Men who are pregnant or have given birth are eligible for maternity leave, official advice from the HSE has confirmed.
According to guidance published by the health service, transgender men who have given birth can access the statutory time off without any service qualifications.
The policy outlines the exact entitlements for employees who are expecting a child.
“Pregnant employees are entitled to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave,” the guidance states.
“Since 2023, transgender men who are pregnant or have given birth can access maternity leave.”
The HSE advice also details the specific legal requirements needed to qualify for the provision.
“To qualify, you must have a gender recognition certificate in accordance with the Gender Recognition Act 2015,” the document outlines.
“You can take up to 16 weeks of unpaid additional maternity leave.”
The guidance goes on to clarify exactly when this supplementary time off must be taken by employees.
“This leave must start immediately after your 26 weeks of paid maternity leave ends,” the advice adds.
Further documentation concerning the Maternity Protection Acts of 1994 and 2004 notes that the legislation provides protection for all pregnant employees.
“Transgender men who have given birth can access statutory maternity leave,” the introduction reads.
The confirmation follows previous reporting on internal health service guidelines regarding gender identity.
An article published by Gript in August 2025 highlighted a 30-minute pronoun awareness training video, fully funded by HSE Social Inclusion, which told staff that biological sex can change over time.
The module aimed to raise awareness about the use of pronouns to promote inclusive spaces across the organisation.
“There are new pronouns coming out all the time,” the training video advised.
Staff were warned that refusing to use a person’s preferred pronouns was an issue that required further education.
“It does become a problem when people intentionally use the wrong pronouns,” the course stated.
“It dismisses and disrespects the person.”
The training also suggested that employees should avoid using terms like “Mam” or “Dad” in certain contexts.
“Instead of asking ‘Is your Mam or Dad here today?’ the suggested phrase is ‘Is your parent or guardian here today?'” the video noted.
Background documents previously revealed by Gript showed that the HSE has also urged healthcare workers to “check their privilege” and use pronouns such as “ze” or “xe”, while describing biological sex as a “spectrum”.
The health service has also previously stated that men can go through menopause, and that “most” pregnant individuals identify as female.