Finnish fathers used 22.5% of all parental leave days reimbursed by Kela in 2025, showing that the country’s family leave reform has encouraged more men to spend longer periods at home with their children. The share has increased substantially, but leave remains far from being divided equally between parents and its use still varies according to income and employment status.
Finland’s parental leave reform is changing fathers’ choices
Fathers who take parental leave now remain at home for an average of about three months, according to Anneli Miettinen, research manager at Finland’s Social Insurance Institution (Kela, Kansaneläkelaitos).
This is roughly twice the amount of leave used by fathers five years ago. Before the reform, around one in five fathers did not use any parental leave. That proportion has since fallen to 15%.
The change follows the family leave reform that entered into force in August 2022. Under the system, each parent is allocated 160 working days of parental allowance, although up to 63 days can be transferred to another eligible caregiver.
The reform replaced a system that gave mothers and fathers different leave entitlements. Its stated purpose was to divide care responsibilities more evenly, improve gender equality in working life and recognise different types of families.
Kela has also recorded a substantial increase in leave taken by self-employed fathers. At the same time, mothers are returning to work earlier than under the previous system.
Income and employment still shape who stays at home
Despite the overall increase, fathers do not use parental leave equally across Finnish society.
Take-up is less common in low-income families and among fathers who are unemployed or studying. It generally rises with household income, but the increase becomes less visible among the country’s highest earners.
Senior executives and entrepreneurs can also face specific obstacles. Company directors do not automatically have the same statutory entitlement to parental leave as employees, while business owners may struggle to find someone who can replace them for several months.
These differences show how financial calculations and workplace expectations continue to influence family decisions. When one parent earns considerably more than the other, households may still conclude that the lower-paid parent should remain at home for longer.
Workplace culture also matters. Fathers may formally have access to leave but feel that taking it could affect their career, their company’s performance or how their professional commitment is perceived.
Finland remains behind Sweden on shared parental care
Finland’s results represent a clear shift, but the country has not yet reached the level recorded in neighbouring Sweden.
Swedish fathers use approximately one third of parental benefit days, according to the comparison cited by Kela. Sweden has applied individual parental leave quotas for longer and has gradually expanded the number of days reserved for each parent.
The Finnish system now begins from a similar principle: parental leave should be shared rather than treated mainly as a benefit for mothers. However, the 22.5% recorded in 2025 remains well below an equal division and below the Swedish level.
The comparison suggests that legislation can change behaviour, but that its effects develop gradually. Leave entitlements interact with salaries, professional roles, employer attitudes and established expectations about which parent should provide most daily care.
A step forward, but not yet gender equality
The increased use of parental leave by Finnish fathers is one of the clearest measurable results of the 2022 reform. More fathers are taking leave, those who use it remain at home for longer and mothers are able to return to employment sooner.
However, fathers still account for less than one quarter of reimbursed parental leave days. The gap is particularly visible among families facing financial insecurity and among men whose jobs are considered difficult to interrupt.
Finland has therefore moved closer to a more balanced distribution of childcare, but the figures also show the limits of formal equality. Reaching a genuinely equal division will require not only individual leave quotas, but also working conditions and social expectations that make it realistic for fathers across income groups and professional roles to use them.
