which English „as soon as I have it“ suggests, is heard in casual speech but sounds loose in a sentence to HR.
Mrs Malá
Prima. A až bude na světě, pošlete nám fotku. Celé oddělení na ni čeká.
Great. And when the baby is born, send us a photo. The whole department is waiting for it.
„Až bude na světě“ (once he is in the world) is the gentle way Czechs talk about a baby not yet born. The photo request is sincere: the e-mail with the baby's picture goes round the whole floor.
ČSSZ template: Oznámení zaměstnavateli o nástupu na peněžitou pomoc v mateřství
This replaced the old „Žádost o peněžitou pomoc v mateřství“ on 1 January 2025. It is one page that you, not the doctor, fill in, citing § 109 of zákon 187/2006 Sb. The law leaves the form free, so your employer may have its own version or accept an e-mail with the same data; the ČSSZ template is the safe default. You sign it, HR keeps it, and the data go to ČSSZ electronically.
| Rodné číslo/EČP | birth number or insurance number | Many foreigners have no Czech rodné číslo; for them ČSSZ uses an EČP, the evidenční číslo pojištěnce. If you do not know yours, HR does: it is on your payroll record. Write it without the slash. |
| Číslo rozhodnutí (identifikátor) Potvrzení o datu porodu | identifier of the doctor's confirmation | The number from the SMS or e-mail, or from the printout. Copy it character by character; HR can check it against ČSSZ, and a wrong digit means the claim stalls until someone notices. |
| Na peněžitou pomoc v mateřství nastupuji dne | I start maternity benefit on | Your chosen date, written with dots (1.4.2027). It must fall between the start of week 8 and the start of week 6 before the due date. Count it with HR rather than alone; this is the most common mistake on the page. |
| Předpokládaný den porodu/den kdy proběhl porod | expected or actual date of birth | Copy the TP from your průkazka, the same date the doctor confirmed. If the baby has already arrived, write the day of the birth instead; that is what the slash means. |
| Na peněžitou pomoc v mateřství nastupuji z důvodu péče o dítě | I start PPM because I care for the child | Leave it empty if you are the mother going on PPM because of the birth. This box is for a father who takes over PPM from week 7 by written agreement with the mother, or for adoption and similar cases ⓘ; you tick the reason with an X. |
| Příjmení dítěte | child's surname (with name, number, date) | Together with Jméno, Rodné číslo and Datum narození, this block belongs to the takeover case above. Before the birth Marina leaves it blank; there is no child on paper yet, and no one expects Daniel's name. |
| Telefon | phone (and e-mail, optional) | Optional, the template says so itself. Fill it in anyway: if ČSSZ or HR has a question in May, you want them to reach you, not to post a letter to an address where you are busy with a newborn. |
| Datum a místo vyplnění | date and place, then signature | „V Praze dne 15.3.2027“ and your signature (Podpis). The template insists on it: the notice must be given „prokazatelně“, provably, and a signed, dated page is the proof. Keep a photo of it. |
First, the order: boss before colleagues, and usually not before the first-trimester screening. Czechs are not especially superstitious, but „do dvanáctého týdne se to neříká“ is kept almost universally. Tell your manager in person, then give HR the short written note a day later; a date on paper is hard to argue with.
Second, nobody is surprised that you will be gone a long time. A Czech mother often stays home two or three years, and employers plan for it. „A kdy se vrátíte?“ is planning, not pressure. Know the difference it makes: after the 28 weeks of mateřská the law returns you to your original job and workplace, after rodičovská only to work that matches your contract, which may mean a different desk or a different team. If you want to come back after a year, say so early; a good personalistka files such promises in her head.
Third, the money does not come from the company. Newcomers from places where payroll handles everything are puzzled that HR only forwards data and that ČSSZ pays month by month, in arrears. The first payment can take a few weeks after you start ⓘ, so a small cushion for the spring is wise. Some employers top up PPM or keep benefits such as meal vouchers voluntarily; ask, never assume.
Fourth, the pleasant part: the farewell. Before you go, you bring something for the coffee corner, homemade koláče or buchty, or a cake from the bakery downstairs, and colleagues quietly collect for a present, often a voucher for a baby shop or something from a list they will ask you to write. Refusing is not done. The photo of the baby is expected by everyone, payroll included.
And Dima. Otcovská is entirely normal now; no Czech manager raises an eyebrow at a father taking it. But it does not start by itself: he tells his employer the date, and the window closes six weeks after the birth. Few fathers regret those two weeks of nappies and night walks around Nusle.
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Paní Malá says: „Potřebuju od vás jen identifikátor od paní doktorky a písemně datum nástupu.“ What does she want?
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