Statutory Maternity Pay: How Much You Get and for How Long
Statutory Maternity Pay is 90% of your average weekly earnings for 6 weeks, then £194.32 a week or 90%, whichever is lower, for 33 weeks. That is 39 paid weeks inside 52 weeks of leave, paid by your employer and taxed like wages.
What is Statutory Maternity Pay?
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is the weekly payment the law says your employer must pay you while you are on maternity leave, if you qualify. Its rates come from section 166 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992, so every employer pays the same minimum. Your employer can pay more through its own scheme, but never less. Because that minimum is set by law, SMP is sometimes called state maternity pay, though your employer pays it, not the government.
To qualify you need two things. You must have worked for your employer for at least 26 weeks continuing into the qualifying week, which is the 15th week before the week your baby is due. Your average weekly earnings must also be at least £129 a week. Then you give at least 28 days' notice and proof of your pregnancy, set out in how to apply for Statutory Maternity Pay.
How much is Statutory Maternity Pay?
SMP is not one flat rate. It has a higher earnings-related period, a capped period, and an unpaid tail.
For the first 6 weeks you get 90% of your average weekly earnings, with no upper limit. For the next 33 weeks you get £194.32 a week or 90% of your average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. To see your own figure for every week, use the free maternity pay calculator.
Weeks 1 to 6
Earnings-related
- Rate
- 90% of earnings
- Cap
- None
On higher earnings most of the SMP total is paid in these weeks.
Weeks 7 to 39
Standard rate
- Rate
- £194.32 or 90%
- Which applies
- The lower
£194.32 is a ceiling, not a floor.
Weeks 40 to 52
The unpaid tail
- SMP
- None
- Weeks
- 13
Leave continues, but statutory pay has stopped.
The 90% trap
If your average weekly earnings are below about £216 a week (exactly £215.91), 90% of your earnings is less than £194.32. You then get 90% for all 39 weeks and never receive the headline rate.
£500 a week
Above the crossover
| Weeks | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 6 | 90% of £500.00 = £450.00 | £2,700.00 |
| 7 to 39 | capped at £194.32 | £6,412.56 |
| 40 to 52 | no SMP | £0.00 |
| Total SMP, before tax | £9,112.56 | |
£200 a week
Below the crossover: the 90% trap
| Weeks | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 6 | 90% of £200.00 = £180.00 | £1,080.00 |
| 7 to 39 | 90% of £200.00 = £180.00, below £194.32 | £5,940.00 |
| 40 to 52 | no SMP | £0.00 |
| Total SMP, before tax | £7,020.00 | |
How much SMP do you get at each salary?
What SMP pays across all 52 weeks of leave at set average weekly earnings, 2026 to 2027 rates, before tax.
| Average weekly earnings | About a year | Weeks 1 to 6 | Weeks 7 to 39 | Total SMP | Average over 52 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £129.00lower earnings limit | £6,708 | £116.10 | £116.10 | £4,527.90 | £87.07 |
| £200.00below the crossover | £10,400 | £180.00 | £180.00 | £7,020.00 | £135.00 |
| £250.00 | £13,000 | £225.00 | £194.32 | £7,762.56 | £149.28 |
| £300.00 | £15,600 | £270.00 | £194.32 | £8,032.56 | £154.47 |
| £400.00 | £20,800 | £360.00 | £194.32 | £8,572.56 | £164.86 |
| £500.00 | £26,000 | £450.00 | £194.32 | £9,112.56 | £175.24 |
| £700.00 | £36,400 | £630.00 | £194.32 | £10,192.56 | £196.01 |
| £1,000.00 | £52,000 | £900.00 | £194.32 | £11,812.56 | £227.16 |
"About a year" is the weekly figure times 52. Average weekly earnings are worked out from your pay in an 8-week window, not your contract salary, so check them on your payslips. The average over 52 weeks includes the 13 unpaid weeks.
How long is maternity pay paid for?
SMP is paid for up to 39 weeks. Statutory maternity leave lasts 52 weeks, made up of 26 weeks of ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks of additional maternity leave. So you can take 12 months off, but the last 13 weeks carry no statutory pay unless your employer has its own scheme.
When SMP starts
SMP usually starts on the day you choose to start your leave. The earliest is 11 weeks before the week your baby is due. It starts automatically if you are off work with a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before the week your baby is due, or the day after the birth if your baby arrives first. You must take at least 2 weeks of leave after the birth, or 4 weeks if you work in a factory.
Do you get full pay on maternity leave?
Not from SMP. Even the first 6 weeks pay 90% of your earnings, and from week 7 most people get £194.32a week. Full pay comes only from an employer's own scheme, often called enhanced maternity pay, which is paid on top of SMP or includes it. How many weeks of full pay you get depends on the scheme, set out in employer maternity schemes compared.
- NHS staff with 12 months of service get 8 weeks of full pay, then half pay plus SMP. The NHS Maternity Pay Calculator shows each week.
- Teachers in England and Wales get 4 weeks of full pay under the Burgundy Book. See the Teacher Maternity Pay Calculator.
- Most Civil Service departments pay 26 weeks of full pay. See the Civil Service Maternity Pay Calculator.
Who pays Statutory Maternity Pay?
Your employer pays it, through payroll, in the same way as your wages: weekly if you are paid weekly, monthly if you are paid monthly. You do not claim it from the government. Your employer then reclaims 92% of it from HMRC, or 109% if its Class 1 National Insurance for the previous tax year was £45,000 or less. How that works is covered in Statutory Maternity Pay for employers, and the SMP Recovery Calculator works out the reclaim.
If your employer becomes insolvent while you are getting SMP, HMRC pays it instead. SMP is yours once you qualify: if you leave your job, for any reason, your employer cannot ask you to repay it. Employer top-ups can be different, which is covered in do you have to pay back maternity pay.
What is the current SMP rate?
For 2026 to 2027 the standard rate is £194.32 a week, up from £187.18.
| Tax year | Standard weekly rate | Lower earnings limit | Rate applies from |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 to 2027 | £194.32 | £129 a week | 5 April 2026 |
| 2025 to 2026 | £187.18 | £125 a week | 6 April 2025 |
| 2027 to 2028 | Not announced | Not announced | Not announced |
Note the date: HMRC applies the 2026 to 2027 SMP rate from 5 April 2026, one day before every other statutory payment rate, which changed on 6 April 2026. The 90% rate for the first 6 weeks does not change from year to year. No rate for 2027 to 2028 had been announced on 8 October 2026; the Department for Work and Pensions normally publishes it in its autumn up-rating paper.
Is maternity pay taxed?
Yes. SMP is taxable and National Insurance is payable on it, the same as wages. Your employer deducts both through PAYE. Every figure on this site is before tax.
Why many people get tax back
PAYE works on your pay so far in the tax year. When your pay drops to the standard rate, payroll usually refunds some of the tax taken earlier through your payslip. A week 1 or month 1 tax code works out each payday on its own, so it gives no refund until the tax year is reconciled.
National Insurance on SMP
National Insurance is worked out per pay period, not across the year. In 2026 to 2027 no employee National Insurance is due on weekly pay of £242 or less, so the weeks paid at £194.32 have none taken, and they still count towards your National Insurance record. In the first 6 weeks, employee National Insurance is due if 90% of your earnings is above £242, which happens when average weekly earnings are above £268.89.
Example: £600 a week, England, SMP only
Total SMP is £9,652.56. If leave starts at the start of the tax year, with a standard 1257L code on the cumulative basis and no other income, that is below the £12,570 personal allowance, so the income tax for the year is £0: tax taken in the first weeks is refunded later. Employee National Insurance is £23.84 a week for 6 weeks, £143.04 in total, and nothing after that.
Student loan repayments
Student loan repayments are also worked out per pay period: 9% of pay above the plan's threshold, or 6% for a postgraduate loan. The lowest weekly threshold in 2026 to 2027 is £403.84, so in weeks paid at £194.32 no repayment is taken. The first 6 weeks can still reach your threshold.
| Plan | Weekly threshold, 2026 to 2027 |
|---|---|
| Plan 1 | £517.30 |
| Plan 2 | £565.09 |
| Plan 4 | £649.90 |
| Plan 5 | £480.76 |
| Postgraduate loan | £403.84 |
Scotland has its own income tax bands, from 19% to 48%, so the tax on the same SMP can differ there. Wales uses the same rates as England in 2026 to 2027.
What are average weekly earnings for maternity pay?
Average weekly earnings are your gross pay in the relevant period: the 8 weeks ending with your last normal payday on or before the Saturday of the qualifying week. If you are paid weekly, your employer adds up what was paid in that window and divides by 8. If you are paid monthly, it divides the total by the number of months, multiplies by 12 and divides by 52. The figure is not rounded to whole pence.
It uses what was actually paid in the window, so overtime, bonuses and commission paid in those weeks count. For example, two monthly payslips of £3,000 give average weekly earnings of £692.31, and 90% of that is £623.08 a week for the first 6 weeks. Salary sacrifice lowers the figure, because it counts the cash pay you receive; if it takes your average below £129, SMP is not payable.
Does a pay rise during maternity leave increase SMP?
Yes. If a pay rise takes effect at any point from the start of the relevant period to the end of your maternity leave, your employer must work out your average weekly earnings again as if the rise had applied for the whole 8 weeks, and pay you the extra SMP. A rise from £600 to £650 a week raises the first 6 weeks from £540.00 to £585.00, worth £270.00 in total. The later weeks stay at £194.32 because both figures are above the crossover.
Working during maternity leave
You can work up to 10 days during maternity leave without losing any SMP. After those 10 days, you lose one week of SMP for each week or part week you work. No work is allowed in the compulsory 2 weeks after the birth. The detail is in keeping in touch days pay.
Is maternity pay the same in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
Yes, SMP is the same across the UK. The rates, the £129 lower earnings limit and the 26-week test are the same in England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has its own legislation, but nidirect sets out the same rates and rules for 2026 to 2027. What differs is income tax: Scotland has its own bands, so the same SMP can leave a different amount after tax.
Statutory Maternity Pay questions
Do part-time workers get maternity pay?
Yes. There is no minimum number of hours. The tests are the same 26 weeks of employment and average weekly earnings of at least £129. Part-time earnings are more likely to fall below the £215.91 crossover, in which case every paid week is 90% of your earnings. If your hours vary week to week, see Zero Hours Contract Maternity Pay.
What happens to maternity pay if the baby comes early?
Leave and SMP start the day after the birth. Give your employer proof of the pregnancy as soon as you can. If the baby is born before or during the qualifying week, the relevant period ends with the Saturday of the week before the birth instead. SMP is also still paid if a baby is stillborn after the start of the 24th week of pregnancy.
Do agency workers get Statutory Maternity Pay?
Yes, if they meet the same conditions. The SMP is paid by whoever deducts PAYE tax and Class 1 National Insurance from their pay.
What if I do not qualify for SMP?
If your employer refuses SMP, you get form SMP1 from them. You may be able to claim Maternity Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions instead, and you may need the SMP1 for that claim. The Maternity Allowance guide explains who gets it and how much.
Do you build up holiday on maternity leave?
Yes. Your holiday entitlement is not affected by maternity leave: you keep building up (accruing) holiday for the whole of it. If you cannot take some of your leave because you are on family-related leave, you can carry it over into the next leave year (GOV.UK holiday entitlement).
What happens when you go back to work?
Your right to return to your job is protected while you are on maternity leave. To go back on a different date from the one you agreed, give your employer at least 8 weeks' notice (GOV.UK).
Once you work beyond your 10 keeping in touch days, your maternity leave ends and your employer cannot pay SMP for any week in which you work. The 39-week pay period is not extended to make up for those weeks (HMRC).
Sources
Checked 8 October 2026. Rates: HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 and 2025 to 2026. Rules: employer guide, pay, eligibility, how to claim and leave (GOV.UK); HMRC manual calculation guide; employee circumstances that affect payment; employment types; recovering statutory payments and the full guide; SSCBA 1992 section 166; nidirect. Tax: EIM76360, PAYE11090, Income Tax rates, Scottish and Welsh rates, student loans, salary sacrifice. Worked figures are calculated on this page from the 2026 to 2027 rates, rounded to the nearest penny each week. See the methodology for how the figures are checked.