The concept of the effective stiffness of a unidirectional layer with intralaminar cracks is revisited performing 3-D FEM parametric analysis of symmetric and balanced laminates with damaged 90-layer. The effective stiffness of the damaged layer is obtained from the difference between damaged and undamaged laminate stiffness. The effective longitudinal modulus and Poisson's ratio of the layer are equal to their initial values. A very simple expression for the effective transverse modulus change with normalized crack density has sufficient accuracy and generality to be used in laminate theory to predict macroscopic elastic property change with crack density in laminates with very different lay-ups and made of different UD composites.