Maternity pay - what you're entitled to

There’s a good chance you’ll be able to get maternity pay if you're having a baby and you have a job or had one recently. You could get one of these:

• statutory maternity pay: the standard type of maternity pay - if you're entitled to this it's the legal minimum your employer can pay you

• contractual maternity pay: some employers offer this instead of statutory maternity pay - your contract or company maternity policy should tell you if yours does

• Maternity Allowance: you might get this from the government if you can’t get statutory maternity pay from your employer

These payments would be as well as any maternity leave you get.

It’s also worth seeing what other help and benefits you're entitled to - such as Child Tax Credit, a Healthy Start card and a Sure Start grant. You can claim some benefits before you give birth, so it’s worth checking as soon as you can.

When you can get statutory maternity pay

This is the type of maternity pay that most people get. Your employer has to pay you this if:

• you work for your employer in the 15th week before your baby is due and have worked for them for at least 26 weeks before that

• your average pay, before tax, is at least £123 a week

Your average pay is worked out over 8 weeks, finishing roughly 15 weeks before your due date. Contact your nearest Citizens Advice if you're close to the minimum pay and need to work out your exact average.

If your employer is taken over by another business your weeks of work will include time working for both employers.

If you're entitled to it, also check how to get statutory maternity pay, including what to do if your employer won't pay.

Check if you can get statutory maternity pay, maternity leave or Maternity Allowance

You can check if you can get maternity leave or pay using the calculator on GOV.UK.

You can use the calculator to check the dates you’ll need to have worked to get statutory maternity pay.

The calculator will also tell you if you can get paternity leave or pay or Maternity Allowance.

You’ll need the following information to use the calculator:

• your baby’s due date

• your employment status, for example ‘employee’ or ‘worker’

• the date you started working at your job 

• the end date, if your job has ended

• how much you get paid

Common issues

When you can get contractual maternity pay

Some jobs give you contractual maternity pay as a benefit of working there. What you get depends on your employer, but you should never be worse off than if you just got statutory maternity pay.

Check your contract or company maternity policy, or ask your employer whether you get contractual maternity pay.

You might get contractual maternity pay even if you wouldn’t be able to get statutory maternity pay. In this case you might be able to get Maternity Allowance as well.

When you can get Maternity Allowance

You might be able to get Maternity Allowance if you can’t get statutory maternity pay. It comes from the government rather than your employer.

You can usually get Maternity Allowance if you've been employed or self-employed for 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before your due date.

You’ll need to have earned at least £30 a week for at least 13 of those weeks.

You might also be able to get Maternity Allowance if you haven’t been employed or self-employed but your spouse or civil partner runs a business and you’ve been helping them.

The rules about Maternity Allowance can be complicated. The best ways to check what you can get are to use the calculator on GOV.UK or contact your nearest Citizens Advice for help.

If you can’t get any maternity pay

You might be eligible for Universal Credit or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). Check what benefits you can get.