Shared Parental Leave and Pay

How it works  

You are your partner may be able to get Shared Parental Leave (SPL) and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) if you are:

  • Having a baby  
  • Using a surrogate to have a baby 
  • Adopting a child 
  • Fostering a child who you are planning to adopt 

You can share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay between you. 

You need to share the pay and leave in the first year after your child is born or placed with your family. 

You can use SPL to take leave in blocks separated by periods of work, or take it all in one go. You can also choose to be off work together or to stagger the leave and pay. 

To get SPL and ShPP, you and your partner need to: 

  • Meet the eligibility criteria - there is a different criteria for birth parents and criteria for adoptive parents or parents using a surrogate 
  • Give notice to your employers 
  • Give up some of your maternity or adoption leave and pay 

See also: