Legislation covering parental leave

Parental leave is provided for in legislation on employment contracts, which stipulates the rights of parents to leave for family reasons. The Health insurance Act covers maternity allowance, special maternity allowance, paternity allowance and parental allowance. The law includes regulations on the compensation for loss of earnings caused when parents have to look after children when they are sick.

Law on child day care

Stipulates the entitlement of children to day care and the responsibility of municipalities to arrange day care. A degree on child day care covers its practical arrangement. The qualification requirements of day care staff are stipulated by the decree on child day care and by the law and decree on the qualification requirements of social care professionals.

Preschool education

Preschool education and the morning and afternoon care ofschool children are stipulated by the law and decree on basic education

Home care allowance

Child home care and private private care allowance are covered by legislation. The overseeing of private day care is stipulated by the law on the supervision of private social services.

Young workers

The law on young workers covers the terms and conditions of employment, occupational safety and working times of people working with under 18-year-olds.

Family counselling and conciliation

Municipalities arrange counselling concerning the upbringing of children and family matters. The Social Welfare Act provides this for. The Marriage Act obliges municipalities to arrange family conciliation, or to procure such services. Conciliation is directed and overseen by State Provincial Offices.

Child welfare

The 2008 Child Welfare Act requires municipalities to arrange preventive child welfare services and child and family specific services according to necessity. The law includes regulations on reporting obligations, issuing reports on the need for child welfare, the procedures for taking children into care and foster care and after-care.

Adoption

The law and decree on adoption includes regulations on adoption counselling and international adoption. The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption has come into effect in Finland.

The legal status of children

Legislation on paternity  provides for investigating and establishing paternity. The law on child care and rights of access covers how the care of children is to be arranged, if their parents do not live together and how disputes are to be resolved. There is separate legislation on implementing decisions on child care and rights of access.

Child maintenance

Legislation on child maintenance binds both parents to provide child support in line with their capacity to do so. The legislation sets out the procedure in the case of neglect to provide maintenance or disagreement.