What Are Your Maternity Rights?

If you are pregnant and have employee status, you have a number of important statutory rights relating to maternity leave, pay and your employment.

Your main rights can include:

• Up to 52 weeks of Statutory Maternity Leave
• Statutory Maternity Pay if you meet the qualifying conditions
• Protection of contractual benefits during maternity leave
• Continued accrual of annual leave
• Continued pension protection under the applicable rules
• Protection against pregnancy and maternity discrimination
• Protection against unfair dismissal for pregnancy or maternity-related reasons
• The right to return to the same job or, in certain circumstances, a suitable alternative role
• Additional protection in a redundancy situation
• The right to reasonable contact and information about important workplace developments
• Up to 10 Keeping in Touch days by agreement with your employer

Your entitlement to maternity leave and your entitlement to Statutory Maternity Pay are separate. You may qualify for one even if you do not qualify for the other.

What is Statutory Maternity Leave?

Statutory Maternity Leave allows an eligible employee to take up to 52 weeks away from work following pregnancy and childbirth.

It is divided into:

• 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave
• 26 weeks of Additional Maternity Leave

You do not need a minimum length of service to qualify for Statutory Maternity Leave.

As long as you:

• Have employee status
• Give the required notice

you can generally take Statutory Maternity Leave regardless of:

• How long you have worked for the employer
• How many hours you work
• How much you earn

The rules are different for Statutory Maternity Pay, which has separate service and earnings requirements.

Do You Have to Take the Full 52 Weeks?

No.

You can choose how much of your maternity leave entitlement you wish to take.

However, you must take a minimum period of compulsory maternity leave immediately after giving birth.

This is:

• 2 weeks for most employees
• 4 weeks if you work in a factory

You cannot work during this compulsory maternity leave period.

What Happens to Your Employment Contract During Maternity Leave?

Your employment contract continues during Statutory Maternity Leave.

You remain employed and continue to benefit from most contractual terms and conditions, with the important exception of your normal wages or salary.

Depending on your employment arrangements, continuing benefits can include:

• Company car
• Mobile phone
• Private medical insurance
• Life assurance
• Contractual annual leave
• Other non-pay contractual benefits

Your employer should not remove a contractual benefit simply because you are on maternity leave where you would otherwise be entitled to retain it.

Does Annual Leave Continue to Accrue?

Yes.

You continue to build up your statutory and contractual annual leave throughout your maternity leave.

This applies throughout both:

• Ordinary Maternity Leave
• Additional Maternity Leave

You cannot normally take maternity leave and annual leave at the same time.

You can, however, usually arrange to take accrued annual leave:

• Before maternity leave starts
• After maternity leave ends

Where maternity leave prevents you from using your statutory holiday within the relevant holiday year, carry-over rights can apply.

What Happens to Pension Contributions During Maternity Leave?

Pension rights receive specific protection during maternity leave.

During paid maternity leave, you and your employer generally continue making pension contributions.

Your own contribution is normally based on the pay you actually receive.

The employer's contribution is generally based on the salary you would have received if you had not been on maternity leave.

If part of your maternity leave is unpaid, employer contributions must generally continue through the first 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave.

After that, pension contributions during an unpaid period may depend on:

• Your employment contract
• The pension scheme rules
• Other applicable arrangements

You should check your employer's maternity and pension policies if you are planning to take the full 52 weeks.

Are You Entitled to Bonuses During Maternity Leave?

Potentially.

Whether you are entitled to a bonus will depend on the nature of the bonus and the relevant scheme rules.

For example, a bonus based entirely on the organisation's overall performance may need to be paid to an employee on maternity leave where the qualifying conditions are satisfied.

A bonus based on your personal performance may potentially be reduced proportionately to reflect periods when you were not working.

However, certain periods should not normally be excluded, including:

• Time worked before maternity leave
• Compulsory maternity leave
• Keeping in Touch days

Bonus arrangements during maternity leave can be legally complex.

For further guidance, see Bonuses.

Can Your Employer Contact You During Maternity Leave?

Yes.

Your employer can make reasonable contact with you during maternity leave.

Before your leave begins, it is good practice to agree:

• How often you would like to be contacted
• How you would prefer to be contacted
• Which matters you want to be told about

Contact should not become excessive or place pressure on you to work or return early.

However, your employer should keep you informed about important matters that could affect you.

These can include:

• Promotion opportunities
• Job vacancies
• Training opportunities
• Redundancy proposals
• Reorganisation
• Significant changes to your role or workplace
• Arrangements for your return

Failing to inform you about important opportunities or changes because you are on maternity leave could potentially amount to pregnancy or maternity discrimination.

What Are Keeping in Touch Days?

You can agree to work for up to 10 days during maternity leave without bringing your maternity leave to an end or losing Statutory Maternity Pay for those weeks.

These are known as Keeping in Touch or KIT days.

They can be used for activities such as:

• Ordinary work
• Training
• Team meetings
• Conferences
• Appraisals
• Preparing for your return to work

KIT days are voluntary.

Your employer cannot require you to work them, and you cannot insist on working them without your employer's agreement.

How Much Are You Paid for a KIT Day?

There is no automatic statutory entitlement to your normal full daily salary simply because you work a KIT day.

The pay arrangements should be agreed between you and your employer.

The agreement should take account of:

• The work performed
• Your normal contractual pay
• Statutory Maternity Pay
• National Minimum Wage obligations

Any amount of work carried out on a day generally counts as one full KIT day for the purpose of the 10-day limit.

What Happens if You Work More Than 10 KIT Days?

Once you have used your 10 permitted KIT days, further work can affect both your maternity leave and Statutory Maternity Pay.

You can lose SMP for weeks in which additional work is carried out and your maternity leave can come to an end if you return to normal work.

You also cannot use KIT days during your compulsory maternity leave immediately following the birth.

How Much Notice Must You Give Before Taking Maternity Leave?

You should normally tell your employer about your maternity leave no later than the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth.

You should tell your employer:

• That you are pregnant
• Your expected week of childbirth
• When you would like your maternity leave to start

If it was not reasonably possible to give notice by the normal deadline, you should tell your employer as soon as you can.

Your employer may ask you to confirm the information in writing.

Can You Change the Date Your Maternity Leave Starts?

Yes.

If you want to change your planned maternity leave start date, you should normally give your employer at least 28 days' notice before either:

• The original start date
• The new start date

whichever is earlier.

An employer may agree to less notice where appropriate.

When Can Maternity Leave Start?

The earliest you can normally choose to start maternity leave is 11 weeks before the week your baby is due.

However, maternity leave can start automatically earlier than your planned date in certain circumstances.

What if Your Baby Is Born Early?

If your baby is born before your planned maternity leave has started, your maternity leave will normally begin automatically on the day after the birth.

You should tell your employer about the birth as soon as reasonably possible.

What if You Are Off Sick Because of Your Pregnancy?

If you are absent because of a pregnancy-related illness during the 4 weeks before the week your baby is due, your maternity leave will normally begin automatically.

It usually starts on the day after the first day of the pregnancy-related absence in that four-week period.

Pregnancy-related sickness earlier in pregnancy should normally be treated separately from maternity leave.

How Much is Statutory Maternity Pay?

Statutory Maternity Pay can be paid for up to 39 weeks.

For the first 6 weeks, you are entitled to:

90% of your average weekly earnings

For the following 33 weeks, you receive the lower of:

• £194.32 per week
• 90% of your average weekly earnings

These are the statutory rates applicable for the 2026/27 tax year.

SMP is subject to tax and National Insurance in the same general way as wages.

What Are the Qualifying Conditions for Statutory Maternity Pay?

To qualify for SMP, you generally need to:

• Have been continuously employed by the same employer for at least 26 weeks continuing into the qualifying week
• Be on the employer's payroll during the qualifying week
• Have average weekly earnings of at least the applicable Lower Earnings Limit
• Give the required notice
• Provide appropriate evidence of the expected week of childbirth

The qualifying week is generally the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth.

For the 2026/27 tax year, the relevant earnings threshold is £129 per week.

How Are Your Average Earnings Calculated?

Your entitlement is generally based on your average earnings during a specific statutory relevant period.

This is normally an approximately eight-week period ending with the last normal payday on or before the end of the qualifying week.

Special rules can apply where:

• Your baby is born early
• Your pay changes
• You receive a backdated pay rise
• Your employment circumstances change

The exact calculation can therefore differ depending on your pay cycle.

What Evidence Do You Need to Provide?

Your employer can ask you for evidence of the expected date of childbirth.

This will normally be a MAT B1 certificate issued by your doctor or midwife.

You can usually obtain a MAT B1 once you are at least 20 weeks pregnant.

You should also normally give at least 28 days' notice of the date you want your SMP to begin, or as much notice as reasonably possible where 28 days cannot be given.

What if You Do Not Qualify for SMP?

If your employer decides that you do not qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay, it should provide you with form SMP1, explaining why you are not eligible.

You may instead qualify for Maternity Allowance.

Your employer should not simply refuse SMP without explaining the basis of its decision.

Can a Worker Receive Statutory Maternity Pay?

Potentially, yes.

This is an important distinction.

Statutory Maternity Leave generally requires employee status.

However, some people who do not qualify as employees for maternity leave purposes may still qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay, depending on their tax, earnings and employment circumstances.

This can include some:

• Workers
• Agency workers

Someone paid through self-assessment rather than PAYE will not normally qualify for SMP but may potentially qualify for Maternity Allowance.

What if Your Employer Refuses to Pay SMP?

You should first ask your employer to explain:

• Why SMP has not been paid
• How the amount was calculated
• Why it believes you are not eligible

If the issue cannot be resolved, you can contact HMRC's Statutory Payment Dispute Team.

HMRC can become responsible for making statutory payments in certain circumstances, including where an employer becomes insolvent or defaults after the appropriate statutory process.

It is therefore not necessary to accept an employer's refusal without challenging it.

Will SMP Continue if Your Employment Ends?

Potentially, yes.

If you have already qualified for SMP, your entitlement does not automatically disappear because your employment later ends.

For example, SMP can continue where your employment terminates after the qualifying week, subject to the applicable statutory conditions.

This can apply even if the employment ends:

• Before maternity leave starts
• During maternity leave
• Because of redundancy
• Following dismissal

The reason for dismissal may create separate employment-law claims.

Can SMP Be Paid as a Lump Sum?

Potentially.

SMP is normally paid through payroll in the same way as wages.

However, an employer can pay outstanding SMP as a lump sum in appropriate circumstances.

If this happens:

• The SMP element should be clearly identified
• Correct tax and National Insurance treatment must be applied
• The employee cannot simply waive a statutory SMP entitlement in a general settlement

A lump-sum payment can also produce different National Insurance consequences from ordinary weekly or monthly payments.

Where SMP is included in a Settlement Agreement, the agreement should clearly identify the statutory maternity payment being satisfied.

Do You Have the Right to Return to Your Old Job?

Usually, yes, although the precise right depends on how much maternity leave you have taken.

If you return after Ordinary Maternity Leave, meaning you have taken no more than 26 weeks of maternity leave, you are generally entitled to return to the same job on the same terms and conditions.

If you return after taking more than 26 weeks, including Additional Maternity Leave, you are still normally entitled to return to your same job.

However, where it is genuinely not reasonably practicable for the employer to allow you to return to that role, you may instead be offered a suitable alternative job.

What Must a Suitable Alternative Role Look Like?

Where returning to your original job is genuinely not reasonably practicable, the alternative role must be:

• Suitable for you
• Appropriate in the circumstances
• On terms no less favourable than before

Relevant factors include:

• Pay
• Benefits
• Status
• Seniority
• Location
• Working conditions

An employer cannot simply refuse to return you to your old position because:

• Your maternity cover performed well
• It prefers your maternity cover
• Another employee has been given your duties
• It would be easier to keep the replacement employee

What if the Organisation Has Been Reorganised?

A genuine reorganisation may affect the practical ability to return you to exactly the same position.

However, the employer must still respect your statutory return-to-work rights.

Where the original role genuinely no longer exists or it is not reasonably practicable for you to return to it after Additional Maternity Leave, an appropriate alternative may need to be identified.

If you believe the employer is using a reorganisation as an excuse to remove your role because you took maternity leave, this could give rise to claims involving:

• Pregnancy and maternity discrimination
• Automatic unfair dismissal
• Ordinary unfair dismissal where applicable
• Constructive dismissal in appropriate circumstances

For further information, see Pregnancy Discrimination and Constructive Dismissal.

What if You Face Disciplinary Proceedings During Maternity Leave?

Being on maternity leave does not provide immunity from genuine disciplinary proceedings.

An employer can investigate legitimate allegations and, where necessary, conduct a disciplinary procedure.

However, it must ensure that maternity leave does not place you at a disadvantage.

The employer should consider:

• How and when to contact you
• Whether meetings need to be rearranged
• Whether remote participation is appropriate
• Whether additional preparation time is needed
• Your health and personal circumstances
• Whether the procedure can fairly continue

During your compulsory maternity leave immediately after birth, you cannot carry out work or use KIT days.

However, the law does not impose a blanket rule that your employer cannot make any contact with you during those first two weeks.

Any contact should be necessary, appropriate and sensitive.

For further guidance, see Dismissal and Disciplinary Process.

Can You Carry Over Holiday Because of Maternity Leave?

Yes.

If maternity leave prevents you from taking your statutory annual leave during the relevant holiday year, your employer must allow the affected statutory holiday to be carried forward.

This can potentially include your full 5.6 weeks of statutory entitlement where you were unable to take it because of maternity leave.

For someone working five days each week, 5.6 weeks normally equals 28 days.

You may also have additional contractual carry-over rights.

What Redundancy Protection Do You Have During Pregnancy?

Since 6 April 2024, special redundancy protection starts when you tell your employer that you are pregnant.

The protection does not mean that you can never be selected for redundancy.

You may still participate in a genuine redundancy selection process where your role is at risk.

However, if you are selected for redundancy and there is a suitable alternative vacancy available, your employer must generally offer that vacancy to you as a priority rather than requiring you to compete for it in the normal way.

For further guidance, see Redundancy.

How Long Does the Additional Redundancy Protection Last?

For maternity cases, the extended redundancy protected period generally:

• Starts when you tell your employer that you are pregnant
• Continues during pregnancy
• Continues during maternity leave
• Ends 18 months after the baby's date of birth

If you do not tell your employer the exact date of birth, the period is generally calculated using the expected week of childbirth.

The protected period ends earlier if your employment itself ends.

Does Redundancy Protection Guarantee You a Job?

No.

The protection does not mean your role can never be made redundant.

If there is a genuine redundancy situation and no suitable alternative vacancy exists, your employment may still lawfully end.

The employer must still:

• Have a genuine redundancy situation
• Follow a fair procedure
• Apply fair selection principles
• Avoid pregnancy and maternity discrimination
• Comply with the special alternative-vacancy rules

If a suitable alternative vacancy exists during the protected period, you should generally be offered it as a priority.

Can Redundancy Because of Pregnancy or Maternity Leave Be Lawful?

No.

It is unlawful to select you for redundancy because:

• You are pregnant
• You are taking maternity leave
• You intend to take maternity leave
• You have exercised maternity rights

A dismissal for a pregnancy or maternity-related reason can be automatically unfair, regardless of your length of service.

It may also amount to pregnancy and maternity discrimination.

For further guidance, see Pregnancy Discrimination.

How is Redundancy Pay Calculated During Maternity Leave?

If you are made redundant while on maternity or another qualifying family-related leave, statutory redundancy pay should generally be calculated using your normal contractual weekly pay, rather than the reduced maternity pay you are receiving at the time.

The same principle is important where contractual redundancy pay is calculated by reference to normal salary.

Your employer should not reduce your redundancy entitlement simply because you are receiving SMP.

What if You Are Dismissed Before or During Maternity Leave?

If you have already satisfied the qualifying conditions for SMP, dismissal does not normally remove the employer's obligation to pay the remaining statutory entitlement.

You may therefore continue to receive SMP for the relevant part of the 39-week maternity pay period even though your employment has ended.

Separate claims may arise if the dismissal was connected with:

• Pregnancy
• Maternity leave
• Exercising maternity rights

A dismissal for these reasons can potentially amount to both:

• Automatic unfair dismissal
• Pregnancy and maternity discrimination

For further guidance, see Unfair Dismissal and Pregnancy Discrimination.

Are You Entitled to Written Reasons for Dismissal?

Yes.

If you are dismissed while pregnant or while on maternity leave, your employer must provide written reasons for the dismissal.

This right applies regardless of your length of service.

You do not need to have completed the ordinary qualifying period for unfair dismissal in order to receive written reasons in these circumstances.

What Happens at the End of Maternity Leave?

Unless you tell your employer otherwise, it will normally assume that you intend to take the full 52 weeks of Statutory Maternity Leave.

Your employer should confirm your expected return date after you notify it of your maternity leave.

If you want to return earlier than the date previously expected, you must normally give your employer at least 8 weeks' notice.

The same notice requirement generally applies if you previously told the employer you would return earlier and then want to change the date again, subject to the maximum 52-week entitlement.

Can You Take Annual Leave Before Returning to Work?

Yes.

Because annual leave continues to accrue throughout maternity leave, employees often arrange to take some accumulated holiday immediately after maternity leave ends.

For example, you might:

• Finish maternity leave
• Begin a period of annual leave
• Physically return to work after the annual leave ends

Your statutory maternity leave itself still ends on the agreed maternity leave end date.

The annual leave that follows is a separate form of leave.

You should therefore agree the dates with your employer in the normal way.

What is Your Right to Return After Ordinary Maternity Leave?

If you take no more than 26 weeks of maternity leave, you are normally entitled to return to:

• The same job
• The same contractual terms
• The same conditions of employment

Your employer should not downgrade your position simply because you have been absent on maternity leave.

What is Your Right to Return After Additional Maternity Leave?

If you take more than 26 weeks of maternity leave, you are still normally entitled to return to the same job.

Only where it is not reasonably practicable for the employer to allow you to return to that job can it instead offer you another role.

The alternative must be:

• Suitable
• Appropriate
• On terms no less favourable than your previous position

This can include equivalent:

• Pay
• Benefits
• Holiday entitlement
• Status
• Seniority
• Location

A preference to retain your maternity cover is not, by itself, a lawful reason for denying you your original job.

What if You Are Offered a Different or Less Favourable Role?

You should consider carefully:

• Why the original role is said to be unavailable
• Whether the alternative is genuinely suitable
• Whether the terms are less favourable
• Whether a genuine reorganisation has occurred
• Whether maternity leave influenced the decision

If your employer cannot provide a legitimate explanation, possible legal issues can include:

• Pregnancy and maternity discrimination
• Breach of maternity return rights
• Unfair dismissal
• Constructive dismissal

You should obtain advice before resigning or rejecting an alternative role where the position is disputed.