Employees are entitled to up to 52 weeks of statutory maternity leave from day one. Statutory Maternity Pay covers up to 39 weeks at 90% of average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, then the lower of £194.32 or 90% AWE for 33 weeks (SMP rate applies from 5 April 2026). To qualify for SMP, the employee must have 26 weeks' continuous service by the qualifying week and meet the lower earnings limit, which is £129/week for 2026/27. Employers usually reclaim 92% of SMP from HMRC, or 109% under Small Employers' Relief.
Maternity leave and maternity pay are different things
The single most useful idea in this guide is the one most employers miss: maternity leave and statutory maternity pay are separate entitlements with separate rules. An employee can qualify for one without the other. Confusing them is the source of most maternity-related employer mistakes.
You cannot refuse statutory maternity leave where the employee has given the required notice. You can refuse statutory maternity pay only if the employee fails the eligibility tests. If you do refuse SMP, you must give the employee form SMP1 within 7 days of your decision and within 28 days of the SMP request, so they can claim Maternity Allowance instead.
Maternity leave: who qualifies · every employee
Statutory maternity leave is a day-one right for employees under section 71 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, no matter how long they have worked for you, how many hours they do, or how much they earn. Worker status matters: non-employees can have different leave rights, even if they may qualify for some pay-related or health-and-safety protections. The leave is 52 weeks, made up of:
- Ordinary maternity leave · the first 26 weeks
- Additional maternity leave · the next 26 weeks
- Compulsory maternity leave · the first 2 weeks after the birth (4 weeks for factory workers), which the employee cannot waive
The right applies the same to a single birth, twins, or any multiple birth · 52 weeks total, regardless of how many babies. Surrogates have the same maternity rights as anyone else who has given birth. Employees who adopt have a parallel right to statutory adoption leave instead. For adjacent family-leave rules, see our employer guides to paternity leave and neonatal care leave.
Antenatal appointments and pregnancy health and safety
Maternity planning starts before maternity leave begins. Once an employee tells you they are pregnant, they have the right to reasonable paid time off for antenatal appointments advised by a doctor, midwife or health visitor. Except for the first appointment, you can ask for evidence such as an appointment card or certificate, but you should avoid making the process feel hostile or unnecessarily bureaucratic.
You should also review pregnancy health-and-safety risks. GOV.UK says employers should assess risks when the employee tells them they are pregnant, and HSE guidance says employers must carry out an individual risk assessment when a worker informs them in writing that they are pregnant, breastfeeding, or have given birth in the last 6 months.
Statutory Maternity Pay: who qualifies for what
Eligibility for SMP depends on three core tests, all of which must be met. Miss any one and the employee may be able to claim Maternity Allowance instead, which is paid directly by the government.
| Test | What it means |
|---|---|
| Continuous employment | 26 weeks ending with the qualifying week (the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth) |
| Earnings | Average weekly earnings of at least £129 for 2026/27 in the relevant calculation period ending with the last normal payday before the qualifying week |
| Employment status | Classed as employed for tax purposes and on your payroll in the qualifying week |
The qualifying week. The qualifying week is the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth. Because payroll patterns can affect the earnings calculation, use the GOV.UK calculator or payroll software rather than relying on mental arithmetic. Use the GOV.UK maternity calculator if the maths is fiddly · it works backwards from the due date for you.
If the employee meets the leave rules but fails any of the SMP tests · typically because they joined too late for the service test or earn under the lower earnings limit · they keep their maternity leave. Give them form SMP1 within the required deadline so they can claim Maternity Allowance.
SMP rates and worked examples for 2026/27
For 2026/27, statutory maternity pay is £194.32 per week for the capped part of SMP. GOV.UK states that the new SMP weekly rate applies from 5 April 2026; the related employer rates and thresholds apply from 6 April 2026. The structure of the 39-week SMP period is unchanged:
Worked examples using the 2026/27 rates. Average weekly earnings here are gross weekly earnings before tax. The first 6 weeks are always 90% of AWE with no upper cap; the cap only bites from week 7 onwards.
| Annual salary | AWE (approx) | Weeks 1-6 | Weeks 7-39 | Total over 39 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £20,000 | £384.62 | £346.16/wk | £194.32/wk | £8,489.52 |
| £32,000 | £615.38 | £553.84/wk | £194.32/wk | £9,735.60 |
| £50,000 | £961.54 | £865.39/wk | £194.32/wk | £11,604.90 |
| £7,800 (just above threshold) | £150.00 | £135.00/wk | £135.00/wk | £5,265.00 |
Want to avoid spreadsheet mistakes?
Track maternity leave dates, custom leave types, return dates and cover notes in Book Time Off · so SMP, holiday accrual and planning conversations do not live in someone’s inbox or another fragile spreadsheet.
Try Book Time Off freePay rises before or during maternity leave. A pay rise awarded between the start of the relevant 8-week earnings period and the end of maternity leave triggers a recalculation under the Alabaster ruling · you must recalculate AWE as if the rise had been in force throughout the 8-week period and back-pay the SMP shortfall. This is one of the most commonly missed rules in the SMP regime, so keep payroll notes and pay-rise decisions together with the maternity record.
The 15-week notice rule and what to do with it
The notice timeline is fixed by statute and ACAS guidance is clear. Leave notice, pay evidence and the employer's written response are related, but they are not quite the same thing. Treat them as a simple workflow rather than a one-off email.
Employer checklist: what to do and when
Use this as the practical manager workflow. The law matters, but most mistakes happen because dates, documents and conversations are scattered across email, payroll and spreadsheets. If this is already happening in your team, read our guide to managing staff holidays without spreadsheets.
When pregnancy is notified
Confirm the expected week of childbirth, discuss contact preferences, record antenatal appointment handling and start the individual health-and-safety risk assessment.
By the 15-week deadline
Record the intended maternity leave start date and expected week of childbirth. Ask for the MAT B1 once it is available for SMP evidence.
Within 28 days
Write back confirming the maternity leave start date and expected return date, normally assuming the full 52 weeks unless the employee says otherwise.
Before leave starts
Plan cover, agree reasonable contact, decide how KIT days will be requested and paid, and make sure the employee receives vacancy and promotion updates.
During leave
Track KIT days, maintain non-pay benefits, keep holiday accrual visible and include the employee in relevant restructures or redundancy consultation.
Before return
Confirm the return date, discuss accrued holiday, handle any flexible working request properly and record any agreed phased-return plan.
During maternity leave: KIT days, contact, contracts
Two things stay alive throughout maternity leave: the contract of employment, and the right to all non-pay benefits. The employee continues to accrue annual leave, including bank holidays. Holiday cannot usually be taken at the same time as maternity leave, so it is normally taken before leave starts, after maternity leave ends, or carried over where needed. Pension treatment depends on the scheme and the period of paid or unpaid leave. Non-pay contractual benefits usually continue, but check the contract and whether the benefit is genuinely non-remuneration. For the holiday side specifically, see our detailed guide to holiday accrual during maternity leave · it covers carry-over, the 18-month rule, and worked examples. For the broader rules on unused holiday, see annual leave carry-forward rules.
Keeping in touch (KIT) days
After compulsory maternity leave has ended, an employee can do up to 10 agreed days of work during maternity leave without ending their leave or losing SMP. These are called Keeping In Touch (KIT) days. The rules:
- Both sides must agree · you cannot require KIT days, and the employee cannot insist on them
- Any work counts · training, team meetings, conferences, a one-day sprint at month-end
- Part of a day = a full KIT day, so two half-days uses up two of the ten
- Pay should be agreed in writing in advance; many employers pay normal pay for the hours worked and offset SMP where appropriate, but the calculation should be clear before the day is worked
- Do not use KIT days during compulsory maternity leave · the first 2 weeks after birth, or 4 weeks for factory workers
- Working more than 10 KIT days can automatically end statutory maternity leave and pay from that point, so every partial day should be tracked
KIT days are easy to lose track of.
Book Time Off lets you record maternity leave, KIT days, sickness and annual leave in one shared calendar, with notes and approval history kept together.
Start a free trialContact and updates
You must keep the employee informed of significant developments: organisational restructures, redundancy consultations, promotion opportunities, vacancies, training opportunities, and changes that affect their role. Failing to do so can create pregnancy and maternity discrimination risk, especially if the employee misses opportunities or is excluded from consultation. Agree a contact preference (email, phone, when, how often) before leave starts so the employee is not surprised.
Maternity cover
You can hire maternity cover · a fixed-term replacement, an existing employee on secondment, or an agency worker. The replacement's contract must make clear that the role ends when the substantive holder returns. The employee on maternity leave cannot be dismissed simply because cover is easier or because the replacement is preferred. That is a high-risk route to unfair dismissal and pregnancy/maternity discrimination claims.
Redundancy protection and the 18-month rule
This is one of the highest-risk areas for employers, because the protection is broader than many managers realise. Under the extended redundancy protection rules, the protected period can run:
If a genuine redundancy situation arises during this protected window, the affected employee has the right to be offered any suitable alternative vacancy that exists, ahead of other candidates who do not have the same statutory priority. This is not a "we'll consider them like everyone else" rule · it is a priority rule.
Return to work and flexible working requests
Unless the employee gives you 8 weeks' written notice of an earlier or later return date, the assumption is that they will return on the date you confirmed in your initial 28-day letter. They are entitled to return to:
- The same job on the same terms and conditions if returning during ordinary maternity leave (the first 26 weeks)
- The same job, or a suitable alternative on no less favourable terms, if returning during additional maternity leave (weeks 27-52)
The "suitable alternative" rule on return from AML is narrower than it sounds. A different desk in the same office is fine; a materially different role with reduced responsibility is not. Demoting an employee on return · explicitly or in substance · is high-risk for pregnancy and maternity discrimination claims.
Flexible working requests
Since 6 April 2024, flexible working has been a day-one right for all employees, with employees able to make up to two requests in any 12-month period. A returning parent may well make one. You must consult with the employee before refusing, handle the request reasonably, decide within 2 months unless an extension is agreed, and refuse only on one of the statutory business grounds. Refusing a flexible working request from a returning mother without proper consultation, evidence and a statutory business reason can create a significant indirect sex discrimination risk.
Reclaiming SMP from HMRC
Most of the cost of SMP is not borne by the employer. You reclaim from HMRC through your payroll software via the Employment Payment Summary (EPS). The recovery rate depends on your size:
| Employer type | Test | Recovery rate |
|---|---|---|
| Small employer | Total Class 1 NICs in previous tax year ≤ £45,000 | 109% (Small Employers' Relief) |
| Other employers | Total Class 1 NICs in previous tax year > £45,000 | 92% |
Small Employers' Relief allows qualifying employers to recover 100% of SMP plus 9% compensation from 6 April 2026, giving a total recovery of 109%. Other employers can usually reclaim 92%. The long-term statutory cost is often limited once recovery is claimed, but employers still need to plan payroll cash flow and any enhanced contractual maternity pay, which is not recoverable as statutory pay.
To see the exact total SMP cost for a specific salary, the HMRC recovery amount and the net cost to your business, use the maternity pay calculator.
Sample maternity policy clause
Turn the policy into a process.
A maternity policy is only useful if managers can follow it. Use Book Time Off to track leave dates, return dates, custom leave types and team visibility in one place.
Set up your team calendarUse this as a starting point for your handbook. Adapt the enhanced pay terms to whatever your business actually offers, or remove them if you only pay statutory. This is a template clause, not legal advice, so review it against your contract, payroll process and any enhanced family-leave scheme.
1. Right to maternity leave. All pregnant employees are entitled to up to 52 weeks of statutory maternity leave from day one of employment, regardless of length of service or hours worked. The first 26 weeks are Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML) and the next 26 weeks are Additional Maternity Leave (AML). Employees must take a minimum of 2 weeks' compulsory leave after the birth (4 weeks if working in a factory).
2. Notice. The employee must tell us they are pregnant, the expected week of childbirth and the date they intend to start maternity leave at least 15 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. For SMP, we will ask for the MAT B1 certificate once it is available. We will confirm the leave start and end dates in writing within 28 days. To change the return date, the employee must give 8 weeks' written notice.
3. Statutory Maternity Pay. Eligible employees receive SMP for up to 39 weeks: 90% of average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, then the lower of the statutory weekly rate or 90% of AWE for the next 33 weeks. SMP eligibility requires 26 weeks' continuous service ending with the qualifying week and average weekly earnings of at least the statutory threshold. Employees who do not qualify will be issued form SMP1 to claim Maternity Allowance.
4. Enhanced maternity pay. [Optional · replace with your actual offer, e.g. "Employees with 12 months' service receive [X] weeks at full pay followed by [Y] weeks at half pay plus SMP, then SMP only."]
5. Annual leave. Statutory and contractual annual leave continues to accrue throughout maternity leave, including bank holidays. Holiday cannot be taken at the same time as maternity leave. Where the employee is unable to take annual leave because of maternity leave, untaken statutory leave will be carried over to the next leave year.
6. KIT days. After compulsory maternity leave has ended, the employee may, by mutual agreement, do up to 10 Keeping in Touch days during maternity leave without ending their leave or SMP. Pay for KIT days will be agreed in writing in advance.
7. Redundancy protection. If a redundancy situation arises during pregnancy, maternity leave or the extended protected period after maternity leave, the employee will be offered any suitable alternative vacancy ahead of candidates who do not have the same statutory priority.
8. Return to work. The employee has the right to return to the same job on the same terms after OML, and to the same job (or a suitable alternative on no less favourable terms) after AML. Flexible working requests will be considered in line with the company's flexible working policy.
For the broader leave-policy framework that this clause sits inside, see our guide to writing a UK leave policy, which includes a downloadable Word template covering all leave types. To turn the policy into day-to-day process, pair it with our guides to managing staff holidays without spreadsheets, statutory sick pay and annual leave entitlement calculations.