WOMEN WHO EXPERIENCE a miscarriage before 23 weeks gestation will be entitled to five days paid leave under new legislation approved by cabinet today. 

Once the bill becomes law, it will be the first time the State has introduced a policy to provide miscarriage leave to women in the workplace who have suffered early pregnancy loss. 

Under existing legislation, employees are entitled to full maternity leave in the case of a stillbirth after 23 weeks’ gestation. 

However, there is no provision before this time, with many women having to take days from their sick leave when they experience pregnancy loss. 

Speaking to reporters today, Enterprise Minister Peter Burke said when someone goes through such a huge trauma, there is often silence around it. 

A bill to introduce five days of paid miscarriage leave has been approved by cabinet. jrnl.ie/7100275

[image or embed]

— The Journal (@thejournal.ie) 14:40 · Jul 14, 2026

“We’d like to change that,” said the minister, stating that the government is open to further discussions on how to try and support women and families better in a time of crisis in their lives.

Calling it a starting off point, the minister said considerations were also given to whether such leave should extend to fathers, whose partners experience a miscarriage. 

“It is something that can be considered at a future time,” he said, stating that it is something a family experience as a whole.

“While women bear the brunt of the challenge, there is a huge loss in a family, it is a huge traumatic time for families. So, at a future time, absolutely, we can consider further enhancements to the scheme,” he added.

“Women really have feel they don’t have to suffer in silence. So hopefully, this can start off the discussion in relation to those issues and make the workplace a better place for everyone,” said Burke. 

While the Labour Party has welcomed the move, it argues that 20 days’ leave for early pregnancy loss should be provided and 10 days for those attending IVF and fertility treatments.

The minister didn’t rule it out, stating that obviously, there are other challenges that families will face, and again, those can be discussed at a future time.

“But it was important to get this bill off the ground,” he said. 

While there is no date yet for when the miscarriage leave bill will become law, the minister said he wants it to pass through the Houses of the Oireachtas as quickly as possible.

It will not be before the summer recess, as TDs and Senators break for the summer at the end of this week and will not return to Leinster House until mid-September. 

Baby loss register

Fine Gael Senator Linda Nelson Murray, the current Chair of the Cross-Party Oireachtas Group on Pregnancy and Infant Loss, said a baby loss register is also being pursued.

At the moment, if you have a miscarriage at an earlier stage of pregnancy, for example, at 10 weeks or 12 weeks, there’s no documentation to say there was a pregnancy, which the senator described as “horrendous.”

Related Reads

Still no agreement on making costly prenatal testing available through the public system

Health minister backs birth guidelines as ex-Holles master warns of 'catastrophic' risks

State-funded IVF to be expanded to women who suffer infertility due to endometriosis

This baby loss register, which the Oireachtas group is pushing for, would allow a woman to register a pregnancy loss.

“We’re really hoping that that’s something else that we can do,” she said. 

A baby loss certificate scheme is now available in Northern Ireland, whereby people who have experienced the loss of a baby in early pregnancy can apply for a certificate recognising their loss. It applies to baby losses before the end of week 24 of pregnancy, or before week 28 for losses before 1992.

Earlier this year, Northern Ireland became the first part of the UK or Ireland to introduce miscarriage leave, with women given the right to two weeks of paid leave following a miscarriage from 6 April.

In Ireland, miscarriage is one of the most common complications in early pregnancy. 

It is estimated that one in five women will have a miscarriage in their lives.

Due to a lack of standardised reporting, it is not known how many women suffer a miscarriage in Ireland annually.