Paternity Leave

Page updated 30 August 2023

Paternity Leave is part of a suite of family-friendly initiatives available in UCD and supports a more equitable sharing of parental caring duties. This section outlines the scope of the policy, your entitlements and the process for taking paternity leave.

Policy Summary

The Paternity Leave Policy encourages a more equitable sharing of parental responsibilities to allow for more equality of opportunity in the workplace.

This Policy applies to all UCD employees who are in receipt of a salary under a permanent contract, a contract of indefinite duration (CID), or a fixed-term contract and who are entitled to benefit under the Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016.

Paternity leave is available to those employees who are deemed to be the “relevant parent” of a child.  Only one person who is a “relevant parent” in relation to a child can be entitled to paternity leave in respect of that child.  There is no qualifying period for entitlement to paternity leave.

The Relevant parent, defined in the Policy, is entitled to two weeks leave following the birth or adoption of their child, or the child of their spouse or partner. This two week period is referred to as “paternity leave” and must be taken within twenty-six weeks following the birth or placement of the child.

You can find more definitions and an outline of the roles and responsibilities of the employee, the Manager and HR in the (opens in a new window)Paternity Leave Policy

This section contains a summary of a UCD policy, however, in all cases the Policy remains the definitive source of information on the topic.

Taking Paternity Leave

Step 1: Read the University Paternity Leave Policy.

Step 2: Complete and sign the Paternity Leave Application Form‌ and have it countersigned by the Head of School/Unit no later than 4 weeks before the start of the Paternity Leave.

Step 3: Send your completed and approved Paternity Leave Application Form, and confirmation of the expected due date or birth certificate, to (opens in a new window)hrhelpdesk@ucd.ie

Step 4: UCD HR will return the completed PB2 from to you by email.  

Step 5: You will need to apply for the Paternity Benefit directly from the Department of Social Protection and details of this process are available at (opens in a new window)www.gov.ie. If you do not have a MyGovID account, you can request a PB1 form from the Paternity Benefit Section.

The Paternity Benefit should be paid directly into your bank account and you can liaise with the Department of Social Protection regarding same.

Supports for parents

Information on parent buddy programmes and other supports are available on the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion website.

Employee Assistance Service

The UCD (EAS) is a 24/7 free and confidential support service designed to assist you in dealing more effectively with any personal or work-related problems you might be facing. The service is operated confidentially by Spectrum.Life, the largest provider of employee health and wellness services in Ireland.

The service can be used by a UCD employee, their spouse, civil partner and dependents where the family member can be described as over the age of 18 and residing in the family home.

• Freephone 1800 814 243 (Ire)
• WhatsApp & SMS: Text ‘Hi’ to 087 369 0010
• Email: (opens in a new window)eap@spectrum.life

Contact the HR Helpdesk

The HR Helpdesk is the primary point of contact for all your employment-related queries by email and telephone.  We are here to help you with any queries on employee benefits, terms & conditions and HR policies & procedures. If we can’t help you directly, we will refer your query to a HR specialist area.

All visitors to UCD HR, Roebuck offices should be by appointment only and arrangements to be made with specific HR staff members.

(opens in a new window)hrhelpdesk@ucd.ie

+ 353-1-716-4900

UCD HR
Roebuck Offices,
UCD Belfield Campus.