Maternity Leave and Pay in the UK, Explained Simply

Maternity money is one of the most-searched and worst-explained topics in UK parenting. Here is the plain-English version. Rates change every April — we quote the live 2026/27 figures with a source and a checked date, and we still tell you to confirm them on gov.uk before you budget.

Should you use this guide or just ask HR?

Use this guide to understand the statutory floor and the deadlines. Use HR (or your contract) for anything above that floor. Statutory Maternity Pay is the legal minimum; occupational maternity pay is a workplace benefit that can be clawed back if you do not return. The two get mixed up constantly, which is how people under-claim or over-promise.

If you are self-employed, skip the SMP sections and go to Maternity Allowance. If you are on a zero-hours contract, you may still qualify for SMP — the test is earnings and continuity, not the word "employee" on a job ad. When in doubt, run the numbers through our maternity pay calculator and then read your contract.

How long is maternity leave in the UK?

Every employee is entitled to up to 52 weeks of maternity leave from day one of a job — there is no minimum service requirement for the leave itself. It splits into 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave and 26 weeks of Additional Maternity Leave. You must take at least 2 weeks after birth (4 if you work in a factory).

Leave and pay are different clocks. You can take 52 weeks off and only be paid for 39 of them. The final 13 weeks are unpaid unless your employer offers more. Returning early needs 8 weeks' written notice.

How much is Statutory Maternity Pay in 2026/27?

SMP pays for 39 weeks, and it does have qualifying conditions. Broadly, you need to have worked for your employer for at least 26 weeks by the end of the 15th week before your due date, and earn at or above the Lower Earnings Limit of £129 a week.

For 2026/27 (from 5 April 2026 for SMP):

• Weeks 1–6: 90% of your average weekly earnings, uncapped
• Weeks 7–39: £194.32 a week, or 90% of average earnings if that is lower

Source: HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 and GOV.UK maternity pay, checked 12 August 2026. Our maternity pay calculator runs this formula on your own pay.

SMP is taxable and paid the same way as wages. Many employers pay more than statutory for some of the 39 weeks — always check the contract, because occupational schemes vary enormously and often include a return-to-work clawback.

What if you do not qualify for SMP?

If you are self-employed, recently changed jobs, or earn below the Lower Earnings Limit, Maternity Allowance from the DWP is the fallback. It also runs up to 39 weeks and the standard rate mirrors the SMP flat rate (£194.32 in 2026/27, or 90% of earnings if lower). You claim it yourself with form MA1 and your MATB1 certificate — it is not automatic.

Paying Class 2 National Insurance as a self-employed person affects the Maternity Allowance rate. The GOV.UK Maternity Allowance page is the source of truth for the work-and-earnings tests (Maternity Allowance, checked 12 August 2026).

What is Shared Parental Leave — and who is it actually for?

You can convert unused maternity leave and pay into Shared Parental Leave (SPL), splitting up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay between partners, taken together or in turns. Statutory Shared Parental Pay is the same flat weekly rate as SMP after week 6 — £194.32 or 90% of earnings, whichever is lower, in 2026/27.

SPL is for families where the other parent wants real time at home and both employers will process the paperwork. It is not a pay rise. Each parent gives their own employer 8 weeks' notice. If the paperwork looks worse than the time you would gain, skip it.

Which deadlines catch people out?

• Tell your employer by the 15th week before your due date (your MATB1 is the evidence). Telling them earlier unlocks paid time off for antenatal appointments and a workplace risk assessment.
• SMP starts automatically if you are off sick with a pregnancy-related illness in the last 4 weeks before the baby is due.
• Keeping in Touch (KIT) days: you can work up to 10 days during leave without ending it — agree the pay rate in writing first.
• Returning early needs 8 weeks' notice.
• MATB1 is issued from around week 20. Without it, payroll cannot start SMP.

Who should skip the statutory maths?

Anyone on a documented occupational scheme that pays full pay for a set number of weeks: your number is in the contract, not in this table. Still obey the notice deadlines — occupational pay sits on top of statutory leave, it does not replace the legal clock.

Anyone outside the UK system: this page is Great Britain / Northern Ireland statutory pay. Do not use these figures for another country's leave.

For the wider money picture — budgeting the drop to statutory pay, how maternity pay interacts with benefits and tax — MoneyGuide's family finance guides pick up where the maternity rules end. For the return itself, see returning to work after maternity leave.