Maternity pay compared: SMP and Maternity Allowance side by side

There are two main kinds of statutory maternity pay. Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) comes from your employer. Maternity Allowance (MA) comes from the government, for people who can’t get SMP. You can’t get both for the same pregnancy, so it helps to know which one applies to you. Rates here are for 2026 to 2027.

At a glance

	Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)	Maternity Allowance (MA)
Who it’s for	Employees (and many agency and casual workers) paid through PAYE who meet the conditions with their employer	People who can’t get SMP, including the self-employed, people who recently changed or stopped working, and people earning under £129 a week
Who pays it	Your employer, through payroll	The government (Jobcentre Plus)
Work you need	26 weeks with the same employer, continuing into the 15th week before the week your baby is due	Employed or self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before the week your baby is due (they don’t have to be in a row)
Earnings you need	An average of at least £129 a week before tax	At least £30 a week in any 13 of those 66 weeks
First 6 weeks	90% of your average weekly earnings, with no upper limit	£194.32 a week, or 90% of your average weekly earnings if that’s less
Next 33 weeks	£194.32 a week, or 90% of your average weekly earnings if that’s less	£194.32 a week, or 90% of your average weekly earnings if that’s less
Self-employed	Not available	Between £27 and £194.32 a week, depending on your Class 2 National Insurance
Tax and National Insurance	Taken off, like your wages	Tax-free, and you get Class 1 National Insurance credits automatically
Universal Credit	Counts as earnings	Taken off your Universal Credit in full
How to claim	Tell your employer at least 15 weeks before your due date, and give 28 days’ notice of when you want it to start	Send form MA1 once you’ve been pregnant for 26 weeks

The biggest differences

The first 6 weeks

SMP pays 90% of your average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, however much you earn. Maternity Allowance is capped at £194.32 a week from the start. If you earn more than about £216 a week, SMP pays more in those first weeks.

Tax and National Insurance

SMP is paid like your wages, so tax and National Insurance come off it. Maternity Allowance is tax-free, and you get National Insurance credits automatically while you’re on it, which protect your State Pension. If you’re on SMP and don’t earn enough in a tax year for it to count towards your State Pension, you can apply for credits.

Who does the paperwork

For SMP, your employer works out what you’re owed and pays it through payroll. For Maternity Allowance, you claim from the government yourself, and you should get a decision within 20 working days. In Northern Ireland, you claim from the Department for Communities, and decisions take about 35 working days on average.

Which one will I get?

Employed and meet the SMP conditions: SMP from your employer. Many employers also pay more than SMP, so check your contract or staff handbook.
Employed but don’t qualify for SMP, for example because you haven’t worked there for 26 weeks or earn under £129 a week: your employer must give you form SMP1 within 7 days of deciding, explaining why. You can then claim Maternity Allowance and send the SMP1 with your claim.
Self-employed: Maternity Allowance. How much you get depends on your Class 2 National Insurance in the 66 weeks before your baby is due.
Helping in your spouse’s or civil partner’s business without pay: you may get Maternity Allowance of £27 a week for up to 14 weeks.

Things that are the same

Both can start from 11 weeks before the week your baby is due, at the earliest.
Both last up to 39 weeks (14 weeks for Maternity Allowance if you work unpaid in your spouse’s or civil partner’s business). If you take a full year off, the last 13 weeks are unpaid unless your employer pays more.
You’ll need proof of your due date for both, such as your MATB1 form, which your midwife or GP can give you from 20 weeks before your due date.
Neither has to be paid back if you decide not to go back to work.

Your right to maternity leave is separate from your pay. Employees can take up to 52 weeks of maternity leave whichever pay they get.

Questions people ask

Can I get Maternity Allowance and SMP at the same time?

No. If you qualify for SMP in one job, you can’t get Maternity Allowance for the same weeks. If you qualify for SMP with more than one employer, you can get SMP from each of them.

Is Maternity Allowance less than SMP?

Only for the first 6 weeks if you earn more than about £216 a week. After that, both pay £194.32 a week, or 90% of your earnings if that’s less.

I started a new job while pregnant. What can I get?

If you won’t have 26 weeks with your new employer by the 15th week before your due date, you won’t get SMP from them. You may still get Maternity Allowance if you’ve worked enough weeks in the 66 weeks before your due date, including in previous jobs.