Statutory Maternity Pay, known as SMP, is the minimum amount of pay an employer in the United Kingdom must pay an eligible employee while she is on maternity leave. It is separate from maternity leave itself: leave is the right to be away from work, while SMP is the money paid during part of that time away. The rules are set by the government, the rates change each April, and the current figures apply for the 2026 to 2027 tax year. This guide explains how much SMP is worth, who qualifies, the deadlines that matter, and what to do if you cannot get it.

The figures in this guide are the rates in force from 5 April 2026, as published on GOV.UK. They are the 2026 to 2027 rates: the weekly flat rate is £194.32, up from £187.18 in the previous year, and the earnings threshold is £129 a week, up from £125. Rates are normally uprated every April, so always check the current GOV.UK page before relying on a figure for a new claim.

What is Statutory Maternity Pay?

SMP is paid by your employer through the normal payroll, in the same way as your wages, with tax and National Insurance deducted as usual. It is paid for up to 39 weeks. That is shorter than Statutory Maternity Leave, which lasts up to 52 weeks, so the final 13 weeks of leave are unpaid unless your employer offers something more generous. Many employers do offer enhanced maternity pay on top of the statutory minimum, under a company maternity scheme, but they cannot offer less than the statutory amount.

SMP is not a benefit claimed from the Department for Work and Pensions. Your employer pays it and then reclaims most of it from HM Revenue and Customs: usually 92 per cent, or 109 per cent if the employer qualifies for Small Employers’ Relief. That is why the claim is made to your employer, not to the government, and why your employer has duties to confirm your entitlement and to explain any refusal in writing.

How much is Statutory Maternity Pay in 2026/27?

SMP is paid in two parts. For the first six weeks you receive 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings before tax, with no upper limit. For the remaining 33 weeks you receive the lower of £194.32 a week or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings. The £194.32 figure is the statutory flat rate for 2026 to 2027, in force from 5 April 2026.

A worked example makes the two-part structure clear. If your average weekly earnings are £500, the first six weeks are paid at 90 per cent, which is £450 a week, giving £2,700. For the remaining 33 weeks, 90 per cent of £500 would be £450, which is higher than the flat rate, so you receive £194.32 a week, giving £6,412.56. Your total SMP over 39 weeks would be £9,112.56. If your average weekly earnings are lower, the flat rate may never come into play: on average weekly earnings of £200, 90 per cent is £180, which is below £194.32, so all 39 weeks are paid at £180 a week, giving £7,020 in total.

Average weekly earnings are worked out from the eight weeks ending with the qualifying week, which is the 15th week before the week your baby is due. The calculation uses gross pay before tax, and it generally includes overtime, bonuses and commission paid in that period. Because the eight-week window matters, a pay rise or a period of unpaid leave in those weeks can change the amount, so it is worth asking your employer or payroll team how your figure was calculated if the amount looks wrong.

Who qualifies for Statutory Maternity Pay?

To qualify for SMP you must meet three conditions. First, you must have worked for your employer continuously for at least 26 weeks continuing into the qualifying week, the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth. Second, you must earn on average at least £129 a week in the relevant eight-week period. Third, you must give your employer the correct notice and proof that you are pregnant.

The qualifying week is the key date, and it catches some people out. It is not the week the baby is due, and it is not the week you start your leave: it is 15 weeks before the expected week of childbirth. Your 26 weeks of continuous employment must run into that week. Changing jobs late in pregnancy can therefore mean you do not qualify with the new employer, even if you have worked for years elsewhere. You must also still be employed by that employer in the qualifying week. Agency workers and people classed as workers rather than employees have different rules, and should check their position separately.

The earnings test is an average, not a single week. You need average weekly earnings of at least £129, the lower earnings limit for 2026 to 2027, across the eight weeks up to and including the qualifying week. If your pay varies, a few low weeks will not necessarily disqualify you, because the test looks at the average. If you earn below the threshold, you will not get SMP, but you may be able to claim Maternity Allowance instead, as explained below.

How to claim Statutory Maternity Pay

Claiming SMP is a matter of telling your employer in good time and giving them the proof they need. At least 15 weeks before your due date, tell your employer when the baby is due and when you want to start your maternity leave. Your employer can ask for this in writing. For the pay itself, tell your employer that you want to stop work to have a baby and the day you want your SMP to start, giving at least 28 days’ notice, in writing if your employer asks for it.

You also need to give your employer proof of the pregnancy. Within 21 days of your SMP start date, or as soon as possible if the baby is born early, give your employer either a letter from your doctor or midwife or your MATB1 certificate. Doctors and midwives issue the MATB1 no more than 20 weeks before the due date. You will not get SMP if you do not give your employer proof that the baby is due, so do not leave this step until the last minute.

Your employer must confirm within 28 days how much SMP you will get and when it will start and stop, and must write to you within 28 days confirming your leave start and end dates. If your employer decides you are not eligible, they must give you form SMP1 within seven days of making that decision and explain why. Keep copies of every notice you give and every letter you receive: dates matter if there is ever a dispute.

Statutory Maternity Leave: 52 weeks away, 39 weeks paid

Statutory Maternity Leave lasts 52 weeks, made up of 26 weeks of Ordinary Maternity Leave followed by 26 weeks of Additional Maternity Leave. You do not have to take the full 52 weeks, but you must take two weeks’ leave after your baby is born, or four weeks if you work in a factory. You can usually start your leave from 11 weeks before the expected week of childbirth, and leave also starts automatically if your baby is born early or if you are off work for a pregnancy-related illness in the four weeks before the week your baby is due.

Because SMP covers only 39 of the 52 weeks, the last 13 weeks are unpaid under the statutory scheme. Some people return to work at that point, some use accrued annual leave, and some rely on a more generous employer scheme. If you want to change your return-to-work date, you must give your employer at least eight weeks’ notice. You are also allowed up to 10 keeping-in-touch days during your leave, when you can work for your employer without bringing your leave or your pay to an end, and you may be able to take some of your leave as Shared Parental Leave, in which case you would receive Statutory Shared Parental Pay at £194.32 a week or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.

SMP and leave are still available if your baby is born early, is stillborn after the start of your 24th week of pregnancy, or dies after being born. You cannot get SMP if you go into police custody during your maternity pay period, and it will not restart when you are discharged. You cannot get Statutory Maternity Leave if you have a child through surrogacy, although you could get Statutory Adoption Leave and Pay instead.

If you do not qualify: Maternity Allowance

If you cannot get SMP, you may be able to get Maternity Allowance from the government instead. This is the fallback for people who are self-employed, who changed jobs too late to meet the 26-week rule, who earned below the £129 threshold, or who recently stopped working. For 2026 to 2027, Maternity Allowance is £194.32 a week or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, for up to 39 weeks.

The work test for Maternity Allowance is different from the SMP test: you must have been employed or self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before the expected week of childbirth, earning at least £30 a week on average over any 13 of those weeks. You can claim Maternity Allowance as soon as you have been pregnant for 26 weeks, using form MA1 from GOV.UK. If your employer refuses SMP, the form SMP1 they must give you is the document you need to support a Maternity Allowance claim, so ask for it if it is not offered.

Other help may also be available. You could get a £500 Sure Start Maternity Grant, usually if it is your first child, and you can use a benefits calculator to check whether you can get Universal Credit or Child Benefit. None of these replace SMP, but they can matter during the unpaid weeks at the end of leave, so check them early rather than waiting until the money runs short.

What to do if there is a problem with your SMP

If you think your SMP is wrong, ask your employer to explain it first, in writing, with the figures they used. Mistakes in the eight-week earnings calculation and in the qualifying week are the most common causes of an incorrect amount, and both can be checked against your payslips. If you disagree about the amount, or your employer cannot pay because, for example, the business is insolvent, contact HMRC’s Statutory Payment Disputes Team, whose details are on the GOV.UK maternity pay and leave pages.

Do not let a dispute drift. The deadlines for notice, proof and return-to-work dates are short, and a late challenge is harder to resolve than an early one. If your employer refuses SMP, they must give you form SMP1 within seven days of the decision: if they do not, ask for it in writing and keep a record of the request. Citizens Advice and ACAS can also advise on maternity rights, and an employment solicitor can advise if the dispute involves dismissal or unfair treatment connected to pregnancy.

Statutory Maternity Pay: the key points

SMP is paid for 39 weeks: 90 per cent of average weekly earnings for the first six weeks, then the lower of £194.32 a week or 90 per cent of earnings for the next 33 weeks. You qualify if you have 26 weeks of continuous employment running into the qualifying week, earn at least £129 a week on average, and give the correct notice and proof of pregnancy. Tell your employer at least 15 weeks before your due date, give 28 days’ notice for the pay to start, and hand in your MATB1 certificate within 21 days of your start date. Leave lasts 52 weeks but only 39 are paid, and Maternity Allowance is the fallback if you do not qualify. Rates change each April, so check the current GOV.UK guidance before you plan around any figure in this guide.