UK Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) Calculator 2026/27

Statutory Maternity Pay Guide (2026/27)

How Statutory Maternity Pay Works?

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is the minimum maternity pay your employer must provide if you qualify, paid for up to 39 weeks. It has two phases. For the first 6 weeks, you receive 90% of your average weekly earnings, with no upper cap — so higher earners get more during this period. For the remaining 33 weeks, you receive the lower of the flat rate (£194.32 per week from April 2026) or 90% of your average weekly earnings. So for most people the pattern is six weeks at 90% of pay, then up to 33 weeks at the flat £194.32. SMP is paid by your employer through PAYE in the normal way, so it's subject to tax and National Insurance like ordinary pay. Statutory maternity leave can last up to 52 weeks in total, but SMP only covers up to 39 of those weeks — the final 13 weeks of leave, if taken, are unpaid (unless your employer pays more). This calculator estimates the statutory amount; many employers offer enhanced 'occupational' or 'company' maternity pay that's more generous, which would be set out in your contract or maternity policy. The 2026/27 flat rate of £194.32 applies; rates rise each April, so check GOV.UK for the current figure.

What's the key thing to understand about Qualifying for SMP?

To qualify for SMP, you generally need to have worked for the same employer continuously for at least 26 weeks up to the 'qualifying week' (the 15th week before your baby is due), still be employed in that qualifying week, earn on average at least the lower earnings threshold (£129 a week from April 2026), and give the correct notice and proof (such as a MATB1 certificate from your midwife or doctor). If you don't qualify for SMP — for example because you're newly employed, self-employed, or earn below the threshold — you may instead be able to claim Maternity Allowance from the government, which has different qualifying rules based on your recent work and earnings. It's worth checking both: many people who don't get SMP still qualify for Maternity Allowance. You usually need to give your employer at least 28 days' notice of when you want SMP to start. SMP can start from 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth, and normally begins automatically if you're off work with a pregnancy-related illness in the last four weeks before your due date, or the day after the birth. The rules have detail and exceptions, so confirm your specific position with your employer's HR or on GOV.UK.

What should I know about Planning Your Maternity Leave and Pay?

Because SMP drops to the flat rate after six weeks, household income typically falls significantly during maternity leave, so planning ahead matters. Map out the income across the 39 weeks: six weeks at 90% of your pay, then up to 33 weeks at £194.32 (or 90% if you earn less than that), then potentially 13 unpaid weeks if you take the full 52-week leave. Compare this with your essential outgoings to see where any shortfall falls, usually deeper into the leave. Consider how you'll bridge it: savings built up beforehand, your partner's income, Shared Parental Leave (which lets eligible parents share the leave and pay), and any enhanced employer scheme. Check whether returning earlier, or your partner taking Shared Parental Leave, suits your family. Other support to check: Child Benefit (claimable once the baby arrives), and potentially Universal Credit depending on household income during leave. Keep an eye on the Child Benefit High Income charge if either partner earns over the relevant threshold. Also remember SMP counts as taxable income, so your take-home during the 90% phase isn't the full 90% of gross. This calculator gives the gross statutory figures to help you plan; for an exact personal picture including tax, enhanced pay, and benefits, speak to your employer's HR and check GOV.UK or Citizens Advice.

What should I know about Beyond Statutory Maternity Pay?

SMP is the statutory floor, but several other things can affect your maternity finances. Enhanced employer schemes: many employers, including parts of the NHS and larger companies, offer occupational maternity pay well above SMP — for example, several weeks at full or half pay before reverting to statutory. Always check your contract or maternity policy, as this can be worth thousands of pounds. Maternity Allowance: the alternative for those who don't qualify for SMP, paid by the government rather than your employer. Shared Parental Leave and Pay: lets eligible parents split the leave and statutory pay between them, offering flexibility in who takes time off. Keeping in Touch (KIT) days: you can work up to 10 days during maternity leave without losing SMP, which can ease the transition back and provide some extra income. Pension contributions usually continue during paid maternity leave, often with your employer maintaining their contribution based on your normal salary while yours is based on your actual (reduced) pay — worth checking. Returning to work: you have the right to return, and to request flexible working. This calculator focuses on the statutory pay element; the full financial picture of having a baby involves benefits, enhanced pay, childcare planning, and tax, so use it as a starting point and seek tailored guidance from HR, GOV.UK, or a specialist adviser.

Worked Example: Calculating SMP Across the 39 Weeks

Statutory Maternity Pay is structured in two distinct stages over its typical 39-week maximum duration.

For someone with average weekly earnings of £500, the first 6 weeks would pay 90% of £500 = £450 a week (£2,700 total for that period). For the remaining 33 weeks, since 90% of £500 (£450) is higher than the flat statutory rate, this employee receives the flat statutory rate instead for those 33 weeks — because the calculation always uses whichever figure is lower. Someone with lower average weekly earnings, say £160 a week, would receive 90% of £160 = £144 a week for the full 39 weeks, since that figure stays below the flat rate throughout. Always check the current statutory flat rate (reviewed each April) before estimating the second-stage payment precisely.

SMP vs Maternity Allowance

Not everyone qualifies for Statutory Maternity Pay, and Maternity Allowance exists as an alternative for those who don't meet SMP's employment and earnings qualifying conditions.

Self-employed mothers and those who've recently changed jobs are the groups most likely to need Maternity Allowance rather than SMP, and it's worth checking eligibility for both, since the detailed qualifying tests (length of employment, recent earnings) differ enough that borderline cases can qualify for one but not the other.

Returning to Work Early or Not Returning at All

Statutory Maternity Pay is not contingent on returning to work afterward — an employee who receives SMP and then decides not to return to her job is generally not required to repay the statutory portion, which is a common point of confusion, since some enhanced maternity pay schemes offered by employers above the statutory minimum do include a repayment clause if the employee doesn't return for a minimum period. It's important to distinguish between the statutory minimum (never repayable regardless of return-to-work decisions) and any employer top-up or enhanced scheme (which may have its own separate terms, including a possible clawback clause, detailed in the employment contract or maternity policy). An employee planning to return earlier than the full 39-week entitlement, or to use Shared Parental Leave to split time with a partner, needs to give the correct notice periods for whichever path is chosen — returning early without proper notice, or assuming SMP automatically continues past an early return to work, can create payroll complications worth clarifying with HR in advance.

Statutory Paternity Pay and Shared Parental Pay for the Other Parent

The other parent (or the mother's partner) is generally entitled to Statutory Paternity Pay, a much shorter benefit than SMP — typically up to two weeks, paid at the lower of the same flat statutory weekly rate used for the later weeks of SMP or 90% of average weekly earnings, under broadly similar continuous-employment and earnings qualifying conditions. Beyond this, Shared Parental Leave and Pay lets eligible parents convert most of the mother's maternity leave and pay entitlement into a shared pool that can be split between both parents, taken in blocks, or even taken by both parents at the same time, rather than it all being used by one parent consecutively. To use Shared Parental Leave, the mother generally needs to end her maternity leave and pay early (after the compulsory initial weeks) and formally opt in, after which both parents' employers need advance notice of the planned pattern. This flexibility can be valuable where the second parent wants a meaningful period of leave rather than just the standard one or two weeks, or where returning to work earlier makes financial sense for the mother while the other parent takes over care — but because the rules on notice periods and eligibility are detailed, checking the current government guidance or your employer's HR team before relying on a specific plan is worthwhile.

Tax, National Insurance and Pension Contributions on SMP

Statutory Maternity Pay is treated as normal earnings for tax purposes: it's paid through the employer's usual PAYE payroll, so income tax and employee National Insurance contributions are deducted in the normal way, and it counts toward annual income for things like the personal allowance taper or student loan repayment thresholds just as ordinary salary would. One area that's easy to overlook is pension contributions during paid maternity leave: employers are generally required to continue pension contributions based on the employee's normal pre-leave pay (not the reduced SMP amount) for as long as the employee continues to pay in their own contributions during paid leave, under standard workplace pension and auto-enrolment rules — meaning pension saving usually doesn't have to stall just because take-home pay drops. During any unpaid portion of maternity leave, by contrast, pension contributions typically pause unless the employee arranges to keep contributing voluntarily, so it's worth checking with payroll or HR exactly how the scheme handles the unpaid weeks if the full 52-week leave period is being taken, since practice here can vary between employers even though SMP itself follows the same statutory rules nationwide.