Statutory Maternity Pay

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is the minimum legal entitlement for employed mothers in the United Kingdom. It provides income during maternity leave, paid by your employer and reclaimed from HMRC. Alongside SMP, a parallel system — Maternity Allowance (MA) — supports self-employed women and those who do not qualify for SMP. Understanding both systems, as well as your leave rights and protections against discrimination, is essential for every expectant mother in the UK. This guide covers all the key facts for 2025/26.

SMP Rates 2025/26

Statutory Maternity Pay is paid for a maximum of 39 weeks. The payment structure is:

Eligibility for SMP

To qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay, you must meet all of the following conditions:

1. Be an employee (not self-employed or a worker without employment status). Directors of their own companies may qualify if they are on the payroll and meet the other criteria.
2. Have worked for the same employer continuously for at least 26 weeks by the end of the qualifying week — the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth (EWC). This is the Saturday of the week your baby is due, minus 15 weeks.
3. Be earning at least £123 per week on average (the Lower Earnings Limit for 2025/26 National Insurance purposes) in the 8 weeks before your qualifying week.
4. Still be pregnant at the 11th week before your due date, or have already given birth.
5. Give your employer at least 28 days' notice of when you want to start your SMP (though if your baby comes early, as soon as possible after birth is sufficient).
6. Provide a MAT B1 form (the maternity certificate issued by your midwife or GP at around 20 weeks of pregnancy, confirming your due date).

Maternity Leave: OML and AML

All employed women are entitled to up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, regardless of how long they have worked for their employer or how many hours they work. Maternity leave is divided into two consecutive periods:

You can start maternity leave up to 11 weeks before your due date (the earliest). Most women start at or after week 36 of pregnancy. Maternity leave begins automatically if you are off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before your due date — it begins on the first day of that absence.

How to Claim SMP

SMP is paid by your employer as part of your normal payroll. Your employer then reclaims it from HMRC. Here is the process:

1. Obtain your MAT B1 form from your midwife or GP at around 20 weeks of pregnancy.
2. Notify your employer in writing at least 28 days before you want SMP to start, including your intended start date, expected due date, and confirmation you intend to take maternity leave.
3. Provide your MAT B1 form to your employer as evidence of your due date.
4. Your employer must confirm your start date and the end of your maternity leave in writing within 28 days of your notification.
5. SMP is paid on your normal paydays starting from your chosen start date. It is taxable and subject to National Insurance contributions in the usual way.

Your employer can reclaim 92% of SMP paid from HMRC. Small employers (those who paid £45,000 or less in Class 1 NI contributions in the previous tax year) can reclaim 103% — the extra 3% is the Small Employers' Relief to cover administrative costs.

If Your Employer Refuses to Pay SMP

If your employer tells you that you do not qualify for SMP, they must give you form SMP1 (the official form explaining why they cannot pay) within 7 days of your request. If you believe this is wrong:

1. Contact HMRC's Employer Helpline to dispute the decision. HMRC can investigate and direct your employer to pay if you qualify.
2. If HMRC agrees you are entitled, your employer will be required to pay, or HMRC may make direct payments in exceptional circumstances.
3. If your employer still refuses, contact ACAS for free early conciliation advice.
4. As a last resort, bring a claim to the Employment Tribunal for unlawful deduction of wages.

Maternity Allowance (Self-Employed)

Maternity Allowance (MA) is a DWP benefit for women who do not qualify for SMP — particularly the self-employed, recent new starters who have not been with one employer for 26 weeks, and those earning just below the LEL.

MA Rates 2025/26

MA Eligibility

• You must have been employed or self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before your baby's due date (the "test period")
• In those 26 weeks, you must have earned at least £30 per week on average in 13 of the 66 weeks (you can pick the best 13 weeks)
• You are not eligible for SMP
• You are in England, Scotland, or Wales (Northern Ireland has a separate system)

MA is claimed from the DWP using form MA1, available at gov.uk or from your local Jobcentre Plus. You can claim from 26 weeks of pregnancy, and payments start from when your maternity leave begins (earliest 11 weeks before due date). MA is not taxable.

Shared Parental Leave and Shared Parental Pay

Shared Parental Leave (SPL) gives parents the flexibility to share maternity leave between them. The scheme works by the mother ending her maternity leave early and "converting" the remaining entitlement into SPL, which the partner can then take.

SPL Key Facts

• Up to 50 weeks of SPL and 37 weeks of Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) can be shared
• ShPP is paid at the same rate as SMP: £184.03/week or 90% of earnings if lower (2025/26)
• SPL can be taken simultaneously by both parents at the same time, or separately in turns
• Leave can be taken as one continuous block or in up to 3 separate blocks
• Both parents must meet their own eligibility criteria (employment and earnings tests)
• Notice must be given at least 8 weeks before each period of SPL

SPL Eligibility

Keeping in Touch (KIT) Days

Keeping in Touch (KIT) days are one of the most useful but often overlooked aspects of maternity leave. KIT days allow you to return to work for up to 10 days during your maternity leave without ending that leave or losing your SMP.

Key points about KIT days:

• Both you and your employer must agree to KIT days — your employer cannot compel you to take them
• You can use KIT days for any work activity: training, meetings, handovers, team events
• Payment for KIT days must be agreed with your employer. Any pay above your SMP for that week means you give up the SMP for that week, but you keep whichever amount is higher
• KIT days do not extend your maternity leave — they are optional days within the leave period
• Equivalent "Shared Parental Leave in Touch" (SPLIT) days work the same way during SPL

Returning to Work Rights

Right to Return to the Same Job

After Ordinary Maternity Leave (first 26 weeks), you have an absolute right to return to exactly the same job on the same terms and conditions. After Additional Maternity Leave (weeks 27-52), you have the right to return to the same job unless it is not reasonably practicable — in which case your employer must offer a suitable alternative on terms and conditions no less favourable.

Flexible Working Request

Since 6 April 2024, all employees have the right to request flexible working from their first day of employment (previously, you needed 26 weeks of service). You can make up to two requests per year. Your employer must consider the request reasonably, consult you before refusing, and give reasons for any refusal. Returning from maternity leave is a common time to make a flexible working request.

Pregnancy and Maternity Discrimination

Pregnancy and maternity are "protected characteristics" under the Equality Act 2010. You are protected from discrimination from the moment you become pregnant until the end of your maternity leave (and in some circumstances beyond). Discrimination includes:

• Being passed over for promotion because you are pregnant
• Being given negative performance reviews during pregnancy or maternity leave
• Being selected for redundancy due to pregnancy or maternity leave
• Being denied opportunities, training, or pay rises during maternity leave
• Harassment related to pregnancy

If you experience pregnancy or maternity discrimination, contact ACAS for free advice or bring a claim to an Employment Tribunal within 3 months of the discriminatory act. There is no cap on compensation for discrimination claims (unlike unfair dismissal), making these claims potentially significant.

NHS Maternity Pay (Agenda for Change)

NHS employees covered by the Agenda for Change (AfC) terms and conditions receive significantly enhanced maternity pay compared to the statutory minimum. The NHS maternity pay schedule (2025/26) is:

NHS Maternity Pay Eligibility Conditions

• Must have 12 months' continuous NHS service by the 11th week before your due date for the full AfC package
• Employees with less than 12 months' NHS service receive only statutory SMP entitlement
• Eligibility for the full package requires informing the employer of pregnancy at least 15 weeks before the due date
• The 3-month return-to-work requirement applies to the enhanced (above SMP) portion only

Frequently Asked Questions