Pregnancy Allowance for Fourth Child and Beyond

The Social Security Organization in Iran announces the payment of pregnancy allowances for fourth children and subsequent children of families covered by the insurance services of this organization. Accordingly, the Social Security Organization has canceled legal restrictions on insurance coverage for fourth children and beyond, as well as restrictions on paying pregnancy allowances to its insured individuals, in accordance with the Population and Family Regulation Law and aligned with government policies aimed at increasing the population. The Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) reported on Tuesday, December 23, that to receive the pregnancy allowance, insured individuals must have paid 60 days of insurance premiums to the Social Security Organization in the year prior to childbirth, must not have been working during the rest period, must not have received wages or salaries, and must have been employed or on eligible leave at the time of illness notification. The Social Security Organization has stated that the amount of the pregnancy allowance is equivalent to two-thirds of the last wage or salary of the insured, taking into account the rest days, which is calculated and paid from the first day of the rest period. The population covered by the Social Security Organization includes about 12 million main insured individuals and more than 2 million pensioners, which, along with the family members of the insured, brings the total population covered for medical services to nearly 37 million. The maternity leave duration for mothers according to Iranian labor laws is six months, three months of which must be after the date of childbirth. This comes at a time when ISNA reported two days ago, citing the Statistical Center of Iran, that last year, Tehran was the most expensive city in Iran with an average monthly living cost of 2 million 280 thousand tomans for each household. According to this data, Qom is the cheapest city in Iran, with an average monthly living cost of about 1 million 50 thousand tomans for a household. These figures have been released while the minimum monthly wage for workers in Iran this year is about 609 thousand tomans. A comparison of these statistics shows that the cost of living in Qom, as the cheapest city in Iran, is about 400 thousand tomans higher than the minimum wage for workers. Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has consistently emphasized the need to increase the population in recent years and believes that Iran's population should reach 150 million. He is concerned about the aging population of predominantly Shia Muslims in Iran in the coming years and believes that Iran's human resources must be strengthened. Ayatollah Khamenei has repeatedly stated that, in his view, population growth is a "significant issue" for national power. He believes that a new order is forming in the world and that Iran must play a role in strengthening its power in shaping this new order.