Paternity Leave - 2 Weeks (UK)

A statutory entitlement under the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Paternity and Adoption Leave Regulations 2002, giving eligible UK employees 1 or 2 consecutive weeks of paternity leave paid at the Statutory Paternity Pay rate of £184.03 per week (2024/25), taken within 52 weeks of the child's birth or placement for adoption.

What Is Paternity Leave in the UK?

Key Takeaways

  • ✓UK statutory paternity leave is 1 or 2 weeks, paid at £184.03 per week (2024/25) or 90% of average weekly earnings if that's lower.
  • ✓Since April 2024, paternity leave can be taken in two separate one-week blocks at any point within 52 weeks of the birth (previously, it had to be taken in one block within 56 days).
  • ✓Eligibility requires 26 weeks' continuous service by the 15th week before the expected due date, plus minimum earnings of £123/week.
  • ✓The employee must give notice at least 15 weeks before the due date (or within 7 days of being told they've been matched for adoption).
  • ✓Paternity leave is separate from Shared Parental Leave. Fathers can take their 2 weeks of paternity leave and then also share unused maternity leave via SPL.

UK paternity leave is short by European standards. Two weeks. That's it. At £184.03 per week, it's not generously paid either. For a father earning the average UK salary of around £35,000 ($673/week), statutory paternity pay represents a 73% pay cut. This financial reality is why many fathers either don't take their full entitlement or rely on employer-enhanced pay. The 2024 reform was the first meaningful change to UK paternity leave in over 20 years. It did two things: extended the window for taking leave from 56 days to 52 weeks after the birth, and allowed the leave to be split into two separate weeks instead of requiring one continuous block. These changes give fathers more flexibility but don't address the fundamental issues of duration and pay. Compared to Spain (16 weeks at full pay), Sweden (90 reserved days at 80% pay), or even neighbouring Ireland (2 weeks at a higher rate), the UK's paternity leave offering is among the least generous in Western Europe. The government has resisted calls to extend it, citing cost concerns for small businesses, despite the fact that employers can reclaim most or all of SPP through HMRC.

2 weeksMaximum statutory paternity leave in the UK (taken as 1 or 2 consecutive weeks, not individual days)
£184.03Weekly Statutory Paternity Pay rate, or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower (2024/25, HMRC)
26 weeksMinimum continuous service with the employer needed to qualify for paternity leave (by the 15th week before due date)
52 weeksWindow after birth within which paternity leave must be taken (expanded from 56 days in April 2024)

Eligibility and Qualifying Conditions

Not every worker qualifies. The eligibility criteria are more restrictive than for maternity leave.

RequirementDetailNotes
Employment statusMust be an employee (not a worker or self-employed)Workers, agency staff, and freelancers don't qualify
Continuous service26 weeks by the 15th week before the due dateThe 'qualifying week' is 15 weeks before the expected week of childbirth
Earnings thresholdAverage of £123/week over the 8-week reference periodKnown as the 'Lower Earnings Limit' (LEL)
Relationship to childFather, partner, or spouse of the motherIncludes same-sex partners and civil partners
Responsibility for childMust have responsibility for the child's upbringingNot just a biological connection
Notice15 weeks before the due date (SC3/SC4/SC5 form)Since April 2024: 28 days' notice for each week taken

April 2024 Reforms: What Changed

The Paternity Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 introduced the most significant changes since the original right was introduced in 2003.

Extended taking window

Before April 2024, paternity leave had to be taken within 56 days (8 weeks) of the birth. Now it can be taken at any point within 52 weeks. This is a major shift. A father can take one week immediately after the birth and save the second week for months later, perhaps for when the partner returns to work or for a medical appointment period. The extended window recognizes that support needs don't end 8 weeks after birth.

Split into two blocks

Previously, the leave had to be taken as a single block of either 1 or 2 weeks. Now it can be split into two separate one-week blocks taken at different times within the 52-week window. Each block requires 28 days' advance notice to the employer. This flexibility is particularly useful for fathers who want to be present at birth and then again at a later milestone.

Reduced notice period

For the initial notice, employees must still inform the employer by the 15th week before the due date. However, the notice for when they actually want to take the leave dropped from 15 weeks to just 28 days before each block. This makes it easier to plan around the actual birth date rather than guessing months in advance.

Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) Explained

The financial side of paternity leave involves both the employee's entitlement and the employer's recovery options.

How SPP is calculated

SPP is paid at a flat rate of £184.03 per week (2024/25) or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. The 'average weekly earnings' are calculated over an 8-week reference period ending on the last normal pay date before the qualifying week. For most full-time employees earning above £200/week, the flat rate applies. SPP is subject to income tax and National Insurance deductions, just like regular pay.

Employer recovery of SPP

Small employers (annual NIC liability under £45,000) can recover 100% of SPP plus 3% compensation. Large employers recover 92%. The recovery is offset against PAYE and NIC payments to HMRC each month. If the monthly HMRC bill is less than the SPP paid out, the employer can apply for advance funding. In practice, this means paternity pay costs small businesses nothing and large businesses very little.

Enhanced Paternity Pay and Market Practices

Statutory pay is the floor. Many employers go further to attract and retain talent.

Common enhanced packages

Competitive UK employers in 2025 typically offer 2 to 6 weeks at full pay. Some go further: Aviva offers 26 weeks at full pay for all parents. Diageo offers 26 weeks. NatWest offers 8 weeks at full pay. The public sector is less generous: NHS employees get 2 weeks at SPP rate. Civil servants get 2 weeks at full pay. The gap between the best private-sector offers and the statutory minimum is enormous, and it creates a two-tier system where paternity leave quality depends entirely on who your employer is.

Shared Parental Leave as an alternative

Fathers who want more than 2 weeks can use Shared Parental Leave (SPL), which allows the mother to transfer unused maternity leave. Up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay can be shared. SPL pay matches SMP at the flat rate (£184.03/week). The catch: uptake is dismal. Around 2% to 5% of eligible couples use SPL. The financial barrier is significant, since the flat rate is too low for most families to afford having the higher earner off work for extended periods.

Employee Rights During Paternity Leave

Paternity leave carries the same employment protections as other statutory leaves.

  • The employee is entitled to return to the exact same job after paternity leave. There's no 'suitable alternative' caveat because the leave is so short.
  • All contractual benefits (except salary) continue during paternity leave: pension contributions, holiday accrual, gym membership, health insurance, and other perks.
  • Holiday continues to accrue during paternity leave. The employee can't be forced to use holiday instead of paternity leave.
  • Dismissing or treating an employee unfavourably for taking or requesting paternity leave is automatically unfair and constitutes unlawful detriment.
  • The employee is protected from redundancy during paternity leave. If selected during leave, the employer must offer suitable alternative employment in preference to other candidates.
  • SPP is paid even if the employee doesn't intend to return to the employer after the leave. There's no clawback on statutory pay.

UK Paternity Leave Statistics [2026]

Key data on paternity leave take-up and trends in the UK.

2 weeks
Maximum statutory paternity leave in the UKEmployment Rights Act 1996 / Paternity Leave Regulations 2002
£184.03
Weekly Statutory Paternity Pay rate (2024/25)HMRC
~2-5%
Estimated take-up rate for Shared Parental Leave among eligible UK couplesHM Government Evaluation, 2023
73%
Pay cut experienced by a UK father earning the average salary when receiving SPPONS / HMRC calculation

UK Paternity Leave vs European Peers

The UK sits at the lower end of the European spectrum for paternity leave entitlements.

CountryDurationPay RateKey Feature
UK2 weeks£184.03/week flat rateCan split into 2 blocks since April 2024
Spain16 weeks100% of salary (capped)Equal to maternity leave since 2021
France25 days (+ 3 days birth leave)100% of salary (capped)7 days are mandatory
Sweden90 days reserved per parent (of 480 total)80% for 390 daysNon-transferable partner quota
GermanyNo paternity-specific; Elternzeit65-67% via ElterngeldPartner bonus months incentivize sharing
Ireland2 weeks€274/weekSlightly higher flat rate than UK
Italy10 days100% of salaryIncreased from 7 days in 2022
Norway15 weeks reserved (of 49 total)100% of salaryFather's quota is non-transferable

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a father take paternity leave and Shared Parental Leave?

Yes. The two entitlements are separate. A father can take 1 or 2 weeks of paternity leave and then, additionally, take Shared Parental Leave if the mother curtails her maternity leave. The paternity leave weeks don't reduce the SPL entitlement. This means a father could take 2 weeks of paternity leave followed by up to 50 weeks of SPL, for a theoretical maximum of 52 weeks off work (though most of it would be at the flat-rate or unpaid).

What if the employee doesn't qualify for SPP but does qualify for leave?

An employee who meets the service requirement (26 weeks) but not the earnings threshold (£123/week) is entitled to unpaid paternity leave. They won't receive SPP but their job is protected. This situation commonly affects part-time workers with low weekly earnings. There's no equivalent of Maternity Allowance for paternity: if you don't qualify for SPP, there's no government alternative.

Do agency workers qualify for UK paternity leave?

Agency workers don't qualify for statutory paternity leave, as it's only available to 'employees' (not 'workers'). This is different from maternity leave, where the distinction is less relevant because Maternity Allowance provides an alternative. Agency workers who are also employees of the agency (rather than self-employed contractors) may have some rights depending on their specific contractual arrangement. It's a grey area that often requires legal advice.

Can the employer refuse paternity leave in the UK?

No. If the employee meets the eligibility criteria and provides proper notice, the employer must grant paternity leave. There's no business needs exception and no ability to postpone. The employer can ask for the correct notification form (SC3, SC4, or SC5) and can request that the employee follows the notice timelines, but can't refuse the leave itself. Refusal would expose the employer to an automatic unfair dismissal claim if the employee is terminated and a detriment claim in any case.

What happens to paternity leave if the baby is born early?

If the baby arrives before the expected due date, the employee can take paternity leave immediately, even if they haven't yet given notice of the specific dates they want. The requirement to give 28 days' notice for each block is waived when the birth happens early. The leave must still be taken within 52 weeks of the actual birth date. If the employee had already planned dates that fall after the early birth, they can adjust without penalty.

Is paternity leave available for stillbirth?

Yes, if the stillbirth occurs after 24 weeks of pregnancy. The employee is entitled to paternity leave and SPP on the same terms as if the baby had been born alive. If the pregnancy ends before 24 weeks, there's no statutory paternity leave entitlement, though many employers provide compassionate leave in these circumstances. The 24-week threshold aligns with how UK law defines 'stillbirth' for registration purposes.
Adithyan RKWritten by Adithyan RK
Surya N
Fact-checked by Surya N
Published on: 25 Mar 2026Last updated:
Share:
Previous
Next