Maternity Leave in Kuwait: 70 Paid Days and What Comes Next

The answer employees usually need first

For private-sector workers covered by Kuwait Labour Law No. 6 of 2010, a pregnant employee is entitled to 70 days of paid maternity leave. The maternity leave is separate from other leave, and the law states that the delivery must occur during the maternity-leave period. After that period, an employer may grant, at the female employee's request, up to four months of unpaid leave to care for the child. The law also provides a daily breastfeeding break after returning to work. The exact HR process can depend on the employer and the medical documentation required.

Understand the rule before you apply

A leave request is easier to write once the employee knows what she is actually asking for. In Kuwait, the important distinction is between the statutory paid maternity period and the possible unpaid childcare period that follows it.

Kuwait maternity leave at a glance

When should the request be sent?

Do not treat a blog's suggested number of days as a universal legal filing deadline. A safer approach is to check the employment contract or HR policy, then submit the request early enough for payroll, attendance and medical-document processing.

A useful request normally contains four things: the expected start date, the expected delivery date if known, the period being requested, and the medical document or certificate required by the employer.

A simple HR request

Subject: Maternity Leave Request

Dear HR/Manager,

I am writing to request maternity leave beginning on [date]. Based on my current medical advice, my expected delivery date is [date]. Please record my leave from [start date] to [end date] in accordance with the applicable Kuwait Labour Law and company procedure. I have attached the medical document required for processing.

Kindly confirm the leave dates and any additional documents required.

Regards,

[Name]

[Employee ID]

The wording is intentionally neutral. It asks HR to confirm dates instead of asserting a company-specific procedure that may not exist.

What happens after the 70 days?

The law permits an employer, after the maternity leave, to give the female employee up to four months of unpaid leave at her request to care for the baby. This is not the same thing as extending the 70 paid days. The two periods should be recorded separately in the leave request and payroll system.

The breastfeeding entitlement is also separate. A working woman is allowed two hours during official working hours to breastfeed her child, according to the conditions set by the Ministry.

A note about job protection

The law contains protection against termination while the female worker is on maternity leave and also where absence is due to sickness proved by a medical certificate showing that the sickness resulted from pregnancy or childbirth.

Questions HR teams should clarify

Does every worker in Kuwait use the same rule? Not necessarily. This article is limited to the private-sector Labour Law. Government employees, domestic workers and workers covered by special regimes may have different rules.

Can the four unpaid months be assumed automatically? No. The law describes a possible unpaid leave after maternity leave, requested by the female employee and granted by the employer under the statutory provision.

Should the request include medical evidence? Follow the employer's documented procedure and the medical-document requirements applicable to the leave. Do not invent a certificate format when the employer has its own.

Official-source note

This article is based primarily on Kuwait Labour Law No. 6 of 2010 and its amendments, with the Kuwait Government Online labour-law page used as the official government starting point. The private-sector law is the correct scope for this article.

Disclaimer: This is general employment information, not legal advice. For a dispute, unusual contract, government employment, domestic work or a special category of worker, verify the applicable rule with Kuwait's Public Authority for Manpower or a qualified local adviser.