Bill: 12 weeks of bereavement leave when a child's other parent dies
Official title (in Danish): Forslag til lov om ændring af barselsloven. (Sorgorlov til en efterlevende forælder til et mindreårigt barn)
In short
Reading time: 1 min- What is proposed:
- The bill proposes that a parent of a child under 18 gets the right to 12 weeks of absence if the child's other parent dies.
- The absence is counted from the day after the date of death.
- Who would be affected: The bill applies to a surviving parent when both parents were parents of a shared child under 18 and the other parent has died; only legal parents are covered; social parents are not covered, and employees must inform their employer about the absence and its length without undue delay.
- When: The bill has not been passed yet.
Written by AI from verbatim quotes from the source and checked by code and AI. Dates, tables and the fact box are calculated by fixed rules. Unofficial translation. Always read the original.
If the bill is passed:
- You have the right to 12 weeks of absence if you and the deceased were legal parents of a shared child under 18 at the time the other one died. Social parents do not have this right.
Sources and original
Read the official text (in Danish) →
Source: the Danish Parliament (ft.dk)
Translated from Danish · The Danish version and the original source apply.
Summary by the Danish Parliament (in Danish)
Med lovforslaget udvides den nuværende sorgorlov ved at sikre en ny ret til sorgorlov for familier, hvor den ene forælder dør og der er et mindreårigt barn. Retten til sorgorlov indebærer, at den efterlevende forælder til et barn under 18 år kan få 12 ugers fravær med barselsdagpenge. Ændringen af sorgorloven har til formål at give familier bedre mulighed for at håndtere den særlig vanskelige situation, der opstår ved en forælders dødsfald. Lovforslaget udmønter et initiativ i finanslovsaftalen for 2026, indgået mellem regeringen (Socialdemokratiet, Venstre og Moderaterne) og Det Konservative Folkeparti. Det foreslås, at loven træder i kraft den 1. januar 2027.
Source: Folketinget (ft.dk). Reproduced unchanged.
Timeline
How to read the timeline
- Filled dot: this has happened. The date and the source are shown below the point.
- Empty dot: an upcoming step. The date may be known or not known yet.
- Square: the case ended here, e.g. because the bill was rejected or withdrawn.
- "The date is in the source, but entry into force has not been confirmed yet" (or just "not confirmed yet") means the date has passed, but the source does not yet show that the law or rule has entered into force. We only change the status when the source confirms it.
- Introduced · 8 October 2026Status in the Danish Parliament: Fremsat
- 1. beh./Henvist til udvalg · 22 October 2026Status in the Danish Parliament: 1. beh./Henvist til udvalg
- PassedAwaiting the Danish Parliament
- Enters into forceThe date is not known yet