Maternity Pay & Leave Calculator
Enter your due date and pay to see how much maternity pay you will get each week, your qualifying week and leave dates, and your take-home after tax. Statutory Maternity Pay is 90% of your average weekly earnings for 6 weeks, then £194.32 or 90% (whichever is lower) for 33 weeks.
Updated 2026-10-08 · 2026/27 HMRC rates
| Period | Gross a week | Take-home a week | Period total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1–6 | £553.85 | £466.46 | £3,323.10 |
| Weeks 7–39 | £194.32 | £194.32 | £6,412.56 |
| Weeks 40–52 | £0.00 | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| 52 weeks | £9,211 | £9,735.66 |
| Expected week of childbirth starts | Sun, 11 April 2027 |
| Qualifying week (15th week before) | Sun, 27 December 2026 – Sat, 2 January 2027 |
| Tell your employer by | Sat, 2 January 2027 |
| Must have started this job by (26 weeks’ service) | Sat, 11 July 2026 |
| Earliest maternity leave / SMP start | Sun, 24 January 2027 |
| Maternity Allowance test period starts | Sun, 4 January 2026 |
| Keeping in touch (KIT) days | Up to 10, paid at the agreed rate |
| Partner’s Statutory Paternity Pay | £194.32 a week for 2 weeks |
| Your average weekly earnings | £615.38 (LEL £129) |
- Gross weekly pay
- Take-home
Your result is ready
Key facts
- The personal allowance stays at £12,570 in 2026/27 and is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income over £100,000, so it is gone entirely at £125,140 (HMRC income tax rates and allowances).
- In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27 income tax is 20% on the first £37,700 of taxable income, 40% up to £125,140 and 45% above that (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Scotland has six bands in 2026/27: 19% starter on the first £3,967 of taxable income, 20% basic to £16,956, 21% intermediate to £31,092, 42% higher to £62,430, 45% advanced to £125,140 and 48% top above that (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Budget 2025 extended the freeze on income tax thresholds and the equivalent employee and self-employed National Insurance thresholds for a further three years, from April 2028 to April 2031 (HM Treasury Budget 2025).
- Employees pay Class 1 National Insurance at 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 a year and 2% above that in 2026/27 (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Employers pay 15% National Insurance on earnings above the £5,000 secondary threshold, and eligible employers can claim an Employment Allowance of £10,500 (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Self-employed people pay Class 4 National Insurance at 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above that; voluntary Class 2 costs £3.65 a week if profits are below £7,105 (GOV.UK self-employed National Insurance rates).
- Dividend tax rose by 2 percentage points from April 2026: the basic rate is now 10.75% and the higher rate 35.75%, while the additional rate stays at 39.35% and the dividend allowance stays at £500 (GOV.UK tax on dividends).
Related
- NHS maternity pay calculator
- Tax-Free Childcare calculator
- Child Benefit tax charge
- Statutory Sick Pay calculator
How Statutory Maternity Pay is calculated
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is paid for up to 39 weeks. For the first 6 weeks you get 90% of your average weekly earnings (AWE), with no upper limit. For the remaining 33 weeks you get £194.32 a week or 90% of AWE, whichever is lower. Your employer pays it through payroll and claims most of it back from HMRC.
AWE is your average gross pay over the 8 weeks (or 2 monthly paydays) up to the end of the qualifying week, the 15th week before the week your baby is due. A pay rise backdated into that period counts, so tell your employer if one is agreed. These figures assume steady pay with no pension or student loan; take-home uses the same tax engine as the calculator.
| Salary | Weeks 1–6 (a week) | Weeks 7–39 (a week) | Total SMP | Take-home in weeks 1–6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £20,000 | £346.16 | £194.32 | £8,490 | £316.92 |
| £30,000 | £519.24 | £194.32 | £9,528 | £441.54 |
| £45,000 | £778.85 | £194.32 | £11,086 | £628.46 |
| £60,000 | £1,038.47 | £194.32 | £12,643 | £805.34 |
Who qualifies for SMP
To get SMP from your employer you need all of these:
- You have worked for the same employer continuously for at least 26 weeks into the qualifying week.
- Your average weekly earnings are at least £129, the lower earnings limit for 2026/27.
- You tell your employer at least 15 weeks before the baby is due, and give at least 28 days' notice of when you want SMP to start.
- You give proof of the pregnancy, usually the MATB1 form from your midwife or GP.
Maternity Allowance if you don’t qualify for SMP
If you are self-employed, changed jobs recently or earn less than the SMP threshold, you may get Maternity Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions instead. Employed people qualify if they worked for at least 26 of the 66 weeks before the due week and earned at least £30 a week in any 13 of them. It pays £194.32 a week or 90% of average earnings, whichever is less, for up to 39 weeks.
Self-employed people get the full rate if they paid Class 2 National Insurance for enough weeks, and £27 a week if they paid none. Someone who helps in a spouse's or civil partner's business unpaid can get £27 a week for up to 14 weeks. Maternity Allowance is not taxable.
Key dates: a worked example
Say your baby is due on 12 May 2027. The expected week of childbirth starts on Sunday 9 May 2027. Your qualifying week runs from 24 January 2027 to 30 January 2027, so you must tell your employer by then and must have started the job by 8 August 2026. The earliest your leave and SMP can start is 21 February 2027.
Leave starts automatically if you are off with a pregnancy-related illness in the 4 weeks before the due week, or if the baby arrives early. You must take at least 2 weeks off after the birth (4 weeks in a factory). Statutory Maternity Leave lasts 52 weeks in total: 26 weeks of ordinary and 26 of additional leave, so the last 13 weeks are unpaid unless your employer pays more.
Is maternity pay taxed?
Yes. SMP counts as earnings, so income tax, National Insurance, student loan and pension contributions come off it through payroll. On a £30,000 salary, weeks 1 to 6 pay £519.24 gross and about £441.54 after tax and NI; from week 7, £194.32 a week is below the weekly tax and NI thresholds, so it is usually paid in full. Because your income drops for the year, a cumulative tax code often hands back tax during leave, so many payslips show less tax than this.
Holiday keeps building up for the whole 52 weeks.
Enhanced maternity pay, KIT days and partners
Many employers pay more than SMP. A typical scheme is a number of weeks at full pay followed by weeks at half pay, with SMP counted inside it rather than on top. On a £36,000 salary, 12 weeks at full pay and 12 at half pay gives £15,376 over the year against £10,151 of SMP alone. Some schemes require you to return for a set period or repay the extra. The NHS scheme is covered by our NHS maternity pay calculator.
You can work up to 10 keeping in touch (KIT) days without ending your leave or losing SMP; pay for them is agreed with your employer. On Shared Parental Leave you get up to 20 SPLIT days instead. A partner can get 2 weeks of Statutory Paternity Pay at £194.32 or 90% of earnings, whichever is lower. Statutory Shared Parental Pay uses the same weekly rate.
Frequently asked questions
Is maternity pay taxed?
Statutory Maternity Pay is taxed and has National Insurance deducted like normal pay. Maternity Allowance from DWP is not taxable.
How much maternity pay will I get?
90% of your average weekly pay for 6 weeks, then £194.32 a week (or 90% if lower) for 33 weeks. On £30,000 that is £9,528 in total before tax.
When does maternity pay start?
When your leave starts, which can be from 11 weeks before the due week, or the day after the birth if the baby comes first.
Can I get SMP if I am leaving my job?
Yes. If you qualify, SMP is still due even if you leave or do not plan to go back. You don’t have to repay it. Enhanced pay from your employer may have return conditions.
Is there an HMRC maternity pay calculator?
GOV.UK has a maternity and paternity calculator for employers. This one uses the same rates and adds tax, take-home and Maternity Allowance.
How much is paternity pay?
£194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, for up to 2 weeks.
Do I build up holiday on maternity leave?
Yes, for the whole 52 weeks. You can take it before or after your leave.
Sources
Figures are taken from official government publications and were last reviewed on 2026-10-08.
- HMRC: Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027
- GOV.UK: Tax on dividends
- HM Treasury: Budget 2025
- HMRC: Income Tax rates and allowances for current and past years
- GOV.UK: Tax on savings interest – how much is tax free
- GOV.UK: Self-employed National Insurance rates
- HMRC: Capital Gains Tax rates and annual tax-free allowances
- GOV.UK: Business Asset Disposal Relief
- HMRC: Pension schemes rates and allowances
- HMRC: Work out your tapered annual allowance
- GOV.UK: Workplace pensions – what you, your employer and the government pay
- The Pensions Regulator: Work out who to put into a pension
- HMRC: Corporation Tax rates and allowances
- HMRC: Tax credits, Child Benefit and Guardian’s Allowance rates
- GOV.UK: High Income Child Benefit Charge
- GOV.UK: Marriage Allowance
- GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income
- GOV.UK: Tax-Free Childcare
- GOV.UK: VAT rates
- GOV.UK: VAT registration – when to register
- GOV.UK: Maternity pay and leave – pay
- GOV.UK: Maternity pay and leave – eligibility
- GOV.UK: Maternity pay and leave – leave
- GOV.UK: Maternity Allowance – what you’ll get
- GOV.UK: Maternity Allowance – eligibility
- GOV.UK: Employee rights when on leave (KIT and SPLIT days)
- GOV.UK: Paternity pay and leave – pay
Reviewed by Kashif Nazir Khan on 2026-10-08 · software engineer and developer with an interest in accounting and taxation