Statutory Pay Rates 2026/27: Simple UK Employer Cheat Sheet

Picture this.

Statutory Rates 2026/27: The Simple UK Employer Guide

It's payroll week. Someone is off sick. Somebody else has just announced they're expecting a baby. Your accountant has emailed. Your phone is pinging. And suddenly somebody asks the big one about statutory rates 2026/27.

• You know it changed in April.
• You know you looked it up recently.
• You absolutely do not know it off the top of your head.

You are not alone.

Every April, statutory rates change and thousands of employers end up frantically Googling SSP, maternity pay, redundancy caps and National Living Wage rates while trying to actually run their business.

So this guide to statutory rates 2026/27 gives you the important bits in plain English:

• what the rate is
• what it is for
• the eligibility point that catches employers out most often
• and where you need to be careful before payroll runs

• No jargon.
• No legal waffle.
• No 47-page government guidance that somehow raises more questions than it answers.

Just the practical stuff you actually need.

The key statutory rates for 2026/27

Here are the headline figures most employers ask about.

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): £123.25 per week, up to 28 weeks
• Family-related statutory pay rate: £194.32 per week
• Lower Earnings Limit (LEL): £129 per week
• Redundancy maximum week's pay cap: £751
• Statutory guarantee pay daily rate: £41
• National Living Wage (21+): £12.71 per hour

Tip: Bookmark this page and send it to payroll. Future you will genuinely be grateful.

First things first: does someone need to earn above the LEL?

Not for everything.

This is the bit that catches loads of employers out.

People often assume the Lower Earnings Limit applies to every statutory payment.

It does not.

What is the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL)?

The Lower Earnings Limit, usually shortened to LEL, is a weekly earnings threshold used for eligibility for some statutory payments.

Current LEL rates

Which payments use the LEL?

Here is the easy way to remember it.

The LEL matters for:

• Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)
• Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)
• Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP)
• Shared Parental Pay (ShPP)
• Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP)
• Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (SNCP)

But the LEL does not decide SSP eligibility.

SSP has its own earnings rules.

Because of course it does.

One of the most common mistakes we see is employers assuming somebody who earns below the LEL cannot qualify for any statutory payment at all. That is not always true.

And this is where getting the correct qualifying period matters.

Useful sources:

• GOV.UK SMP, SPP, SAP, ShPP, SPBP, SNCP overview
• GOV.UK LEL background

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)

What is SSP?

Statutory Sick Pay is the minimum amount employers must pay eligible employees when they are off work sick.

It is paid by the employer, not directly by the government.

And while the idea sounds simple enough, SSP questions create a surprising amount of confusion for employers.

Especially around:

• waiting days
• linked periods of absence
• average earnings
• fit notes
• part-time employees
• zero-hours workers

SSP rate for 2026/27

• £123.25 per week

Eligible employees can receive SSP for up to 28 weeks.

Quick SSP checklist

Before paying SSP, check:

• Are they classed as an employee?
• Do they meet SSP earnings rules?
• Are they off sick for a qualifying reason?
• Have they been absent for long enough?
• Is this linked to a previous sickness absence?

From April 2026, SSP is expected to become payable from day one, with waiting days removed, subject to legislation.

If you are reading this later in the tax year, double-check the current GOV.UK guidance before payroll runs.

Useful source:

• GOV.UK SSP

Where employers often go wrong with SSP

A big misconception is that SSP is only for full-time employees.

That is not true.

Part-time employees, agency workers and some zero-hours workers can qualify if they meet the eligibility rules.

Another issue is assuming a fit note automatically means SSP applies.

It does not.

The employee still needs to meet the earnings and eligibility tests.

Equally, some employers stop SSP too early because they assume a phased return means payments end immediately.

This is why payroll, HR and line managers all need to communicate properly.

Because trying to untangle SSP mistakes afterwards is never anyone's favourite afternoon.

Useful stat:

• The UK sickness absence rate was 2.5% in 2023, one of the highest since 2004. Source: ONS, Sickness absence in the UK labour market 2023, published 2024

Family-related statutory pay

Most family-related statutory payments use the same weekly rate.

Thankfully.

At least HMRC gave us one tiny bit of consistency.

2026/27 statutory pay rate

• £194.32 per week

How payment usually works

For most family-related leave:

• The first 6 weeks are paid at 90 percent of average weekly earnings
• The remaining weeks are paid at the lower of:

- 90 percent of earnings

- or the statutory weekly rate

This applies to:

• Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)
• Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)
• Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP)
• Shared Parental Pay (ShPP)
• Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay (SPBP)
• Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (SNCP)

Useful source:

• GOV.UK family-related pay

Quick eligibility checklist for family-related pay

Check:

• Are they an employee?
• Have they worked for you long enough?
• Do they earn at least £129 per week?
• Have they given the correct notice, forms, or evidence?

The bit employers forget most often

Average weekly earnings.

This is the bit that quietly causes problems.

Employers often look at someone's current monthly pay and assume they either qualify or do not qualify.

But statutory family pay usually looks at earnings during a specific qualifying period.

So if somebody had:

• overtime
• commission
• irregular hours
• unpaid leave
• reduced shifts
• maternity-related sickness

It can affect the calculation.

And sometimes the answer is different to what you first expected.

Mini case study

A Hampshire cafe owner called us after refusing SMP because the employee's monthly pay dipped below normal during a quiet trading period.

She assumed:

> "Below the LEL this month means no SMP."

Wrong test.

The qualifying calculation used average weekly earnings across the relevant period.

We re-ran the figures, confirmed eligibility, corrected payroll, and avoided what could easily have become a formal grievance.

Ten minutes of checks saved weeks of stress.

And honestly? That is usually how HR works.

The small checks matter.

Expert quotes:

• ACAS adviser: "Keep clear records of statutory payments and why you paid them." Source: ACAS guidance on pay and absence
• Kate Underwood, HR Queen Bee: "Compliance is financial self-defence. Five minutes of checks beats five hours of clean-up."

Can employers reclaim statutory pay?

Usually, yes.

Most employers can reclaim:

• 92 percent of statutory family-related pay
• 108.5 percent if they qualify for Small Employers' Relief

Who qualifies for Small Employers' Relief?

Generally, employers whose total Class 1 National Insurance liability was £45,000 or less in the previous tax year.

How do employers claim it?

Usually through payroll using an Employer Payment Summary, known as an EPS.

Useful source:

• GOV.UK recover statutory payments

Why this matters for small businesses

Cash flow.

That is usually the real issue.

Especially for smaller employers.

If you are covering maternity pay, adoption pay or shared parental pay, reclaiming correctly makes a real difference.

But we still regularly see:

• claims missed completely
• payroll systems set up incorrectly
• employers unaware they qualify for Small Employers' Relief
• reclaim percentages entered incorrectly

Which means businesses either lose money or end up correcting payroll retrospectively.

Neither option is ideal.

Redundancy pay: the simple version

Redundancy pay depends on:

• age
• length of service
• weekly pay, capped by law

2026/27 redundancy pay cap

• £751 per week

Employees must usually have:

• employee status
• at least 2 years' continuous service
• a genuine redundancy situation

How statutory redundancy pay is calculated

For each full year of service:

Maximum service counted is 20 years.

Useful source:

• GOV.UK redundancy pay

Important reminder about redundancy

Redundancy is not just about the payment.

Even if the calculation itself is correct, you still need:

• consultation
• fair selection
• proper communication
• evidence of the business reason
• a fair process overall

We see employers focus entirely on the redundancy pay figure while skipping the process side.

And unfortunately, that is often the expensive bit.

Statutory guarantee pay

If an employee is expected to work but you cannot provide work, they may qualify for guarantee pay.

This often comes up during:

• temporary shutdowns
• machinery breakdowns
• weather disruption
• short-term closures
• staffing reductions

2026/27 daily rate

• £41 per day

Employees can receive a maximum of five guarantee payments within a three-month period.

Useful source:

• GOV.UK lay-offs and short-time working

Why guarantee pay catches employers out

Because many employers do not realise it exists.

Or they assume:

> "No work means no pay."

Unfortunately, employment law is rarely that simple.

Contracts, custom and practice, lay-off clauses and statutory minimum rights all matter here.

Which is why it is always worth checking before making assumptions during quieter periods.

Unfair dismissal limits (headline figures)

From April 2026:

• Maximum week's pay: £751
• Compensatory award cap: £123,785

Subject to annual review.

Always check the latest limits before making decisions involving dismissals, settlement discussions or tribunal risk.

Why these figures matter

Not because every claim reaches those amounts.

Most do not.

But they help you gauge overall risk.

Tribunal claims are expensive long before compensation is awarded.

There is:

• management time
• legal costs
• stress
• disruption
• reputational damage
• and the joy of pulling together six years of emails at short notice

Which nobody enjoys.

National Living Wage reminder

From April 2026:

• National Living Wage for age 21 and over: £12.71 per hour

Useful sources:

• GOV.UK National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage
• CIPD Health and wellbeing at work 2024: pay and absence impact

Why employers should check this carefully

Because underpayments happen more easily than people think.

Especially when:

• salaries are close to minimum thresholds
• unpaid working time is involved
• deductions reduce pay
• uniforms or equipment are deducted
• staff work extra time before or after shifts

And HMRC does investigate minimum wage breaches.

So if you have not reviewed pay since the April increases, it is worth doing.

Practical takeaways for employers

If you only remember five things from this guide, make them these:

• Save this page and check statutory rates 2026/27 before running payroll each April
• For family-related pay, check employment status, service, notice requirements and the LEL
• For SSP, use SSP rules rather than assuming the LEL applies
• Keep records of statutory payments and payroll decisions for at least 3 years
• If you are unsure, check GOV.UK and write down your reasoning

FAQ: statutory rates 2026/27

• What are the statutory rates 2026/27 in the UK?

- SSP £123.25 per week. Family-related pay £194.32 per week. LEL £129 per week. Redundancy week's pay cap £751. Guarantee pay £41 per day. National Living Wage 21+ £12.71 per hour.

• Does the LEL apply to SSP in 2026/27?

- No. The LEL applies to most family-related statutory payments. SSP has separate earnings rules.

• Can small employers reclaim more than 92 percent of SMP or SPP?

- Yes. If your Class 1 National Insurance liability was £45,000 or less in the previous tax year, you can usually reclaim 108.5 percent.

• Will SSP be paid from day one in 2026/27?

- The current plan is to remove waiting days from April 2026, subject to legislation. Always check GOV.UK before payroll runs.

• How do I calculate statutory redundancy pay?

- Use age bands, full years of service, and the capped weekly pay of £751. The maximum service counted is 20 years.

• How long must employers keep records of statutory payments?

- Payroll and statutory payment records should normally be kept for at least 3 years. Check current HMRC and ACAS guidance for the latest requirements.

Final thought

Most statutory pay issues are not difficult because the rules are impossible.

They are difficult because:

• the rates change every April
• the eligibility rules differ
• payroll deadlines never move
• and somebody always asks the question while you are already busy

So check once, pay correctly, and move on.

And if you are unsure, ask before payroll runs.

It is always quicker to prevent a problem than unravel one later.

Want to make sure your payroll and HR basics are in good shape?

Our free HR Health Check is a quick, practical review of the areas that often get missed. Contracts, policies, statutory pay, record keeping and those "I think we are probably fine?" bits.

It takes around 5 to 7 minutes, gives you a clear score across the employee lifecycle, and helps you spot gaps before they turn into bigger headaches.

You will get practical, plain-English recommendations. Not a 47-page report nobody has time to read.

Try the Free HR Health Check

Need hands-on support?

If you want help setting up payroll processes, checking statutory pay calculations, reviewing policies or untangling a people problem before it becomes expensive, get in touch.

• Outsourced HR and HR Protect
• HR Business Partner
• Breathe HR setup and support
• Contact and about KUHR

Kettle on, standards up.

Until next time, keep buzzing and take care of your people.