Are pregnant freelancers eligible for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025? What are application and procedures for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025?
Are pregnant freelancers eligible for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025?
Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 4 of the Law on Social Insurance 2014, the current regulations stipulate that participants in voluntary social insurance only have 2 policies namely:
(1) Retirement;
(2) Death benefits.
Recently, the National Assembly passed the 2024 Law on Social Insurance, effective from July 1, 2025.
Article 4 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance has supplemented social insurance benefits for participants in social insurance as follows:
(1) Maternity benefits;
(2) Retirement benefits;
(3) Death benefits;
(4) Labor accident insurance as stipulated by the Law on Occupational Safety and Hygiene.
Thus, freelance workers who are not subject to mandatory social insurance but participate in voluntary social insurance will be entitled to maternity benefits from July 1, 2025.
Article 95 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance stipulates the level of maternity allowance for participants in voluntary social insurance (freelance workers not subject to mandatory social insurance) from July 1, 2025 as follows:
- The maternity allowance is VND 2,000,000 for:
+ Each child born
+ Each fetus from 22 weeks or more that dies in the womb, or a fetus that dies during labor.
- Female workers who are ethnic minorities or female workers who are of Kinh ethnicity with a husband who is an ethnic minority and belong to a poor household are also eligible for additional support policies as stipulated by the Government of Vietnam.
*Note: The condition for receiving maternity allowance is having at least 06 months of voluntary social insurance contributions or simultaneous mandatory and voluntary social insurance contributions within the 12 months prior to giving birth (Clause 1, Article 94 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance).
Are pregnant freelancers eligible for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025? (Internet image)
What are application and procedures for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025?
Article 96 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance stipulates the application for maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025 when participating in voluntary social insurance as one of the following:
(1) A copy of the birth certificate or an extract of the birth certificate or a copy of the child's birth note;
(2) In cases where the fetus dies in the womb, dies during labor, or the child dies after birth without a birth certificate, one of the following documents is required:
- The original or a copy of the medical record summary showing the child's death information;
- The original or a copy of the discharge paper of the female worker who gave birth, showing the child’s death information;
- A copy of the child's death notice;
- A confirmation document from the commune-level People's Committee for cases where the child dies within 24 hours after birth.
Article 97 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance stipulates the resolution process for maternity benefits as follows:
- Within 60 days from the date of childbirth, the employee must submit the dossier prescribed in Article 96 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance to the social insurance agency.
- Within 05 working days from receiving the complete dossier as regulated, the social insurance agency is responsible for resolution; if not resolved, they must respond in writing and clearly state the reasons.
Who are eligible for and what are the conditions for receiving maternity benefits in Vietnam from July 1, 2025?
Pursuant to Article 94 of the 2024 Law on Social Insurance, eligibility for maternity benefits from July 1, 2025 includes:
(1) Persons with at least 06 months of voluntary social insurance contributions or simultaneous mandatory and voluntary social insurance contributions within the 12 months prior to giving birth under the following cases:
- Female workers giving birth;
- Male workers whose wives give birth.
(2) In cases where only the mother participates in social insurance but dies after childbirth, the father or direct caregiver will receive the maternity benefits.
(3) If both father and mother participate in social insurance and meet the conditions for maternity benefits as prescribed in (1), only one parent will receive the maternity benefits.
(4) If the person stipulated in (1) meets the conditions for maternity benefits in both voluntary and mandatory social insurance, they will only receive maternity benefits from mandatory social insurance.
(5) If the mother meets the conditions for maternity benefits in mandatory social insurance and the father meets the conditions for maternity benefits in voluntary social insurance, the mother will receive benefits from mandatory social insurance and the father from voluntary social insurance.
(6) If the father meets the conditions for maternity benefits in mandatory social insurance and the mother meets the conditions for maternity benefits in voluntary social insurance, the father will receive benefits from mandatory social insurance and the mother from voluntary social insurance.
The 2024 Law on Social Insurance takes effect in Vietnam from July 1, 2025.
LawNet