A Guide to Statutory Paternity Pay and Shared Parental Leave
Paternity leave has transformed over the past decade. It's no longer just about the mother taking time off — Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) and Shared Parental Leave (ShPL) give both parents real options for taking time off when a child arrives. As a small-business owner or office manager, you need to understand both schemes: who qualifies, how payments are calculated, and what your obligations are.
This guide covers Statutory Paternity Pay and Shared Parental Leave and Pay from your perspective as an employer — the rules, the notice periods, the calculations, and the recovery process.
Statutory Paternity Pay: What You Need to Know
Statutory Paternity Pay is available to eligible employees when their partner has a baby, or when they adopt a child. It provides paid time off for the partner who isn't taking maternity or adoption leave. (And yes, that partner doesn't have to be the biological father — being the partner of the person giving birth is enough.)
An employee qualifies for SPP if they meet all of these:
- They are the biological father, the mother's spouse or partner, or the intended parent in a surrogacy arrangement
- They have been continuously employed by you for at least 26 weeks by the end of the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth (or by the week they are matched with a child for adoption)
- They earn at least the Lower Earnings Limit on average
- They have given you correct notice
- They will be taking time off to care for the child or support the mother
The 26-week qualifying period is the same as for Statutory Maternity Pay — it's one of the few thresholds that applies consistently across UK statutory leave entitlements.
Eligible employees get one or two consecutive weeks of paternity leave — not odd days, not split into two separate weeks. The leave must be taken within 56 days of the birth (or placement for adoption). They need to notify you by the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth with three pieces of information: the expected date of birth, how much leave they're taking, and when they want it to start.
SPP is paid at the flat statutory rate set by the government, or 90% of the employee's average weekly earnings — whichever is lower. Unlike Statutory Maternity Pay, there's no higher earnings-related phase. It's the flat rate throughout. Average weekly earnings are calculated over the eight-week relevant period ending with the qualifying week. SPP is processed through your normal payroll, subject to income tax and National Insurance deductions.
Shared Parental Leave and Pay: The Flexible Option
Shared Parental Leave is where things get flexible. It allows eligible parents to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay between them. The idea is simple: the mother (or primary adopter) curtails her maternity leave early, and the unused balance becomes a shared pot that either parent can take.
Both parents need to meet separate eligibility tests. The mother (or primary adopter) must be entitled to maternity leave or Statutory Maternity Pay and have given notice to curtail it. The partner must have been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks by the 15th week before birth, still be employed when ShPL starts, and share responsibility for the child. Additionally, the other parent must meet an "employment and earnings test" — they must have been employed or self-employed for at least 26 of the 66 weeks before the expected week of childbirth and earned at least a minimum amount in any 13 of those weeks.
The process works like this: the mother curtails her maternity leave (minimum two weeks after birth), the unused weeks convert to a shared pool, both parents submit notices about how much they intend to take and when, and leave can be taken in continuous blocks (which you must accept) or discontinuous blocks (which you can refuse). Unlike Statutory Paternity Leave, both parents can be on leave simultaneously.
Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) is paid at the flat statutory rate, or 90% of average weekly earnings — whichever is lower. The total number of weeks available depends on how many weeks of SMP the mother took first. For example, if she takes 20 weeks of SMP before curtailing, there are 19 weeks of ShPP available (39 minus 20). ShPP is processed through payroll with normal tax and NI deductions and recovered from HMRC the same way as SPP.
Notice for ShPL is more detailed than for SPP. Both parents must give at least eight weeks' notice of their entitlement and intention (including expected week of childbirth, maternity curtailment date, and non-binding timing indication) and eight weeks' notice before each period of leave. Employees get up to three chances to change their planned dates, with eight weeks' notice each time. You must respond to continuous leave requests within 14 days and must accept them. Discontinuous requests can be refused.
Each parent can work up to 20 Shared Parental Leave In Touch (SPLIT) days during ShPL without ending the leave (separate from the 10 KIT days available during maternity leave). SPLIT days are voluntary, and payment is by agreement.
Your Obligations as an Employer
Managing parental leave involves significant administration — but it's manageable if you have a system.
Write a clear parental leave policy that covers eligibility, notice requirements, how to apply, pay arrangements, keeping in touch days, return to work procedures, and employee rights. Share this with all employees before anyone needs it.
Track the dates carefully. The qualifying weeks, notice periods, and leave windows involve multiple overlapping deadlines. Missing one delays payments or creates compliance issues. Use your payroll and HR system (or a spreadsheet with alerts) to track them. The dates matter — late notice is no notice.
Process payroll correctly. SPP and ShPP go through your standard payroll, reported via RTI, and recovered from HMRC via your EPS. Once you've confirmed eligibility and calculated the relevant earnings period, the math is straightforward. Time-tracking tools can help if employees use KIT or SPLIT days, as they need to be logged separately.
Budget for the absence. When an employee takes parental leave, you need to cover their work — whether through temporary staff, redistributed workload, or existing team overtime.
Recover your costs from HMRC. SPP and ShPP are recoverable: small employers (qualifying for Small Employers' Relief) recover 100% plus 3% compensation; all other employers recover 92%. Claim recovery through your Employer Payment Summary as part of your regular RTI submissions. See the Employer's Guide to National Insurance Contributions for more detail.
Protect employee rights. Dismissing an employee or treating them unfairly because they've taken (or plan to take) paternity or shared parental leave is automatically unfair and discriminatory. Employees on parental leave retain all their employment rights, including the right to return to their job on the same terms. This is non-negotiable. ACAS guidance on parental leave and pay covers the legal framework in detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can both parents be on leave at the same time? No for Statutory Paternity Leave — only one parent takes SPP. Yes for Shared Parental Leave — that's the main reason it exists.
What if an employee doesn't take all their maternity leave? If the mother curtails her maternity leave, the unused weeks convert to shared parental leave and pay for either parent to use. If she takes all 52 weeks, no ShPL is available.
How do I know if an employee qualifies? Verify the 26-week employment threshold and earnings level. Ask them to confirm they meet the conditions and keep a record. For more detail, refer them to ACAS guidance.
Do I have to accept discontinuous leave requests? For Statutory Paternity Leave: no — one or two consecutive weeks, that's it. For Shared Parental Leave: you must accept continuous blocks, but can refuse non-consecutive ones. If you refuse, they can take it as one continuous period instead.
Can I deduct anything from SPP or ShPP payments? Income tax and National Insurance only. No other deductions.
What's the difference between KIT days and SPLIT days? KIT days (up to 10) are available during maternity leave. SPLIT days (up to 20 per parent) are available during Shared Parental Leave. Both allow work without ending leave. Payment for both is by agreement.
Do the same rules apply to adoption and surrogacy? Yes, but the qualifying dates are different — you count from the week the child is matched with you, not the expected week of birth. Eligibility conditions are otherwise identical.
What happens if the employee gives late notice? If notice is less than 15 weeks before the expected week of childbirth (or matching week for adoption), you can refuse the leave. It's usually better to work with the employee on revised dates than to dispute it.
Key takeaways
Paternity leave and shared parental leave give employees genuine flexibility in how they manage the arrival of a new child. Your role is to understand the qualifying conditions, respond to notices within the required timescales, calculate and pay statutory amounts through your normal payroll, recover eligible costs from HMRC, and protect employee rights — dismissal for taking leave is automatically unfair.
Managing parental leave transitions gets simpler when you have systems in place to track dates and handle calculations. Many small-business owners find that bringing parental leave administration into the same system as their payroll and HR records — rather than managing it separately — cuts the admin burden significantly.