Guide
Maternity leave and pay
How to handle statutory maternity leave and Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) for the 2026/27 tax year. Paternity, adoption, and shared parental leave are covered in dedicated guides linked from this page.
You must pay Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) to eligible employees who are having a baby. Check if they qualify, pay SMP through payroll, and reclaim the amount from HMRC. Employees can take up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, with some paid and some unpaid.
- Pay SMP to eligible employees for up to 39 weeks
- Employees get 90% of pay for 6 weeks, then £194.32/week for 33 weeks (2026/27)
- Employees must work for you for 26 weeks by the 15th week before birth
- Give form SMP1 within 7 days if employee does not qualify
- Recover SMP from HMRC by reducing PAYE payments
- Small employers can reclaim 103% of SMP
- Employees can take up to 52 weeks of leave (26 paid, 26 unpaid)
- Employees must take at least 2 weeks off after birth (4 if factory work)
- Keep in touch days are optional during leave
- Employees have the right to return to the same job after leave
This guide covers statutory maternity leave and Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) for employees who are having a baby. As an employer, you must understand the entitlement so you can run payroll correctly, protect the employee's job, and avoid tribunal claims.
Paternity, adoption, and shared parental leave have their own rules and dedicated guides — see the links at the end of each section below.
Maternity leave
All pregnant employees are entitled to up to 52 weeks of statutory maternity leave, regardless of length of service. There is no qualifying period for the leave itself. The 52 weeks split into:
- Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML): the first 26 weeks
- Additional Maternity Leave (AML): the following 26 weeks
The employee does not need to take all 52 weeks, but must take a minimum of 2 weeks after the birth (4 weeks if she works in a factory). This is the compulsory maternity leave period.
Maternity leave can start on any day from 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. If the baby arrives early, leave starts automatically on the day after the birth.
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)
SMP is paid for up to 39 weeks. The remaining 13 weeks of the 52-week leave entitlement are unpaid. To qualify for SMP, the employee must:
- Have been continuously employed by you for at least 26 weeks by the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth (the 'qualifying week')
- Have average weekly earnings at or above the Lower Earnings Limit (£125 per week for 2026/27), calculated over the 8 weeks (or 2 months) ending with the last normal payday on or before the Saturday of the qualifying week
- Give at least 28 days' notice of the date she wants SMP to start (or as soon as reasonably practicable)
- Provide medical evidence of pregnancy — usually a MATB1 certificate issued by a midwife or doctor from 20 weeks of pregnancy
If the employee does not qualify for SMP, you must give her form SMP1 within 7 days of making your decision, explaining why. She may be able to claim Maternity Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions instead.
SMP is paid at 90% of average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, then £194.32 per week or 90% of average weekly earnings (whichever is lower) for the remaining 33 weeks (2026/27 rates).
Recovering SMP from HMRC
You pay SMP through your payroll and recover the cost by deducting it from your HMRC PAYE payments. The recovery rate depends on whether you qualify for Small Employers' Relief.
Keeping in touch (KIT) days
Employees on maternity leave can work a limited number of keeping in touch (KIT) days without bringing their leave or pay to an end. KIT days are voluntary on both sides — neither you nor the employee can insist on them. The same mechanism applies to adoption leave (KIT days) and shared parental leave (SPLIT days), with different limits.
Right to return after maternity leave
After Ordinary Maternity Leave, the employee has the right to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions.
After Additional Maternity Leave, you must offer her the same job. If that is not reasonably practicable, you must offer a suitable alternative role on terms no less favourable.
All contractual terms continue during maternity leave except for remuneration. The employee retains benefits such as private medical insurance, employer pension contributions, car allowance and gym membership throughout Ordinary Maternity Leave. During Additional Maternity Leave, only certain terms continue (notice period, redundancy rights, disciplinary procedures, and the obligation of good faith).
Statutory holiday (5.6 weeks) and any contractual holiday continue to accrue throughout the full 52 weeks, including the unpaid portion. Holiday that cannot be taken in the current leave year because of maternity leave can be carried over.
Notification timeline
- Employee to employer: by the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth, the employee must notify you of the pregnancy, the expected week of childbirth, and the date she wants maternity leave to start
- Employer to employee: within 28 days of receiving the notification, you must write to confirm her expected return date
- Changing return date: the employee must give 8 weeks' notice if she wants to return earlier or later than the expected date
Redundancy protection
Since 6 April 2024, under the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023, redundancy protection applies in three stages:
- During pregnancy: from the point the employee notifies you of her pregnancy until maternity leave starts
- During maternity leave
- For 18 months after the birth
During these protected periods, the employee must be offered priority access to any suitable alternative vacancy before other at-risk employees. Failure to do so makes the dismissal automatically unfair. Equivalent protection applies to adoption and shared parental leave — see the dedicated guides for those.
Dismissing an employee because she is pregnant, or for any reason connected with pregnancy or maternity leave, is automatically unfair with no qualifying service required.
Other family leave entitlements
Each of the other family-leave types has its own rules, qualifying tests, notice requirements and (from April 2026) day-one rights. Use the dedicated guides below rather than treating them as variants of maternity leave.
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Confirm SMP eligibility
Check the employee has 26 weeks' continuous service by the end of the qualifying week and that her average weekly earnings reach the Lower Earnings Limit (£125 per week for 2026/27). Use the GOV.UK maternity pay calculator to verify.
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Set up SMP in your payroll
Configure SMP at 90% of AWE for 6 weeks, then £194.32 or 90% (whichever is lower) for 33 weeks. Report payments through RTI and recover the correct percentage via your Employer Payment Summary (EPS).
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Confirm the return date in writing
Within 28 days of receiving the maternity notification, write to confirm the employee's expected return date.
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Review your redundancy procedures
Make sure your at-risk process accounts for the protected period running from notification of pregnancy through to 18 months after birth, with priority access to suitable alternative vacancies.