The happy moment of the arrival of a long-awaited baby in a family brings with it not only all-consuming joy, but also material expenses. A newborn baby should be surrounded by high-quality practical things (stroller, crib, clothes, toys) and basic necessities (formula, diapers, pacifier).
All these things cost a lot of money, so parents try not to forget about the additional income that the state provides them with. Maternity payments in 2021 will be a serious help for spouses and will be able to solve some financial difficulties that arise along the way.
Types of maternity payments
Several types of maternity payments.
It is necessary to immediately stipulate that “maternity payments” are a shorthand designation for a number of benefits and one-time transfers designed to support the family. This group includes 4 types of payments:
- Funds allocated to the employee as payment for time spent on a certificate of incapacity for work. It is this payment that is most often meant when they say “maternity leave”;
- The state encourages women who take care of their health and assigns money to those who are seen by gynecologists from an early age. When registering before 12 weeks of pregnancy, the expectant mother can count on a one-time payment of 613.44 rubles;
- After the birth of a child, one of the parents receives a one-time benefit at the place of work in the amount of 16,350.33 rubles. Most often, dads are involved in paperwork on this issue. You must bring a copy of the baby’s birth certificate, a free-form application and a certificate from the mother’s place of work to the accounting department. In the required certificate, the chief accountant must confirm that this payment was not accrued to the employee;
- Monthly allowance for child care up to 1.5 years. This amount can be received by any family member who actually takes care of the newborn, for example, a grandmother or even grandfather. The amount of payments will be calculated based on the average income of a person for 2 years from which insurance premiums were paid.
To apply for any of the listed benefits, you must collect a certain package of certificates and documents.
Accrual of maternity benefits in 2021: calculation features
The powers to administer insurance premiums have been transferred to the Federal Tax Service since the beginning of the year and are regulated by Ch. 34 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. For an accountant calculating maternity benefits, this only means that when calculating average earnings, all payments from which contributions to the Social Insurance Fund were calculated for the period before December 31, 2016 should be taken into account. By the way, the law allows for the replacement of years in the billing period, provided that it is more beneficial to the woman and the average earnings increase. Let's look at how maternity benefits are calculated in practice.
Who is entitled to maternity benefits?
Not everyone is entitled to paid leave under the BiR.
To determine the necessary list of papers, a woman must understand which category she belongs to. According to Federal Law No. 81, the following citizens have the right to pay for maternity leave:
- officially employed and “self-employed” women. Business women have the same right to government support as hired employees. The main thing in both cases is that the salary is “white” and deductions are made from it to the Social Insurance Fund;
- Full-time students of higher educational institutions can count on financial assistance. True, the calculation for them will be made at the very minimum, based on the minimum wage established at the time of filing the application;
- those who have lost their jobs and prudently registered with the labor exchange also have nothing to worry about. For them, the calculation base will consist of the income at the previous place of work and the amount of the minimum wage for the period of being in the “unemployed” status;
- Female conscripts serving while pregnant are entitled to the same benefits as civilians. In such cases, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides for a number of concessions for expectant mothers, from outpatient examination and treatment within the military unit separately from male military personnel to exemption from duty during pregnancy and the period of breastfeeding.
You can calculate maternity funds yourself
For a woman who is preparing to go on maternity leave in 2021, even the most insignificant financial assistance means quite a lot. Therefore, it is important for her to understand whether she can count on support from the state and her own employer, even if these amounts are not very large. You can calculate maternity leave in 2021 yourself. After the ultrasound, the woman will know whether she is expecting one baby or several, which significantly affects both the duration of the vacation and the amount of payments. It is also easy to calculate what financial support is due to a woman who became pregnant while on a previous maternity leave, or is preparing to become a mother for the first time. The unemployed will receive a minimum benefit.
Preparation of a package of documents for receiving maternity benefits
You need to collect a package of documents.
To correctly calculate the amounts due, the payroll accounting employee must submit the following documents:
- A certificate issued by a doctor at the antenatal clinic confirming registration in the early stages of pregnancy;
- Application for the provision of maternity leave and the corresponding accruals to the specified account of the employee;
- Certificate of incapacity for work opened in the antenatal clinic. Since the application for leave can be written “in advance”, the sick leave does not have to be submitted along with the application. Very often, pregnant women combine annual paid leave and maternity leave, then the “rest” begins earlier than expected;
- In cases where the employee changed jobs during the period under review, it is necessary to submit Form 182H to calculate sick leave from the previous employer.
If a woman works part-time for several employers, then she must be paid benefits for each place of work.
So what should workaholic mothers do? After all, there are such dedicated women who don’t need anything, just give them the opportunity to “work in peace.” Of course, it is impossible to limit a woman in her desires, even during such a delicate period.
Terms and procedure for processing maternity benefits
I would like to immediately note that the maximum amount of maternity leave in 2017, as well as the rules for calculating it, have not changed. Maternity pay is paid at the place of employment for several months: before, at the time of childbirth and for some time after. The duration of the vacation depends on several factors.
- The standard is 140 days, divided equally by the baby’s birthday.
- In case of complications, the period increases to 156 days (the time after birth required for rehabilitation is extended).
- When expecting twins or more, the mother goes on vacation earlier - 84 days in advance. And 110 days are given to the mother after the birth of the babies (194 days in total).
Accordingly, the amounts received by mothers in such situations will be different. You can apply for payments either at the time of writing your application for leave or later. The limiting moment is six months from the moment of birth.
To register, it is enough to present a certificate from a doctor indicating the duration of pregnancy to the personnel department or accounting department and write a corresponding application according to the form accepted by the enterprise. It is better to submit it simultaneously with the application for maternity leave, but you can do it later.
If a girl does not work, but is registered with the Employment Center, or was fired the day before due to the closure of the enterprise, payments are made by the state. To receive them, you should contact the Social Fund at your place of residence with a passport, certificate and other documents, if necessary, and write an application. The money goes to the bank account.
How to easily and quickly calculate the amount of maternity payments?
A special procedure for calculating maternity benefits.
You do not need to have any special education or experience as a payroll accountant to independently calculate the amount of maternity benefits.
It is enough to have certificates 182N in hand for the 2 years preceding the year of maternity leave. For example, if a woman is due to give birth in November 2021, then the amount of payments will depend on her income for 2015-2016.
We have already described situations with a minimum threshold for payments. Now it’s worth stipulating the maximum allowable benefit amount. The appendix to 81 Federal Law specifies the maximum average wage for a working day, equal to 1,901.37 rubles. What caused this restriction?
According to the current procedure, insurance payments for pregnancy and temporary ones in the Social Insurance Fund are terminated if the total income for the current period exceeds the established base.
In 2015, the size of the insurance base was 670 thousand rubles, and in 2021 – 718 thousand rubles. If you add up these amounts and divide by 730 days (the number of days in 2 years), you get the number 1,901.37.
Therefore, no matter how large the income during the specified period, the calculation should be carried out taking into account existing restrictions.
The algorithm for determining the amount of payments for a certificate of incapacity for work is as follows:
- It is necessary to add up the amount of income for the required years from paragraph 3 of certificate 182N. The column displays not only wages, but also bonuses, as well as other payments subject to insurance deductions;
- A separate line includes payment for the days the employee is on sick leave. These compensations are paid by the Social Insurance Fund and are excluded from the calculation of the average wage per working day;
- Now you can begin to calculate the cost of one day of work for an employee. To do this, the amount from point 1 must be divided by the number of days actually worked during the period. This can be done using the formula: income / (730 – days of temporary disability);
- The resulting figure must be multiplied by the number of days indicated on the certificate of incapacity for work to provide maternity leave.
Maximum limits on maternity benefits
Thus, a woman receives her average salary, since maternity leave is equivalent to sick leave. The state regulates this moment, and therefore boundary indicators are prescribed, beyond which accrual is not possible:
- For a regular vacation: up to 248.1 thousand rubles;
- At the birth of 2 or more children: up to 343.8 thousand rubles;
- For complications: up to 276.5 thousand rubles.
If the mother did not work for the previous two years, then she is entitled to benefits from the state. It is very insignificant and is fixed - 4.6 thousand rubles.
Thus, the maximum maternity payment in 2021 depends on the amount of wages, as well as on the duration of the vacation.
Step-by-step instructions for receiving maximum maternity benefits
Certificate of incapacity for work
Maternity benefits are paid within 10 days.
The period of the certificate of incapacity for work can be extended by the decision of the attending physician. Causes may include difficult labor and postpartum complications.
The standard vacation period is 140 days, of which 70 conditionally fall during the “before” period and the same amount during the “after” period. Conditionally, because regardless of the date of birth, the duration of sick leave cannot be revised downwards. If the mother's condition is serious, the leave will be extended for another 2 weeks.
Women with multiple pregnancies are initially entitled to a longer sick leave of 194 days: before childbirth - 84 and after - 110.
Maternity leave of 110 days is also available to those who adopt a child under three months of age.
Deadlines for transferring maternity payments
In this matter, the law does not allow duality and discrepancies. The timing of maternity pay is clearly regulated:
- Payment for maternity leave at the place of work is carried out within 10 days from the date of submission of all documents;
- Fund payments are made on certain days of the month following the date of submission of documents;
- You can apply for funds within 6 months after the end of your vacation.
If documents are submitted after the specified deadline, the employer and the Social Insurance Fund have the right to reject the application.
