Guidance

Benefits available during pregnancy – background information

Updated 23 December 2024

1. Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance

Pregnant working women and those recently employed can usually get Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) from their employer or Maternity Allowance (MA) through Jobcentre Plus.

SMP or MA is paid for a maximum of 39 weeks, starting, at the earliest, 11 weeks before the expected week of confinement (EWC) and, at the latest, the day following the baby’s birth. Within these limits working women can choose when to start receiving SMP or MA, unless they:

• have already given birth
• are absent from work due to pregnancy related illness

If a woman gives birth earlier than 11 weeks before her EWC or before the start of her payment period, her SMP and MA will start from the day following the birth.

If a woman is absent from work wholly or partly because of her pregnancy in the 4 weeks before the EWC, her SMP or MA will start automatically on the day after the first complete day she is absent.

1.1 SMP eligibility

SMP is payable to women who have been continuously employed by the same employer for at least 26 weeks, by the time she reaches the 15th week before the EWC. In addition, their average weekly earnings must be at least equal to the lower earnings limit for National Insurance contribution purposes.

1.2 MA eligibility

MA is a benefit paid by Jobcentre Plus to:

• pregnant working-women who cannot get SMP
• the self-employed
• the recently employed

To qualify, a woman must have been employed or self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before the EWC (the test period). The 26 weeks do not have to be in a row and part weeks count towards the 26 weeks. In addition, most women must have had average earnings of at least £30 a week in any 13 weeks in the test period.

1.3 Applying for SMP or MA

Normally an application for SMP or MA should be made before the birth.

To avoid any loss of entitlement, a claim for MA must be made within 3 months of the first day of the Maternity Allowance Period (MAP). For most women this will begin between the start of the 11th week before the EWC at the earliest and the day following the actual date of confinement at the latest. For women who are confined before the 11th week before the EWC, the first day of the MAP will be the day following the actual date of confinement. A claim for MA cannot be accepted earlier than the 14th week before the EWC.

There is no claim form for SMP. A woman must notify her employer of the date she wants her SMP to begin at least 28 days before that date. If she is not reasonably able to do this, she should notify her employer of her SMP start date as soon as she is reasonably able to do so. She must also give her employer her Maternity Certificate (MAT B1).

Claim forms for MA are available from GOV.UK, the Jobcentre Plus claim line or from any antenatal clinic.

For detailed information on SMP and MA please see Maternity benefits: technical guidance.

2. New Style Employment and Support Allowance

If a woman is not entitled to SMP or MA she may be able to get New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA). If a woman makes a claim for MA and does not qualify, she will automatically be considered for NSESA.

The qualifying conditions for NSESA are different from those used for MA. NSESA depends upon the payment of National Insurance contributions in the relevant tax years.

NSESA can be paid for 6 weeks before the EWC and for 14 days after the baby is born, subject to satisfying the conditions of entitlement for NSESA. A woman’s MAT B1 is accepted as evidence of having limited capability for work for this period.

3. Universal Credit

Universal Credit (UC) is a payment to help with your living costs. It’s usually paid monthly - or sometimes twice a month in some circumstances. You may be able to get it if you’re on a low income, out of work, or if you cannot work. If you live in Northern Ireland, search for Universal Credit in Northern Ireland for details.

3.1 UC Eligibility

To claim UC you must:

• live in the UK

• be aged 18 or over (there are some exceptions if you’re 16 to 17)

• be under State Pension age

• have £16,000 or less in money, savings and investments

3.2 What you’ll get

How much Universal Credit you get depends on:

• your standard allowance

• any extra amounts that apply to you

• any money taken off your payment

Use a benefits calculator to see how much you could get.

Universal Credit is paid monthly and is based on your circumstances each month. This is called your ‘assessment period’ and it starts the day you make your claim.

3.3 Money taken off your payment

Your payments might be reduced if any of the following apply:

• you are paying back an advance on a Universal Credit payment

• you have more than £6,000 in money, savings and investments

• you would get above the amount limited by the benefit cap

• you’ve been overpaid benefits in the past

• you owe money for Council Tax, court fines, electricity, gas, water or Child Maintenance

• you pay your gas or electricity bill directly from your Universal Credit payment

• you have a paid job

• you have other income – for example, money from pensions or certain other benefits

If you claim UC at the same time as claiming Maternity Allowance, it is taken off your Universal Credit Payment.

If you claim UC at the same time as receiving Statutory Maternity Pay from your employer, it and any other maternity pay from your employer will be taken into account as earnings.

4. Sure Start Maternity Grant

The Sure Start Maternity Grant (SSMG) is available to help low income families with expenses associated with having a new baby. To make a claim for SSMG, parents must provide certified evidence of the pregnancy or birth(s) from a medical practitioner, this can be a MAT B1. The MAT B1 should be submitted with the Sure Start Maternity Grant (SF100) when a claim is made.

As a medical practitioner, you may be asked to provide a MAT B1, or alternative certified evidence to confirm the pregnancy or birth(s).