Azerbaijan has proposed requiring at least six months of social insurance coverage to qualify for childcare benefits for children under age 3. The proposal is part of draft legislation and is not yet in force.
The requirement appears in proposed amendments to the Law on Social Insurance, Vesti Baku reported. Current rules do not set a minimum insurance period for the benefit.
The bill’s authors say the six-month threshold is intended to prevent people from obtaining formal employment immediately before taking social leave solely to claim the payment.
Benefit Amounts Would Remain Unchanged
The monthly benefit is currently 44 manats (about $25.88) until a child reaches 18 months of age and 28 manats (about $16.47) from 18 months until age 3. According to the bill’s supporting materials, those amounts have not changed since 2018.
The materials acknowledge that the payments remain low compared with Azerbaijan’s minimum and average wages. However, the bill does not set new benefit amounts. It addresses only the insurance-coverage requirement and leaves open the possibility of a future review.