Maternity leave and pay
This information is aimed at women who are employees. If you are self-employed or a “worker”, your rights will be different to those of a full employee.
Maternity leave and pay – for babies due pre-April 1st 2007
You are entitled to 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave (OML), regardless of your length of service or the number of hours you work, providing you give the correct notice. If you have worked for your employer for 26 weeks by the beginning of the 14th week before your baby is due you are entitled to a further 26 weeks of Additional Maternity Leave (AML). Your maternity leave is divided into 26 weeks OML and 26 weeks AML and your rights are different during each period of leave. If your baby is born before the date you intended to commence your Ordinary Maternity Leave, it will be automatically triggered on the following day.
You are entitled to 26 weeks of Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), provided you have completed 26 weeks continuous service with your employer ending with the qualifying week – that is, the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth. 90% of your average earnings for the first six weeks. For the remaining 20 weeks, that figure or £108.85 a week - whichever is the lower amount.
Maternity leave and pay – for babies due post-April 1st 2007
You are entitled to 52 weeks maternity leave, regardless of length of service or the number of hours you work, providing you give the correct notice. Your maternity leave is still divided into 26 weeks OML and 26 weeks AML and your rights are still different during each period of leave. If your baby is born before the date you intended to commence your Ordinary Maternity Leave, it will be automatically triggered on the following day.
You are entitled to 39 weeks of SMP, provided you have completed 26 weeks continuous service with your employer ending with the qualifying week – that is, the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth. 90% of salary for six weeks, and then currently a maximum of £112.75 a week for another 33 weeks.
There is only one period of leave available even for multiple births.
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is paid by your employer and they claim it back from the Inland Revenue and Customs (HMRC). You are eligible for SMP if you are paid via Pay As You Earn (PAYE) with tax and National Insurance deducted by your employer, but there are qualifying conditions. If you are eligible, then SMP is paid, even if you do not intend to return to work and you cannot be asked to repay it. If you receive extra contractual maternity pay you can only be asked to repay it if it is stated in your contract or agreed with your employer. SMP is treated as earnings and is therefore subject to tax and national insurance. Payment of SMP cannot start prior to the 11th week before the Estimated Week of Childbirth (EWC). SMP can start from any day of the week in accordance with the date you start your maternity leave. You will receive any SMP due in addition to any other payments offered by your employer such as OMP.
Occupational Maternity Pay (OMP)
This is offered by some employers and usually has to be paid back if you don't return to your job for a length of time, specified by your employer. It is often offset by any SMP or Maternity Allowance payments to which you are entitled, with the exception of the standard rate SMP which is paid in addition to OMP. However, the sum of the OMP and SMP usually cannot exceed your normal full pay in any week. In some cases, if you have the required continuous service, but have not paid sufficient National Insurance contributions to qualify for SMP you may receive the full OMP entitlements. Your contract should state the conditions for any OMP entitlement.
Service
To qualify for SMP you must have 26 weeks continuous service by the end of the 15th week before your baby is due, irrespective of the number of hours worked. This roughly means that as long as you started the job before you became pregnant, and you have worked for at least a day or part of a day in each week since then, you will meet the service requirement. Maternity weeks are from Sunday to Saturday.
Not all breaks from employment will break your continuous service. Breaks where you were on annual leave, sick leave, parental leave or taking time off for dependants will not break your continuous service. If you leave your job or are dismissed after the 15th week before your baby is due, you will still be entitled to SMP.
Earnings
SMP is calculated on the basis of the money received during the 8 weeks up to and including the 15th week before the week in which the baby is due. A week’s pay will be the weekly average earnings over that 8-week period. If a pay rise is awarded from the start of that 8 week period up to the end of the maternity leave period, the maternity pay would be adjusted with immediate effect. Your average weekly earnings in the 8 weeks up to and including the qualifying week must have been at least equal to the lower earnings limit (the level at which you start paying National Insurance Contributions) currently £87. Pay can include holiday pay, bonuses, overtime, sick pay and any previous periods of SMP but not Maternity Allowance.
Pay rises after the calculation period
If you are given a pay rise at any time between the end of your calculation period and the end of your maternity leave, even if it is not backdated, you are treated as having received it during the calculation period and your SMP should be recalculated so that you receive a backdated increase.
MAT B1
You will receive the MAT B1 certificate from your midwife or medical practitioner. It is the written proof that you are pregnant and confirms your EWC and due date. It is common for employers to require you to have passed your MAT B1 certificate to the Human Resource Department at least 21 days before your Maternity Leave is due to start. If you do not submit your MAT B1 certificate they will be unable to pay you any maternity pay. If the certificate is received less than 21 days prior to your commencing leave then your maternity pay may be delayed.
Notice
You will usually be required to give the appropriate notice before receiving any Maternity or Paternity Leave or Pay. Currently you must tell your employer by the 15th week before your baby is due. See the section Telling Your Employer for a sample notice.
Maternity Allowance
Your employer needs to tell you if you don’t qualify for SMP by giving you form SMP1. You can take the form to JobCentre Plus to claim Maternity Allowance (MA) instead. MA is paid for 39 weeks at the lower of a flat weekly rate or a weekly rate equal to 90 per cent of your average earnings, if that is less.
If you disagree with your employer’s decision about your entitlement to maternity leave or pay, and you cannot resolve this with your employer within 4 weeks of giving notice, you can ask HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for a decision. Contact your local tax office for details of how to do this. There may be other sources of qualified advice, for example, a Citizens Advice Bureau or your trade union.
Miscarriages and Stillbirths
Under the law, if your baby is born dead before the end of the 24th week of pregnancy, it is called a miscarriage. If your baby is born dead after the 24th week of pregnancy it is called a stillbirth.
Women who have miscarriages are not entitled to their maternity rights. Women who have stillbirths have all the rights they would have had had their baby been born alive.
If your baby is born alive at any stage of the pregnancy, even if he or she dies an instant later, you are entitled to all your maternity rights. You can also claim Child Benefit and Tax Credits for your baby for up to eight weeks after your baby’s death.
While we try to ensure that all information is correct and up to date, please always check with the appropriate authority.
The information in this feature is intended for
educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the
health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a
doctor or other healthcare professional.
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Last Modified: 12/06/2008