The ultimate employer guide to UK statutory maternity pay and leave

According to a Department for Business & Trade report, public sector employers are significantly more likely to offer employees enhanced maternity pay. And for good reason: Offering an enhanced maternity pay policy can help your business attract and retain top talent.

If your business doesn’t offer enhanced benefits, you must pay eligible employees statutory maternity pay, which is the legal minimum amount. Statutory maternity pay can help ease any financial worries for employees planning to take time off work before and after childbirth. Failure to provide employees the minimum maternity allowance in the UK could result in fines from HMRC.

Read on as we cover the essential UK statutory maternity pay and leave laws your business needs to be aware of to help you create an inclusive and compliant workplace.

What is statutory maternity leave, and how long is it?

Statutory maternity leave is a legal right provided by the UK government that allows eligible employees to take up to 52 weeks off to give birth, recover and care for their new child. Statutory maternity leave is made up of:

• 26 weeks of ordinary maternity leave (the first 26 weeks)
• 26 weeks of additional maternity leave (the last 26 weeks)

Employees are entitled to take statutory maternity leave 11 weeks before their expected delivery date, unless the baby arrives early.

What is statutory maternity pay?

Statutory maternity pay (SMP) is a regular payment made to employees by their employer during maternity leave, replacing their usual pay. Payments can be made for up to 39 weeks to help cover statutory maternity leave before and after the birth of their baby.

The first six weeks of SMP cover 90% of an employee’s average weekly earnings, before tax. During the last 33 weeks, employees will either be paid £187.18 per week, or 90% of their average weekly earnings (whichever is the lower).

Some employees may have different rules for entitlement. These include, but aren’t limited to:

• Agency workers must be paid SMP if you deduct PAYE tax and Class 1 NICs from their earnings, and if they satisfy qualifying conditions.
• Agricultural workers who aren’t covered by the Agricultural Wages Board are eligible if they meet qualifying conditions.
• Casual employees must also be paid SMP if you deduct PAYE tax and Class 1 NICs from their earnings, providing they qualify.
• Mariners are entitled to SMP if your business is in the UK and they’re on a home-trade ship.
• NHS workers—workers with split contracts between Strategic Health Authorities and NHS trusts—can choose to add their earnings together to work out their average weekly maternity pay.

Because statutory maternity pay counts as earnings, payments are subject to tax and National Insurance.

Maternity pay considerations

As an employer, there are some additional things to consider to ensure you are offering your employees what they need to comfortably take leave for pregnancy-related appointments and time off once the baby arrives.

Paid time off for appointments

Employees who are entitled to maternity leave have a right to take paid time off for antenatal appointments recommended by their doctor, nurse or midwife.

Employees should receive their usual pay when they take time off to attend an appointment and aren’t required to work extra to make up the time away.

If the baby arrives early

If an employee’s baby arrives early, maternity leave will start the day after the baby is born. Employees must supply their baby’s birth certificate or a signed document from their doctor or midwife confirming the baby’s birth date. You’ll then have to write to the employee confirming the new end date for their leave.

For premature births (when the baby arrives 15 weeks or more before the expected date), employers can either:

• Use payroll software to calculate statutory maternity pay
• Work out SMP manually.

If the baby passes away

Employees are still entitled to statutory maternity pay and leave if the baby:

• is stillborn after 24 weeks gestation
• passes away after birth.

What is maternity allowance?

Maternity allowance is a separate payment that UK employees could get if they are employed but not eligible for statutory maternity pay. Employees could also get Maternity Allowance if they:

• are self-employed
• are no longer working
• carry out unpaid work for the business of their spouse or civil partner.

Employees can receive the maternity allowance for up to 39 weeks. Payments can be made any time beginning 11 weeks before their baby is due til the day after their baby is born.

Statutory maternity pay eligibility

Not all employees who are eligible for maternity leave also get statutory maternity pay. Individuals who are legally classed employees are eligible for statutory maternity pay if they:

• have worked for you for a minimum of 26 weeks, ending 15 weeks before the due date
• earn below £125 a week, up to the end of 15 weeks before the due date.

Individuals who are legally classed as workers may also be eligible to receive statutory maternity pay.

If employees do not qualify for SMP, you must give them an SMP1 form within seven days of making a decision.

How to calculate employee statutory maternity pay

The gov.uk maternity pay calculator is a handy tool you can use to calculate employee maternity pay. Before getting started, make sure you have the following to hand:

• The baby’s due date
• Details about the employee’s salary.

Then, follow these steps below:

1. Enter the baby’s due date in the calculator
2. Enter the date the employee would like their leave to begin
3. Answer a couple of questions about the employee’s contract, normal payday, pay schedule and total earnings
4. Enter how you’d like the employee’s statutory maternity pay calculated, either weekly or based on their usual pay dates
5. Enter when in the month the employee is paid, followed by the exact date.

How to claim maternity pay from HMRC

What can employers reclaim?

Employers can usually reclaim up to 92% of employees’

• statutory maternity pay
• statutory paternity pay
• statutory adoption pay.

If your business is eligible for Small Employer’s Relief, you can reclaim up to 108.5%.

How to reclaim

1. Use payroll software to work out how much you’ll get back
2. Include the payments you want to reclaim in an employer payment summary to HMRC.

If you are unable to set off payments against the current year’s liabilities, you can write to the PAYE Employer Office to request a repayment. For further details, please refer to the dedicated statutory pay government help page.

Planning for maternity leave

Planning for maternity leave can help employees and employers prepare for important changes at work. Here are a few things to consider:

Communication methods

As an employer, it’s your responsibility to keep employees updated about important changes that might affect them, such as training and promotions. As such, you’ll need to arrange how you plan to keep in touch with them during maternity leave. For example, with regular check-ins over phone or email.

KIT days

One way to keep in touch with employees is through regular KIT days—or ‘keeping in touch’ days. You can schedule up to 10 KIT days while an employee is still on leave. If they work more than 10 KIT days, their maternity leave and pay will end.

Returning to work

You’ll need to prepare for when employees return to work, which includes understanding their legal rights. For example, their rights when taking time off for emergencies and providing somewhere suitable for them to rest if they’re breastfeeding.

Maternity cover

You can dedicate or hire another employee to cover for someone while they’re on maternity leave. This is known as ‘maternity cover’. However, you must let the employee filling the position know what will happen when their role ends.

Employee handovers

Ask employees to write up a handover before they are due to head on maternity leave. This can include information about who to contact in their absence and updates on ongoing projects, for example.

Statutory maternity pay and leave FAQs

What is statutory paternity pay?

Statutory Paternity Pay is a payment designed to support fathers-to-be or partners of someone who is pregnant, adopting a child, or having a baby through surrogacy. This includes same-sex partnerships. Statutory Paternity Pay can be paid alongside Paternity Leave, though, in some cases, individuals may not get both leave and pay.

What is shared parental leave?

Shared Parental Leave enables eligible parents to take up to 50 weeks of leave between them. The exact amount of Shared Parental Leave parents are entitled to will depend on how much maternity leave the birth parent has taken, or how much adoption leave the primary adopter has taken.

What maternity benefits are there for the self-employed?

Employees who have been registered as self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before their baby is due are entitled to Maternity Allowance in the UK. The amount of Maternity Allowance for the self-employed can vary from £27 to £187.18 a week, for up to 39 weeks.