How to work out your maternity leave dates and pay

Working out when your maternity leave starts, how much you will be paid and how long for can feel like a maze. Read this guide to map it out step by step and check out our free calculator which does all the working out for you.

When can maternity leave start?

You can start your maternity leave from 11 weeks before your due date. It also starts automatically if your baby arrives early, or if you're off work with a pregnancy-related illness in the last four weeks before your due date.

Most people start their maternity leave at around 36 - 39 weeks of pregnancy, but many work right up until their due date or the onset of labour. It all depends on balancing time with baby with resting and nesting before the baby is born.

For those with shorter stints of enhanced pay and those not intending to take off as much time due to this that can often be a reason to push the start date as far back as possible. For those with a strenuous or stressful job (even with reasonable adjustments) it can be sensible to rest up in those last few weeks or months. In addition, for those who have pregnancy symptoms such as pelvic girdle pain (PGP), taking maternity leave earlier can help manage those symptoms in those later weeks of pregnancy.

To qualify for leave and Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), you generally need to have told your employer you're pregnant (and your intended start date) by the 15th week before your due date. This is known as the "qualifying week". You also must have worked continuously for the same employer for at least 26 weeks by then, and earn on average at least the lower earnings limit (£125 a week for 2025/26, £129 for 2026/27). To actually claim SMP you'll also need to give your employer your MATB1 maternity certificate, which your midwife or doctor issues from around 20 weeks.

Step 1: Find your key dates

• Due date - the anchor for everything.
• Earliest start - 11 weeks before the due date.
• Qualifying week - the 15th week before the due date, when your notice and eligibility are checked.

Rather than counting on a calendar, pop your due date into the Maternity Pay Calculator and it maps your pay across whatever start date you choose.

Step 2: Count your weeks of leave and pay

You can take up to 52 weeks of maternity leave - 26 weeks "ordinary" and 26 weeks "additional". Of those:

• up to 39 weeks are paid, and
• the last 13 weeks are usually unpaid.

So the timeline looks like: leave start → 39 paid weeks → up to 13 unpaid weeks → return to work. You keep building up annual leave the whole time you're off, so many people add that accrued holiday to the start or end to extend their time at home.

You don't have to take all the leave yourself. By ending your maternity leave early, you and your partner can convert the remaining leave and pay into Shared Parental Leave, and split it between you. You can take this time off together, or take turns.

Step 3: Work out your maternity pay

Statutory Maternity Pay runs for 39 weeks:

• First 6 weeks: 90% of your average weekly earnings (no upper cap).
• Next 33 weeks: the lower of the flat statutory rate (£187.18 a week for 2025/26, £194.32 for 2026/27) or 90% of your average weekly earnings.

Your "average weekly earnings" are based on what you were paid in roughly the 8 weeks up to the qualifying week - so a pay rise or bonus in that window can nudge your pay up. This is where going part time in pregnancy can really affect your maternity leave pay. If you can, aim to earn as much during this time as possible.

Enhanced (occupational) maternity pay

The legal minimum is SMP. Some employers offer more on top which is called enhanced or occupational maternity pay. This is voluntary and varies a lot, so check your employer's maternity leave policy.

A common example is full pay for the 6 weeks, then half pay for 12 weeks, before dropping to SMP. If yours offers anything extra, add it into the calculator.

Many employers also require a minimum length of service before you qualify for enhanced maternity pay - often around a year by your due date, though it isn't uncommon to see policies asking for two or more years. It's one of the hardest things to weigh up when job-hunting if you're planning a family in the next few years, as you often won't know a company's policy until your first day.

Lots of enhanced schemes also require you to come back to work for a minimum period (often 3-6 months), or you have to repay the enhanced portion. SMP is never clawed back, but the extra your employer adds often is.

In addition, many employers offer a return-to-work payment, which may be paid every month for a few months, or after a certain amount of time back at work. This can really help with childcare costs!

Step 4: What you'll actually take home

The headline SMP figure isn't what lands in your account - tax, National Insurance and pension come off first. The good news: because PAYE tax is worked out cumulatively across the year, many people get some tax refunded in the later, lower-paid months, so your take-home tends to even out. The Maternity Pay Calculator shows your take-home after tax, NI, pension and Child Benefit, week by week.

You can often ask your employer before you go on leave what you'll be paid while on maternity leave - though they usually give you a gross figure. Use the calculator to turn that into your net pay, after tax, National Insurance and pension.

If you live in Scotland

SMP is the same across the UK, but Scottish income tax bands are different, which changes your take-home. Set your region in the calculator so the tax is right.

Self-employed? You may get Maternity Allowance

If you don't qualify for SMP - for example you're self-employed or recently changed jobs - you may be able to claim Maternity Allowance instead, a similar weekly amount for up to 39 weeks. Our self-employed maternity calculator works this out.

Don't forget the rest of your household income

Maternity pay is only part of the picture. Child Benefit adds to your monthly income, and if you're heading back to work, childcare costs and the free-hours schemes matter too. It's worth running the Child Benefit calculator and Childcare Cost calculator alongside.

Plan the timing, too. In England, working parents only qualify for the 30 funded hours from the term after their child turns 9 months, and childcare is usually paid for upfront. Usually when you go back to work you won't get your full pay until the end of that month - so there is a gap between your last maternity payment, and your first full pay that you will need to budget for.

A quick note on KIT days

You can work up to 10 "Keeping in Touch" days during your leave without losing your SMP. This is handy for staying connected, and for topping up your pay a little.

Map it all out in a minute

Instead of doing this by hand, drop your due date, salary and any enhanced pay into the free Maternity Pay Calculator. It's private, needs no sign-up, and gives you your leave dates and week-by-week take-home straight away.

This is general information, not financial or legal advice. Figures are current for the 2026/27 tax year - always check the latest official guidance on GOV.UK below.