Refusion is paid monthly in arrears.

In other words, the employer will be reimbursed once a month.

Amaat – the Greenlandic Fund for Parental Leave aims to complete reimbursement application processes within 14 days of all correct information, upon receiving correct and necessary information.

The Fund for Parental Leave asks the employer to transmit pay slips throughout the parental leave. This is asked to ensure that the paid amount to the employee is at minimum matching the amount the Fund for Parental Leave reimburses the employer.

The case closes when payslips from throughout the parental leave are inspected and approved.

If the Fund for Parental Leave discover that the employer has received too much after reimbursement, the Fund for Parental Leave will ask the employer to pay the excessive amount back.

As a rule, self-employed cannot receive reimbursement through the Fund for Parental Leave. The Fund for Parental Leave encourages to apply for parental leave benefits through the local city hall.

In order to receive reimbursement, applications regarding full-time employees have to include the following documents:

• Employment contract or the like
• 1 representative payslip
• Pregnancy certificate and/or birth certificate

For hourly paid employees:

• Employment contract or the like
• 13 representative payslips regarding the 13 weeks immediately prior to the leave
• Pregnancy certificate and/or birth certificate

It is stated in the law by Inatsisartut no. 5 from November 19th 2020 regarding leave in connection to pregnancy, birth, and adoption § 27 no. 2, that employers can have 80 % of the employee’s expected salary for the respective period reimbursed.

However, a lower amount cannot be reimbursed than the current maternity (or paternity) benefit rate per hour, cf. the Maternity Act, section 27 no. 3. The minimum rate for 2021 was DKK 100.47 per hour. Nor can the Paternal Leave Fund pay more than the maximum rate which is determined each year by Inatsisartut’s Finance Act. The maximum rate for 2021 was DKK 125.00 per hour.

Yes, the employee is entitled to salary throughout their parental leave.

The salary should generally be 80 % of the salary the employee normally would receive.

The paid salary cannot be less than the always valid maternity (or paternity) benefit rate per hour.

The employer is not committed to pay an hourly rate that is higher than the maximum rate, cf.  the Maternity Act § 27, no. 4, unless something else is stated in the employee’s terms of employment.

Yes, holiday benefits are included in the pay.

The employer is obliged to, in addition to pay under parental leave, pay holiday benefits/pay during holiday.

Yes, it is permitted.

The rules for entering are according to § 15 in the Maternity Act.

Entering into the other parents’ leave is possible when:

1. The parent, who is under parental leave, passes away.
2. The parent, who is under parental leave, is unable to take care of the child due to serious illness, or
3. There are special circumstances.

The employer should maximum pay 40 hours a week for an employee on parental leave, according to the Maternity Act § 24, no. 2.

Employers can similarly receive reimbursement for 40 hours per week through the Fund for Parental Leave.

The Fund for Parental Leave only pays reimbursement to the employer from when the 4 weeks of parental leave begins.

According to the Maternity Act § 19, the leave lapses when the leave is broken.

This is however not true the last 4 weeks of the parental leave, cf. § 12, as this according to §13 can be arranged in a flexible manner or postponed according to §14.

The leave is considered broken when an employee returns to their workplace and e.g. receives pay, is included in a shift schedule, resumes usual work tasks, etc.

The leave is additionally considered broken, if the employee is going on holiday, regardless of the holiday being paid by the workplace, with holiday allowance, or self-financed holiday.

For those who seek an education, the leave is considered broken, if that person participates in classes or school-sessions to an extent that the person in question can be considered actively studying.

The leave is not considered broken if the person in question participates in work related conferences, courses, theme-days, or the like.

Students can participate in classes and school-sessions in a limited amount, as long as the course of education is not considered to be resumed.

Participating in an exam is not breaking the leave.