Employment & Pay19 October 2026

Maternity Pay 2026/27: SMP, Enhanced Pay and Planning Your Leave Finances

Written and reviewed by, LLM (UK), CFP®·Published

Maternity Pay 2026/27: SMP, Enhanced Pay and Planning Your Leave Finances

Statutory Maternity Pay replaces 90% of your earnings for six weeks, then drops to a flat £194.32 a week for the next 33. For someone on an average salary that is a fall of more than two thirds in gross income for most of the leave, and nothing at all for the final 13 weeks if you take the full year.

The drop is predictable, so it can be planned. This guide runs from telling your employer to your first payslip back, with the money decisions at each stage.

Try it yourself: the Maternity Pay Calculator works out your SMP or enhanced maternity pay week by week from your due date and earnings, and estimates your take-home over the year.

The timeline, with the dates that matter

Everything keys off your expected week of childbirth (EWC), the Sunday to Saturday week containing your due date. Taking a due date of 15 March 2027 as an example:

Milestone Rule Example (due 15 March 2027)
Started job 26 weeks' service by the qualifying week By about 7 June 2026
Qualifying week 15th week before the EWC 29 November to 5 December 2026
Tell your employer At least 15 weeks before the due date By 30 November 2026
Earliest leave start 11 weeks before the EWC 27 December 2026
Compulsory leave 2 weeks after birth (4 in a factory) From the birth
SMP ends 39 weeks after it starts
Leave ends 52 weeks after it starts

You must tell your employer when the baby is due and when you want leave to start, and give at least 28 days' notice of when you want SMP to begin, with proof of pregnancy such as a MATB1 (your midwife or doctor can issue it from 20 weeks before the due date). Your employer must confirm your leave dates and SMP in writing within 28 days. If you are off with a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before your due week, leave starts automatically, so plan any holiday you want to use before then.

To qualify for SMP you also need average weekly earnings of at least £129 (the Lower Earnings Limit) in the 8-week reference period. If you do not qualify, check Maternity Allowance: you need to have earned at least £30 a week in 13 of the 66 weeks before your due week, and it pays up to 39 weeks at £194.32 or 90% of earnings, if lower.

Worked example: what Sophie actually receives

Sophie earns £36,000, about £692.31 a week.

  • Weeks 1 to 6: 90% of earnings, £623.08 a week, £3,738.46 in total.
  • Weeks 7 to 39: £194.32 a week, £6,412.56 in total.
  • Weeks 40 to 52: unpaid.

Her SMP totals £10,151.02, against £36,000 of normal salary. Over the full 52 weeks, the calculator estimates her take-home at about £9,968, compared with £29,440 at work: a gap of almost £19,500.

Her employer offers an enhanced scheme: 6 weeks' full pay, then 12 weeks at half pay plus SMP (£540.47 a week), then SMP alone. That raises her leave pay to £14,720.25, of which £4,569.23 is the employer's top-up. If she returns after 39 weeks rather than 52, her take-home over the year rises to about £20,519, still around £8,900 short of a normal year.

Read the scheme's small print

Many enhanced schemes require you to return for a set period or repay the employer's top-up. Before relying on it, find out exactly what you would owe if you did not go back.

Using KIT days and Shared Parental Leave

You can work up to 10 keeping in touch (KIT) days during maternity leave without ending it. They are optional for both sides and the pay is agreed with your employer, so ask for your normal day rate: ten days at full pay on top of SMP adds meaningfully to a thin month.

Shared Parental Leave lets you end maternity leave early and share up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay with your partner. If you return after 26 weeks, 26 weeks of leave and 13 weeks of Statutory Shared Parental Pay (£194.32 a week, or 90% of earnings if lower) are left to share. Each parent needs to give at least 8 weeks' written notice of their leave dates, and each can work up to 20 SPLIT days on top of KIT days. It pays best when your partner's employer enhances shared parental pay, or when your partner earns less.

Since 6 April 2026, paternity leave has been a day-one right in England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland legislates employment law separately and still requires 26 weeks' service for the leave (nidirect: paternity leave). Statutory Paternity Pay still requires 26 weeks' service and earnings at the Lower Earnings Limit.

Holiday and pension while you are on leave

Holiday keeps building up during maternity leave, whatever its length. Over a year's leave you accrue a full year's statutory entitlement, at least 5.6 weeks, plus any contractual extra. Many parents take accrued holiday at the end of leave, paid at full rate, which can turn the unpaid weeks into paid ones. Agree the dates in writing with your employer.

Pension contributions need checking. Under the Equality Act 2010, paid maternity leave counts for your workplace pension as if you were working, while your own contributions are based on the pay you actually receive. In a typical defined contribution scheme your employer keeps paying on your normal salary during paid leave. During unpaid leave, contributions usually stop unless your contract says otherwise, so a personal top-up then keeps your pension on track.

Budgeting for the drop

Work from monthly figures. The standard SMP rate is roughly £842 a month gross. At £194.32 a week it is below the £242 weekly threshold for employee National Insurance, so NI stops, and depending on what you have earned earlier in the tax year you may get some income tax back through payroll.

A practical approach:

  1. Map your leave month by month with the calculator's payment schedule, noting when SMP stops.
  2. Build a buffer before the birth to cover the lowest months.
  3. Review fixed costs set for a full salary, such as salary sacrifice and subscriptions.
  4. Check Universal Credit if household income falls far enough.

Child Benefit and the High Income Child Benefit Charge

Child Benefit is £27.05 a week for your first child (about £1,406 a year) and £17.90 for each additional child. You can claim 48 hours after registering the birth, and claims can only be backdated 3 months, so do it early.

If either parent's adjusted net income is above £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge claws back 1% of the benefit for every £200 above that, so it is fully repaid at £80,000. Even if you opt out of payments for that reason, still make the claim: a parent at home with a child under 12 gets National Insurance credits towards the State Pension, which matters in a year of low or no earnings. Our HICBC guide explains how pension contributions can reduce the charge.

Childcare before you go back

  • Tax-Free Childcare adds £2 for every £8 you pay in, up to £2,000 per child a year (£4,000 if disabled). You can usually claim while on maternity leave, but each parent must expect to earn at least £2,643.68 over the next 3 months (aged 21 or over), and neither can have adjusted net income over £100,000.
  • Funded hours in England give working parents up to 30 hours a week from the age of 9 months. You can apply once your child is 23 weeks old, so for a 9-month start you need to apply well before you return. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run their own schemes.

The £100,000 limit is a hard cliff edge for both; see our guide to the £100,000 tax trap.

Returning to work, and going part-time

If you return after up to 26 weeks, you have the right to your old job. After longer leave, it is your old job or, if that is not reasonably practicable, a similar one on the same or better terms. You must give at least 8 weeks' notice if you want to change your return date. If your role becomes redundant, you must be offered any suitable alternative vacancy ahead of others, and that protection lasts until 18 months after the birth.

You can ask for flexible working from day one in a job, and make 2 requests in any 12 months. Your employer must decide within 2 months and can refuse only for a good business reason. Ask early and explain how the work would be covered.

Going part-time changes pay and holiday together. On a full-time equivalent of £36,000, three days a week is £21,600 a year, and statutory holiday becomes 16.8 days. Check the Pro Rata Salary Calculator before you agree a pattern, and weigh it against the childcare cost of the extra days.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Statutory Maternity Pay in 2026/27? 90% of average weekly earnings for 6 weeks, then £194.32 a week or 90% of earnings, if lower, for 33 weeks.

When is the earliest I can start maternity leave? Usually 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. If the baby arrives early, leave starts the day after the birth.

What if I do not qualify for SMP? Check Maternity Allowance, paid by the DWP. You need to have earned at least £30 a week in 13 of the 66 weeks before your due week.

Does maternity leave affect my State Pension? SMP earnings and Child Benefit credits for a child under 12 protect your National Insurance record, so claim Child Benefit even if you do not take the money.

The bottom line

SMP replaces most of your pay for six weeks and very little of it after that. Plan the drop month by month, use holiday and KIT days to fill gaps, claim Child Benefit even if you opt out of the money, and line up childcare funding and any flexible working request well before you go back.

Model your own leave with the Maternity Pay Calculator, then check your return pattern with the Pro Rata Salary Calculator.

Related calculators and guides

This article is for general guidance only and is not personalised legal, tax or financial advice. Employment and tax rules are complex and your circumstances may differ. Check your employer's family leave policy, and for advice tailored to your situation speak to Acas, a trade union or a qualified adviser. Figures are for the 2026/27 tax year and sourced from gov.uk.

Sources

Rates and rules in this article are taken from the official pages below. Figures were checked against these sources at the last review date shown above; always confirm against the source before acting.

About the author

, LLM (UK), CFP®, CIM®, PFP®. Financial planner with 18 years in banking and wealth management, holding a UK master of laws and the Canadian CFP®, CIM® and PFP® designations. Writes and reviews every calculator and article on FinanceToolz.

Rates and thresholds in this article are taken from HMRC and GOV.UK. See our editorial policy for how content is sourced, reviewed and corrected. This is general information, not regulated financial advice.

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