Maternity pay starts as soon as your employee starts maternity leave.
Pay set out in the employment contract
The employee’s contract should state:
- how much pay they get when on maternity leave
- how long they get this pay for
Pay set out in the employment contract is known as ‘enhanced’ or ‘contractual’ maternity pay, if it’s above the legal minimum for maternity pay.
Offering enhanced maternity pay can help your business attract and keep the best employees.
The legal minimum for maternity pay
If your business does not offer enhanced maternity pay, it must pay the following.
During the first 6 weeks of maternity leave
Pay them 90% of their average weekly earnings (before tax).
During the next 33 weeks of maternity leave
Pay whichever of these is lower:
- 90% of their average weekly earnings (before tax)
- Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) – currently £148.68 a week
Unless the contract says otherwise, you do not have to provide maternity pay after this period has ended.
Eligibility
An employee is eligible for SMP if both of the following apply:
- they’ve worked continuously for your business for at least 26 weeks, ending with the 15th week before the week the baby is due
- their average weekly earnings are at least £118 a week, up to the end of the 15th week before the baby is due
If an employer offers enhanced maternity pay, it must always be higher than SMP.
Calculating Statutory Maternity Pay
You can use the maternity pay calculator on GOV.UK.
If they’re not entitled to Statutory Maternity Pay
If the employee is not entitled to SMP, you must give them the ‘SMP1’ form within 7 days of your decision.
You can find more information about the SMP1 form on GOV.UK.
Maternity Allowance
A pregnant employee might be eligible for Maternity Allowance, if they cannot get enhanced maternity pay or SMP.
Maternity Allowance is paid by the government. It lasts for up to 39 weeks.
Find out more about Maternity Allowance on GOV.UK.
Keeping records
You must keep records of SMP payments. You can find out more about:
Repayment if they do not return to work after maternity leave
If they do not return to work after maternity leave, the employee might have to repay maternity pay depending on the type of pay and what their contract says.
They do not return to work and have taken Statutory Maternity Pay
The employee does not need to repay any SMP they’ve taken.
They do not return to work and have taken enhanced maternity pay
The employee must repay some or all of their enhanced maternity pay if the written terms of their employment say so.
If this money does need to be repaid:
- the written terms must be clear about the circumstances
- you should remind the employee informally about this repayment (such in any regular meetings you have with them) before they start getting this money
Questions about Statutory Maternity Pay
You can call the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) enquiry line if:
- you and your employee disagree about how much SMP they should get, or for how long
- you cannot pay it (for example, because you’re insolvent)
The law on discrimination
It’s against the law to treat an employee unfairly because of maternity pay they have taken or plan to take.
Maternity leave
Employees are entitled to 52 weeks’ maternity leave.
They have this right from the day they start the job.
Changing the maternity leave start date
Your employee must give you 28 days’ notice if they want to change their maternity leave start date. If it’s shorter notice, the new date must be agreed by both of you.
If they do not want to take all their leave
Employees do not have to take their full maternity leave. But they must take at least the first 2 weeks following the birth. This period is known as compulsory maternity leave.
If they work in a factory, they must take at least the first 4 weeks following the birth.
You must not discourage the employee from taking all their maternity leave.
4 weeks before the baby is due
If the employee is off work because of a pregnancy-related illness within 4 weeks of the date the baby is due, maternity leave begins automatically. This is unless you and the employee agree together to delay it (for example, for health and safety reasons).
Once maternity leave starts, you must pay them maternity pay instead of sick pay.
If the baby arrives early or unexpectedly
If the baby arrives early, maternity leave and pay starts on the day after the birth.
Your workplace might have a policy about who must inform you of the birth and how quickly.
If the baby’s arrival is unexpected or traumatic, you might be told about it from someone other than the employee (for example, a member of their family). Even if your workplace has a policy about who should contact you, it’s a good idea to be flexible and understanding in these circumstances.
If the baby is late and your employee planned to take leave from a specific date
If the baby is late and your employee gave you a specific date they wanted maternity leave to start, they can still start the leave from that date.
They just need to tell you the date they give birth, so that they start their compulsory maternity leave from then.
If the baby is late and your employee planned to start leave the day after the birth
If your employee told you they wanted to start maternity leave the day after the birth, you do not need to change anything.
If they want to start their maternity leave early, they must give you 28 days’ notice of the new start date. If they have a good reason not to give this notice (for example, it’s late in the pregnancy), you would both need to agree this date.
If there’s a miscarriage, stillbirth or the baby dies soon after birth
The employee still has their maternity leave and pay rights if the baby:
- is stillborn after the 24th week of pregnancy
- dies soon after birth
You should be as understanding and supportive as possible in these circumstances.
If you need to discuss work-related matters with the employee, you could arrange with someone else (for example, a friend or family member):
- when this communication happens
- how it happens (for example, whether any urgent communication can be emailed to a friend or family member for a limited time)
You could also offer more time off or a phased return to work.
The law on discrimination
It’s against the law to treat an employee unfairly because of maternity leave they take, or plan to take.
Shared Parental Leave
The pregnant employee and their partner might be able to use Shared Parental Leave (SPL). SPL allows leave to be used more flexibly between the pregnant employee and their partner.
This means the pregnant employee could end maternity leave early.
The pregnant employee must still take at least 2 weeks’ maternity leave after the baby is born.
Holiday leave
Employees build up (‘accrue’) paid holiday as normal during maternity leave. This includes bank holidays.
Holiday leave and maternity leave cannot be taken at the same time.
It’s a good idea to:
- discuss with your employee whether they’ll take their holiday leave before or after maternity leave
- keep an up-to-date note or other record of what’s agreed
Redundancy
If you need to make the employee redundant when they’re pregnant or on maternity leave, you must:
- check the redundancy is genuine and necessary
- ensure you consult and keeps in touch
- use redundancy selection criteria that do not discriminate
- consider alternative work
The pregnancy or maternity must not be part of the reason to make them redundant – you might be breaking discrimination law if it is.
Dismissing them
If your employee is dismissed while pregnant (for example, as a result of disciplinary action), you must give them the reasons in writing.
Pregnancy or maternity is never a valid reason to dismiss someone. You could be breaking discrimination law if you do this.
