Can you get maternity pay if you’re self-employed?

If you’re self-employed as a sole trader, you’ll usually apply for Maternity Allowance instead of statutory maternity pay. Statutory maternity pay comes from an employer, whereas Maternity Allowance comes directly from the government.  

You can use the government’s maternity entitlement calculatorOpens in a new window to check: 

• statutory maternity leave or pay 
• statutory paternity leave or pay 
• Maternity Allowance. 

If you’re self-employed and have your own limited company, your company could pay your statutory maternity pay like any other employee. You can usually claim part or all of it back from the HMRC.   

For help claiming back statutory maternity payOpens in a new window (and other forms of parental pay), see the guide on GOV.UK.   

If you’re entitled to Maternity Allowance, you’ll get between £27 to £184.03 a week. How much you’ll receive depends on how many Class 2 National Insurance contributions you’ve made in the entitlement period (66 weeks, or about a year and three months).  

To receive the highest amount – £184.03 per week – you must:  

• be registered as self-employed for at least 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before the baby’s due date
• have made 13 weeks of Class 2 National Insurance contributions in the same timeframe.  

The amount you’ll receive can vary a lot depending on things like your income, whether you have an employed partner, and how long you’ve been working for yourself. To see exactly what you’ll get based on your situation, use the maternity entitlement calculator on GOV.UKOpens in a new window   

To apply, you’ll need a Maternity Allowance (MA1) claim formOpens in a new window. You can download and complete the form on your computer, then print it, or print it out first and fill in your answers by hand. If you can’t print it out, you can ask HMRC to send the form to your address. 

The form will ask you questions about your work and earnings during the ‘Test Period’ - which is the 66 weeks before your baby is due). To avoid doing the maths, just use GOV.UK's tool to Check your Maternity Allowance datesOpens in a new window 

Once you’ve filled it out, post it to the HRMC address that’s listed on the form, along with any other documents they’ve asked for. 

These could include:  

• original payslips  
• proof of the baby’s due date  
• proof of the birth, if the baby has already been born. 

The form lists what kind of documents are valid – for the baby’s due date, this will usually be a MAT B1 certificate that your doctor or midwife fills out, as well as an original birth certificate if the baby is already born.  

They’ll send any original documents back to you, but it can help to have more than one birth certificate on hand in case you need it for anything else.  

You may need to send other documentation if you: 

• were employed during parts of the Test Period  
• are applying because your partner is self-employed, and you do unpaid work for them  
• are a company director  
• are divorced or have dissolved a civil partnership. 

You can apply for Maternity Allowance after 26 weeks of pregnancy – shortly before you enter your third trimester. You can still apply even after the baby is born, but make sure you claim within three months of the Maternity Allowance start date to get the full amount.  

You should hear back from the HMRC with a decision within 20 days.  

Learn more in our guide to Maternity Allowance.

You won’t get statutory paternity pay if you’re self-employed. There’s no equivalent to Maternity Allowance for fathers or partners who are self-employed, and it’s also not possible to use Shared Parental Leave. 

If you’re an employed father or second parent but the mother is self-employed, you’ll likely be entitled to statutory paternity pay and one or two weeks leave. 

Check our guide on paternity leave and pay for how to claim it and what to do if you don’t qualify.