How does nursing leave work, and what is half-time work?

What is nursing leave?

Under Art. 74(7) of Labour Law No. 4857, a female employee is given a total of 1.5 hours of nursing leave a day to breastfeed a child under one. This time counts as daily working time; Art. 66(e) likewise counts time set aside for nursing as working time. Nursing leave is therefore not deducted from pay, and it also counts as time worked for annual leave entitlement (Art. 55(e)).

The right lasts until the child turns one. It runs from the child's date of birth, not from the employee's return to work. Since the employee is not at work during maternity leave, in practice nursing leave starts when she returns. After a 24-week maternity leave, about eight months remain until the child's first birthday. See the maternity leave guide for the maternity leave periods.

Who decides the hours?

The law is clear: the employee decides between which hours the time is used and how many parts it is split into (Art. 74(7)). The employer cannot set the hours unilaterally. Each of the patterns below adds up to 1.5 hours a day:

The law defines the time on a daily basis: "a total of one and a half hours a day". It is good practice to record the hours the employee chooses, and any later changes, in writing.

Other rules for pregnant and breastfeeding employees

The Regulation on the Working Conditions of Pregnant or Breastfeeding Women, Nursing Rooms and Childcare Centres adds some further rules:

• A pregnant or breastfeeding employee may not work more than seven and a half hours a day (Art. 9(1)).
• The employee may not work nights for one year after the birth (Art. 8).
• Workplaces with 100–150 female employees must provide a nursing room, and those with more than 150 a childcare centre (Art. 13).

What is half-time work?

From the end of postnatal maternity leave, and provided the child is alive, Art. 74(2) gives a female employee, and a female or male employee adopting a child under three, the right on request to unpaid leave equal to half of the weekly working time. During this period the employee works half of the weekly working time; the other half is unpaid leave.

The law adds that the nursing leave rules do not apply while half-time work is being used. The employee cannot take both at the same time.

Example

Elif gave birth to her first child on 4 May 2026 and has a weekly working time of 45 hours. Assume her postnatal maternity leave ended on 23 August 2026.

Had Elif not taken half-time work, nursing leave would have started on her return to work on 24 August 2026.

Half-time work allowance

Under Additional Article 5 of Law No. 4447, the Employment Agency (İŞKUR) pays an allowance equal to the daily gross minimum wage during half-time work. The conditions are:

• at least 600 days of unemployment insurance premiums in the three years before the birth;
• actually working half of the weekly working time;
• applying within 30 days of the end of maternity leave (this deadline was not changed by Law No. 7578).

Because the deadline is short, it helps to tell the employee about it as soon as a half-time work request comes in.

Half-time work and annual leave

The law does not say expressly how half-time work affects annual leave entitlement. One view holds that attendance is not interrupted because the employee still works every day; however, no provision or Court of Cassation decision confirming this was found. Our unpaid leave guide explains how unpaid leave affects annual leave.

Part-time work after birth (Art. 13(5))

Once the leave under Art. 74 ends, one of the parents may request part-time work until the start of the month following the date compulsory primary schooling begins. The employer must meet the request. Employees adopting a child under three have the same right. The details are set out in the Regulation on Part-Time Work after Maternity Leave or Unpaid Leave:

• The employee gives at least one month's written notice of moving to part-time work or returning to full-time work (Art. 13(5); Regulation Art. 8(3)).
• If one parent does not work, the working spouse cannot use this right. The employee attaches evidence that the spouse works (Regulation Art. 9(2)); exceptions are set out in Regulation Art. 10.
• The employer meets the request within one month of notification at the latest. If the employer does not respond, the request takes effect on the date the employee specified (Regulation Art. 11).
• In certain jobs, such as continuous shift work or seasonal work, part-time work is possible only if the employer agrees (Regulation Art. 12).
• The employer sets the working hours, taking the employee's request into account (Regulation Art. 15(1)).
• The request is kept in the employee's personnel file (Regulation Art. 9(3)).

Part-time work is not leave but a change to the working pattern. A part-time employee has the same annual leave rights as a comparable full-time employee (Annual Paid Leave Regulation, Art. 13).

How İzin360 handles it

• An arrangement, not a request. Nursing leave and half-time work are not requested as date ranges. On the employee's application, HR defines them as arrangements on the "Nursing leave and half-time work" page. The employee can see their own arrangement.
• Nursing period calculated. HR enters the child's date of birth and the start date; İzin360 calculates the period up to the day the child turns one and shows the daily time as 90 minutes in total. An arrangement cannot start before the birth or be created once the child has turned one.
• The employee sets the hours. Once the arrangement exists, the employee enters the nursing hours and how many parts to split them into, and can change them when needed. HR can record the hours on the employee's behalf; the screen reminds HR that the employee decides.
• Half-time period calculated. HR selects the birth order, whether it was a multiple birth and whether the child was born disabled; the end date follows the 60/120/180-day, +30-day and 360-day rules. The start is the day after postnatal maternity leave ends.
• Overlap check. A nursing leave arrangement cannot be set up to overlap an active half-time work period (Art. 74(2)).
• Ending early. Where the employee asks or employment ends, an arrangement can be ended early with a stated reason, and the action is recorded.

Maternity leave, unpaid leave after maternity leave and the other statutory leave types are built in as well. See time off in lieu and special arrangements for how arrangements look in the product.