What changed on 6 April 2026
You no longer wait three unpaid days before qualifying for Statutory Sick Pay, and the lower earnings requirement has been removed. SSP is payable from the first full qualifying day of sickness absence, for up to 28 weeks.acas+1
Whether you work full-time, part-time, irregular hours or on a fixed-term contract, the statutory rights below apply from your first qualifying day.
Key figures
Last reviewed 19 September 2026. Applies to England, Wales and Scotland.
| Element | Rule for 2026–27 |
| Weekly rate | Lower of £123.25 or 80% of average weekly earnings |
| Payable from | First full qualifying day — no waiting days |
| Lower earnings requirement | Removed |
| Maximum duration | 28 weeks |
| Reference period for average earnings | The 8 weeks before the absence |
| Self-certification | First 7 calendar days |
| Fit note required | From day 8 |
| Rounding | Payments rounded up to the nearest penny |
| Annual leave | Statutory holiday accrues throughout sick leave |
The rate is the lower of £123.25 per week or 80% of average weekly earnings, paid from the first full day of absence for up to 28 weeks, with average weekly earnings based on the eight weeks before the absence and payments rounded up to the nearest penny.acas+1
How the calculation works
Your employer compares two figures and pays the lower:
- the statutory flat rate of £123.25 per week; and
- 80% of your average weekly earnings.business+1
Earning £500 a week. Eighty per cent is £400. Because £123.25 is lower, you receive £123.25 per week.
Earning £140 a week. Eighty per cent is £112. Because £112 is lower than £123.25, you receive £112.00 per week.
Earning £80 a week. Eighty per cent is £64. You receive £64.00 per week.
Your actual payment for a particular absence also depends on your qualifying days. SSP is paid through normal payroll on your usual pay date and is subject to PAYE and National Insurance.
Reporting your absence
Follow your employer’s sickness reporting procedure. It may require you to contact a named manager, report by a particular time, use a specified system, give a general explanation, indicate how long you expect to be absent, maintain reasonable contact and provide medical evidence when required.
If there is no policy, notify your employer within seven days.
A genuine illness does not excuse a failure to comply with reasonable reporting requirements. Unauthorised absence is a separate disciplinary matter from capability. If your condition makes the usual reporting method difficult, say so and request an adjustment.
Self-certification
You can normally self-certify for the first seven calendar days of absence, using your employer’s internal form or form SC2.
Calendar days include weekends, bank holidays, rest days and days you were not scheduled to work. Your employer cannot lawfully require a fit note during this period.
Fit notes
If the absence continues beyond seven calendar days, your employer can require a Statement of Fitness for Work.
It does not have to come from a GP. A hospital doctor, registered nurse, occupational therapist, pharmacist or physiotherapist can also issue one, which often means obtaining it faster.
A fit note will state either that you are not fit for work, or that you may be fit for work if certain support is provided. Recommendations may include a phased return, amended hours, altered duties, home or hybrid working, or workplace adaptations.
Your employer should consider the recommendations. It is not obliged to implement every suggestion, but disability law may impose a separate duty to make reasonable adjustments.
Contractual sick pay
Many contracts, handbooks and collective agreements provide occupational sick pay above the statutory minimum — for example, full salary for a period, then half salary.
Check:
- whether a qualifying service period applies;
- the length of the full-pay and half-pay periods;
- whether earlier absences reduce the remaining entitlement;
- whether SSP is included within, or paid on top of, contractual sick pay;
- the reporting and medical evidence requirements;
- whether payment is described as contractual or discretionary; and
- when entitlement renews.
Contractual sick pay can offset SSP, provided the total you receive in any pay period is not less than your statutory entitlement.
Where a scheme is described as discretionary, that discretion cannot be exercised arbitrarily, capriciously or in bad faith. Withholding sick pay without reasonable cause may amount to a breach of the implied term of mutual trust and confidence, or an unlawful deduction from wages.
Can your employer contact you while you are off sick?
Your employer can ordinarily maintain reasonable contact.
What is reasonable depends on the nature of the illness, the likely length of absence, your role, operational requirements, medical advice and whether the contact is affecting your recovery.
Contact should not become harassment or pressure you to return before you are medically able. If telephone calls are difficult, ask for contact by email or through an agreed representative. If you are disabled, changing the method or frequency of contact may itself be a reasonable adjustment.
Can you attend meetings while signed off?
A fit note does not automatically mean you cannot attend any workplace meeting. You may be able to take part in an absence review, an occupational health assessment, a grievance meeting, a disciplinary hearing or a capability consultation.
Your employer should consider your condition and any adjustments needed — postponement for a reasonable period, a remote meeting, written representations, additional breaks, a shorter meeting, an additional support person, or medical advice on your ability to participate.
An employer should not assume that absence from work means you are either fully capable or entirely incapable of participating in a process.
Medical reports
If your employer seeks a report from your GP or treating specialist, the Access to Medical Reports Act 1988 gives you the right to see and comment on the report before it is sent.
Where the Act applies, you may be able to:
- withhold consent;
- ask to see the report before it is supplied;
- request correction of information you consider inaccurate;
- attach a statement where the clinician will not amend the report; and
- withdraw consent before the report is sent.
Check what questions are being asked, whether the history given to the clinician is accurate, whether the report addresses adjustments, whether the prognosis is realistic, and whether your role has been described properly.
An occupational health opinion is relevant, but it does not determine your legal rights or remove your employer’s obligation to consider your circumstances itself.
If your condition is a disability
A physical or mental impairment may be a disability where it has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. “Substantial” means more than minor or trivial. “Long-term” normally means the effect has lasted, or is likely to last, at least 12 months or for the rest of your life.
Where the duty applies, possible adjustments include:
- changing absence management trigger points;
- disregarding some disability-related absence;
- recording disability absence separately;
- a phased return;
- adjusted hours;
- home or hybrid working;
- reallocating minor duties;
- specialist equipment;
- time off for treatment; or
- transfer to a suitable vacancy.
Applying an attendance policy rigidly, without considering disability-related disadvantage, may be unlawful. The duty arises once your employer knows, or could reasonably be expected to know, that you are disabled.
SSP entitlement and disability rights are separate. Receiving the correct SSP does not mean your employer has met its Equality Act obligations.
Does holiday continue to accrue?
Statutory annual leave continues to accrue during sickness absence.
Depending on the circumstances you may be able to take annual leave while off sick, receive holiday pay for that period, reschedule holiday affected by illness, or carry statutory holiday into a later leave year. On termination, accrued but untaken statutory holiday should be included in your final pay.
If your employer refuses to pay
- Request form SSP1 in writing. Where SSP is refused or is ending, your employer should provide SSP1 setting out the reasons, within seven days. You may need it to claim other support.
- Ask for the calculation — the absence dates used, your qualifying days, the average weekly earnings figure, any linked periods, the reason for ineligibility, and the date entitlement is said to end.
- Raise a formal written grievance, attaching your fit notes and self-certification forms.
- Apply to HMRC. The Statutory Payments Dispute Team can issue a formal determination of your entitlement. This route is free.
- Consider a tribunal claim for unlawful deduction from wages, subject to the deadlines below.
Keep payslips, bank statements, self-certification forms, fit notes, your contract, the sick pay policy and all correspondence with payroll, HR and management.
Deadlines
Do not let continuing payroll correspondence or an internal grievance cause you to miss a legal deadline.
For most claims whose time limit starts before 1 October 2026, the limit is three months minus one day. For most claims whose time limit starts on or after that date, it is six months minus one day.acas+1
You must normally notify Acas before presenting a tribunal claim.
How we can help
We advise on unpaid SSP, contractual sick pay disputes, sickness capability procedures, reasonable adjustments, disability discrimination, dismissal during sickness absence, holiday entitlement and tribunal deadlines.