Pregnancy in France
You are thinking of having a baby or you are already pregnant and live in France? Here are the main guidelines to being pregnant and having a baby in France.
If you are planning on a having a baby or are already pregnant, you must get in touch (if you aren’t already) with a gynaecologist or a mid-wife (“sage-femme”). Unless you are in a particular medical situation, I’d recommend you pick a mid-wife you share the same values with. Mid-wives in France offer a range of services, from the regular smear and check-ups to childbirth preparation without forgetting the actual giving birth! So, if you are planning a pregnancy or are already pregnant, you must choose the person you want to follow your pregnancy.
Pregnant in France: medical guidelines
From the medical point of view, here are the main steps through pregnancy.
- When you think you are pregnant, you can ask your general practitioner, midwife or gynaecologist to prescribe a blood test. This test will confirm pregnancy.
- Before the 13th week of pregnancy, you can do an “Early prenatal interview” (entretien prénatal précoce). This is not mandatory but recommended. During this interview you can ask all the questions you may have, your health will be checked and information about pregnancy will be given to you. It is after this interview the healthcare professional will officially declare your pregnancy.
- From the 3rd month of pregnancy onwards, you’ll have a monthly check up with your mid-wife or gynaecologist. They’re not all compulsory but a few of them are, as follows. Also, you will have regular urine tests throughout pregnancy and a few blood tests, all prescribed by the medical professional following your pregnancy.
- First-trimester ultrasound: this has to be carried out between the 12th and 14th week of pregnancy. This allows to monitor the foetus’ tonicity, its size and its development. Tests will also be run to assess the risk of trisomy 21.
- Second-trimester ultrasound: the second ultrasound has to be done in between the 21st and 24th week of pregnancy. This exam allows to check the development of the foetus’ limbs and organs, detect any malformations, ensure that the baby is growing normally and eventually find out baby’s sex if you wish to!
- Third trimester ultrasound: this is not mandatory but if you’d like to do it must be done in between the 31st and 33rd week of pregnancy. During the exam the gynaecologist or midwife will check the baby’s position and measure the amount of amniotic fluid and placenta. This test is generally carried out in the maternity where you will be giving birth.
- At the end of the 8th month of pregnancy, you will have an appointment with the anaesthetist. Even if you do not want an epidural, you must consult the anaesthetist because if there were any complication during birth, he must have your file and information.
During pregnancy you will also have 7 sessions of childbirth preparation classes that are generally given by your midwife. Note that you can decide to do them with another medical professional offering them if their program suits you best.
Finally, when D-day arrives, you go to the maternity service you registered with. Normally, once you have given birth you will stay 3 days if everything went well, it can be 5 days or more if you’ve had a C-section for example.
If on the expected date of delivery there is no sign of baby wanting to pop out, then you must call the maternity and you’ll have regular check-ups. In France a pregnancy is considered to last 41 weeks from the first day of your last period and generally speaking they tend to induce delivery if you get to 41 weeks + 6 days (every maternity has different procedures, these are questions you may want to ask when you register with them and have your appointment).
You can find more information about medical exams here.
What about the admin behind pregnancy?
Declaring your pregnancy
When your pregnancy is confirmed, the medical professional following you will do the pregnancy declaration. Normally it will be automatically transmitted to the Healthcare system and to the Caisse d’Allocations Familiales (CAF) but it is recommended you check it has been taken into account. If you do not yet have an account with the CAF, it is time to deal with it because it is the organisation that provides family allowances. If your doctor cannot declare your pregnancy electronically, then he’ll give you documents to fill in and send:
- The pink section to French healthcare (CPAM or MSA)
- The 2 blue sections to your Caisse d’Allocations Familiales (Caf or MSA).
The declaration of your pregnancy has to be done before the 14th week of pregnancy.
After this, do not forget to update your Carte Vitale: compulsory medical exams concerning your pregnancy will be covered by the French healthcare system. From 6 months of pregnancy onwards and up until the 12th day after delivery, you will benefit from the “100% maternité”. This means all your medical visits and tests will be covered and you will not have to advance any medical costs.
Once you have done your first ultrasound, it is recommended you sign up with the maternity where you have decided to go to give birth.
Your maternity leave
The general case for maternity leave length is 16 weeks: 6 weeks before the due date and 10 weeks after the due date. But it can be longer depending on your situation, here is more information.
Employees
If you are employed in France, you must declare your pregnancy to your employer by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt. Your employer will be declaring your maternity leave, and you will be receiving “indemnités journalières” from the French Healthcare system, under conditions.
- You have been affiliated to the Social Security system for at least 6 months as an employee.
- You have worked at least 150 hours during the 3 months (or 90 days) before your maternity leave.
- You have worked at least 600 hours in the 12 months prior to your maternity leave.
- You have paid social contributions during the 6 months prior to your maternity leave on the basis of remuneration at least equal to €10,728.55.
- You have paid social contributions during the 12 calendar months prior to your maternity leave on the basis of earnings of at least €23,385.60.
- You must stop working for at least 8 weeks during your maternity leave, including 6 weeks after the birth.
- You have been registered for at least 10 months before the presumed date of birth.
- You must stop working for at least 8 weeks, including a minimum of 6 weeks after giving birth.
- You are entitled to 2 types of payments. The “Allocation forfaitaire de repos maternel”, a fixed maternal rest allowance and the “Indemnités journalières”.
To declare your maternity leave and ask for payments, the CPAM have made a complete guide that you will find here.
The paternity leave
The paternity leave has been extended to a total of 25 days in France. It is divided into 2 parts.
- 3 days from the date of birth (it is compulsory to take these days) – these are counted in working days.
- 21 calendar days of paternity leave. The first 4 days must be taken following the previous part of your paternity leave. The 17 other days must be taken in the 6 months following birth.
Employees
You must inform your employer of the dates of your Paternity leave at least a month before. It is recommended to do this the formal way, by sending a letter with acknowledgement of receipt. To benefit from the “indemnités journalières” you must send a copy of your child’s birth certificate or your “Livret de Famille” updated to the French healthcare system (CPAM or MSA). There are conditions to obtain payments.
- You must take your paternity leave within 6 months of the birth of the child.
- You have had a social security number for at least 6 months at the start of the leave.
- You have worked for at least 150 hours in the 3 months prior to the start of the leave (or have paid contributions on a salary equivalent to at least €10,728.55 in the 6 months prior to the start of the leave).
- You have ceased all paid employment, even if working for more than one employer.
To benefit from the « Indemnités journalières« , you must send your newborn’s birthcertificate or the « Livret de Famille » updated. You will find relevant information here depending on your situation but generally you must have been registered for at least 6 months.
Declaring your newborn
What must I do once my baby is born ? Here is the information of where you must declare your baby’s birth.
It is compulsory to declare your newborn to the civil registry in France. You have 5 days to do so, at the Mairie of the town your baby was born (some big hospitals have an internal service to do this). You must have proof of both parents ID and they can also ask for proof of address if you are not married. It is best to be prepared and have everything with you.
You must send the birth certificate to your CPAM (or MSA) in order to declare your baby and register him or her on your Carte Vitale.
You must declare the birth on your CAF account(or MSA if you are registered with them). You can do this online directly on your account.
If you have a mutuelle (top up health insurance), you must declare your newborn to it. Some mutuelles offer a « Prime à la naissance« , don’t forget to enquire about this because they don’t automatically give it to you!
Last but not least, you will declare your child’s birth to the Tax Office. You can do this on your online account.
Being pregnant in a foreign country can be overwhelming. If you have any questions or need any help with this, please get in touch.
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