Of course you apply. You are not the charity for poor companies. You are an employee that needs special protection, and it is precisely for you that maternity/paternity leave legislation has been made. This is about your future, not about avoiding some administrator in some company the hassle of finding a substitute while you are on leave. And of course you don't mention that you are going to go on leave as soon as your signature on the employment contract has dried. Even asking about your plans re: parenthood is illegal in many countries (but it's a good idea to prepare for the possibility).

What will you tell them is your reason for starting in a years time?

Asking about pregnancy: In Germany, it is illegal to ask you whether you are pregnant. But what's better in Germany than other countries, you don't have to tell them that the question is illegal (which tells them you are pregnant, because what other reason would there be to tell them it's illegal? You are explicitly allowed by law to lie to illegal questions, and it is illegal to hold this against you in any way. So if they ask you, you just say "no". You are not pregnant now nor do you plan to fall pregnant. Ever.

This is great to know. But it's maybe not... the best footing to start off on in a new position? Immediately taking maternity leave after securing the position without notifying of the possibility beforehand (in the hypothetical world where I get an offer). It's good to know I have the legal right to do so, but it seems like it would also leave the research group in the lurch to just take off for a year, and could affect the relation with my colleagues afterward.

@gnasher729 fyi; Germany isn't the only country with that law, and do you really want to start a job with a lie like that?

@Nick the alternative is to not start the job. But there's also the possibility that the employer is law-abiding, and therefore won't force you in a position to lie.

@Kilisi OP won't mention at all that she will only start in a year's time. And that is the truth. She will start whenever convenient for the company and then take leave whenever convenient for her.

@Nick there is the non-zero chance that who is asking that question is an old fart retiring in 1 year, or some a***e from HR, not someone the candidate would have to work with on a day-by-day basis.

@JaneDoe "without notifying of the possibility beforehand " you may have an ictus tomorrow, please notify your employer.

@EarlGrey yes, thanks for the confirmation- I originally worded it as a statement, I think a mod misunderstood and changed it to a question. But great to confirm this is common in industry and not just academia.

@gnasher729 In tech we call that garbage in, garbage out. Why would you expect an honest answer to a dishonest question (which, being illegal, certainly is!)

You didn't mention what kind of PhD you have, if you work in a lab there are additional aspects to consider. When you're pregnant you cannot perform certain types of work in the lab, and for some labs you might not even be able to work in them at all due to safety reasons. So in your own interest, and the interest of your child you should tell your employer about the pregnancy if you would otherwise have to work with dangerous chemicals.

@gnasher729 - while it may be illegal to ask if the applicant is pregnant, it is likely to be quite obvious (1-2 months from due date) that they actually are pregnant. This may be a bit of a moot point. Shouldn't stop the OP from applying, but they will realise she is pregnant during interview (and this shouldn't matter).

@Paddy The kind of video interviews I know makes it really hard to see if someone is pregnant unless they get up in the middle of the interview. Or can you see some pregnancy signs just from the shoulders up?

Excellent point @MadScientist, no lab work here so the only thing preventing me from working is sleep deprivation related to screaming potato. And very likely that pregnancy can be unnoticed during video conversations- I had a colleague I didn't know was pregnant until I met her in person, at 6 months (pandemic times). If I hadn't met for lunch I would have no idea she was pregnant until maternity leave, completely unnoticeable in the many video calls we were on.

@MadScientist That's not how things work. It's on the employer to ask for some information and to provide the legal reasons backing that request (which might be illegal in general, but allowed in some circumstances). Employee doesn't proactively share that information. If something bad happens, it's on the employer of course.

@nicola when you're pregnant you really, really don't want to work with teratogenic substances. It is in your own interest to inform your employer about the pregnancy if you work in a field where that kind of chemical is used. There are probably other activities as well that are not recommended to be performed by pregnant woman. In those cases informing your employer will make sure that your workplace is safe for you.

@MadScientist In most EU countries, it's regulated by law if a work environment is allowed to pregnant women and if it's not, the employer has the obligation to inform the employee. It's not the other way around. You go to jail if you work with some chemicals and let pregnant women enter the lab. I know it might be strange for some non-EU backgrounds, but in EU workers are really protected by law and it's not on them to discover whether they risk their health by going to the workplace.

@nicola the typical process for this is that after you announce that you're pregnant the person responsible for lab safety talks to you about your specific job duties and evaluates all of them on whether you can still perform them or if you need additional safety measures. There are areas that are too dangerous for pregnant woman in general, but it often can be rather specific which parts are problematic and you can work around those. My experience is specifically in Germany, which is also the country this question is about.