Statutory Sick Pay – SSP Rates, Eligibility and Payment Guide

Statutory Sick Pay Getting signed off sick is stressful enough without also wondering whether — or how much — you’ll actually get paid. Statutory Sick Pay has changed significantly as of April 2026, and if you’re going by what you remember from a few years ago, the rules you’re picturing are probably out of date Statutory Sick Pay.

This guide covers exactly how Statutory Sick Pay works right now: who qualifies, how much you’ll receive, how it’s calculated, and what to do if your employer isn’t paying you correctly Statutory Sick Pay.

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What Is Statutory Sick Pay?

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is the minimum amount your employer is legally required to pay you when you’re off work due to illness. It’s not a benefit paid by the government directly — your employer pays it, then reclaims a portion in certain cases through PAYE.

SSP exists as a safety net. It’s not designed to replace your full wage, but it stops you from losing all your income the moment you’re too unwell to work.

What Changed in April 2026(Statutory Sick Pay )

This is the part most people searching for SSP information actually need to know, because the system was overhauled under the Employment Rights Act 2025. From 6 April 2026:

• SSP is now paid from day one of sickness. The old rule — where the first three days (“waiting days”) went unpaid — has been scrapped.
• The Lower Earnings Limit has been removed. Previously, if you earned below a certain weekly threshold, you weren’t eligible for SSP at all. That earnings cut-off no longer applies.
• SSP is now calculated as whichever is lower: the flat statutory rate, or 80% of your average weekly earnings. This means lower earners now receive a proportionate amount instead of being excluded entirely.

In short: more people qualify, payments start sooner, and the amount is now earnings-linked rather than one fixed number for everyone Statutory Sick Pay.

Current SSP Rate (2026/27)

Feature	Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)	Occupational Sick Pay (OSP)
Who provides it	Legal minimum, paid by employer	Optional, set by employer’s own policy
Amount	Lower of £123.25/week or 80% of AWE	Varies — often full or partial normal pay
Duration	Up to 28 weeks	Set by company policy, can be shorter or longer
Legal requirement	Yes	No

The £123.25 figure is a weekly cap, not a guaranteed flat amount for everyone. Statutory Sick Pay If 80% of your average weekly earnings comes out lower than £123.25, that lower figure is what you’re paid.

Quick Example

• Employee A earns £600 a week. Statutory Sick Pay 80% of that is £480 — higher than the cap, so they receive the statutory rate of £123.25.
• Employee B earns £135 a week. 80% of that is £108 — lower than the cap, so they receive £108, not £123.25.

This is the single biggest change from the old system, where anyone below the earnings threshold got nothing at all.

Who Is Eligible for Statutory Sick Pay?

To qualify for SSP, you generally need to:

• Be classed as an employee (have an employment contract) and have done some work under it
• Have been sick for at least one full day
• Follow your employer’s sickness notification process (telling them you’re off, usually by a set deadline)
• Not have already used up your 28-week SSP entitlement for a linked period of sickness

Because the Lower Earnings Limit has been removed, how much you earn no longer disqualifies you — it only affects how much you’re paid.

Who Isn’t Eligible

• Genuinely self-employed workers (SSP is an employment right, not available to sole traders or contractors working outside employment)
• Agency workers in some circumstances, depending on their contract structure
• Employees already receiving Statutory Maternity Pay or Maternity Allowance
• Anyone who hasn’t done any work yet under a new contract before falling ill, in most cases
• Someone who has already received the maximum 28 weeks of SSP for a linked sickness period

If you’re unsure whether you count as an employee or a worker, check your contract — this distinction matters a lot for SSP eligibility.

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How Statutory Sick Pay Is Calculated: Step by Step

Step 1: Confirm You’ve Had a Qualifying Sickness Absence

A single full day of sickness is now enough to trigger eligibility — there’s no longer a requirement to be off for four consecutive days before anything is paid.

Step 2: Work Out Your Average Weekly Earnings (AWE)

Your employer looks at your earnings over a “relevant period” before you fell ill:

• Weekly paid employees: usually the last 8 weeks of pay
• Monthly paid employees: usually the last 2 monthly payments

All earnings that National Insurance would normally apply to are added together, then divided to give an average weekly figure.

Step 3: Compare 80% of AWE Against the Statutory Rate

Whichever is lower — 80% of your average weekly earnings, or £123.25 — is your weekly SSP rate.

Step 4: Apply It to Your Qualifying Days

You’re only paid SSP for your “qualifying days” — the days you’d normally be scheduled to work. If you work 5 days a week, your weekly SSP is divided across those 5 days to give a daily rate.

Worked Example

Ahmed works Monday to Friday and earns £700 a week.

• 80% of £700 = £560
• Compared to £123.25, the statutory rate is lower, so Ahmed’s weekly SSP is £123.25
• £123.25 ÷ 5 qualifying days = £24.65 per day

If Ahmed is off sick for 3 days, he receives 3 × £24.65 = £73.95 in SSP for that period.

SSP for Zero-Hours and Casual Workers

Because the earnings threshold no longer applies, more casual and zero-hours workers now qualify for SSP where they previously didn’t. Their average weekly earnings are still calculated using the relevant period method, so someone with genuinely low or irregular earnings may receive a proportionately lower SSP amount rather than being excluded outright.

How Long Does SSP Last?

SSP can be paid for up to 28 weeks within a single period of sickness, or across “linked” periods.

Linked periods happen when:

• You return to work after being sick
• Then become sick again within 56 days of the previous absence ending

If that happens, both periods are treated as linked, and your 28-week entitlement counts down across both — it doesn’t reset.

Once you’ve used up your full 28 weeks, SSP stops even if you’re still unwell. At that point, many people move on to claim Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit, depending on their circumstances.

Statutory Sick Pay vs Company (Occupational) Sick Pay

Category	Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)	Occupational Sick Pay (OSP)
Who provides it	Legal minimum, paid by employer	Optional, set by employer’s own policy
Amount	Lower of £123.25/week or 80% of AWE	Varies — often full or partial normal pay
Duration	Up to 28 weeks	Set by company policy, can be shorter or longer

Many employers offer a more generous occupational sick pay scheme on top of, or instead of, the statutory minimum — especially for longer-serving staff. Always check your contract or staff handbook, since SSP is only the legal floor, not necessarily what you’ll actually be paid.

What to Do If You Think You’ve Been Underpaid

If your SSP doesn’t match what you expected:

1. Ask payroll or HR for a breakdown of how your average weekly earnings and SSP were calculated.
2. Check your qualifying days — make sure your employer used the days you’re actually contracted to work.
3. Confirm your sickness was reported correctly and within your employer’s notification deadline.
4. Raise it formally as a grievance if the informal route doesn’t resolve it.
5. Contact ACAS for free, impartial advice if the issue isn’t sorted internally.

From April 2026, the Fair Work Agency also holds enforcement powers over SSP compliance, meaning employers who consistently underpay or wrongly deny SSP can face formal investigation.

Final Thoughts

Statutory Sick Pay has become genuinely more supportive since the April 2026 reforms — more people qualify, payments start immediately, and the earnings-linked calculation means low earners are no longer shut out entirely. That said, the system is now more nuanced than the old flat-rate model, which makes it worth double-checking your own payslip rather than assuming it’s automatically correct.

If the numbers don’t add up, ask for a clear breakdown of how your average weekly earnings were calculated. Getting sick pay right isn’t just good payroll practice — it’s now a legal obligation with real enforcement behind it.

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