Sick pay

2. Statutory sick pay

By law, employers must pay statutory sick pay (SSP) to workers who meet the eligibility criteria.

Statutory sick pay is the minimum amount employers must pay. Some employers might pay more. If they do, this must be written in the contract or workplace policy.

Eligibility criteria

A worker is eligible for statutory sick pay if they:

• have done some work for their employer
• have told their employer they're sick within any deadline the employer has set or within 7 days
• are classed as employed for tax purposes

Those classed as employed for tax purposes include anyone who has their tax paid automatically through PAYE. For example, employees and agency workers.

Workers who pay their own tax through self assessment are not eligible to receive statutory sick pay.

Check employment status for tax on GOV.UK

When statutory sick pay is paid

If a worker is eligible, they are entitled to statutory sick pay from the first day of sickness absence. Statutory sick pay is paid for the days they would have worked.

The days they would have worked are called 'qualifying days'.

If the worker does not have a regular pattern of work, the employer should agree with them which days count as qualifying days.

If there is no agreement, qualifying days will be any days the worker is required to work. A day could count as a qualifying day if the worker was required to work but off sick.

Example of qualifying days for workers with regular hours

A worker who works Monday to Friday is sick before work on Thursday. They return to work on Tuesday. As they do not work weekends, their qualifying days are Thursday, Friday and Monday. 

The employer must pay statutory sick pay for Thursday, Friday and Monday.

Example of qualifying days for workers with irregular hours

A worker's contract requires them to work 3 days a week between Friday and Tuesday. They do not have a regular pattern of work, so they could work any 3 days in this period. It's agreed their qualifying days are Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

The employer must pay statutory sick pay if the worker is off sick on these days.

Example of qualifying days when there is no agreement

A worker is required to work 3 days a week between Monday and Friday. They do not have a regular working pattern, so they could work any 3 days in this period.

They have not agreed on qualifying days with their employer. The worker could be required to work any day between Monday and Friday. This means that all days in this period could count as qualifying days.

The employer must pay statutory sick pay for any days the worker is off sick between Monday and Friday.

Changes to sick pay eligibility from 6 April 2026

The eligibility criteria for statutory sick pay changed on 6 April 2026. 

Workers no longer need to:

• earn on average at least £125 per week, before tax – known as the lower earnings limit
• be off sick for at least 4 days in a row  – known as 'waiting days' 

Workers must still meet all of the other criteria to be entitled to statutory sick pay.

How much statutory sick pay is

Statutory sick pay is either:

• £123.25 per week
• 80% of the worker's average weekly earnings

Eligible workers are entitled to whichever rate is lower. It is paid from the first full day of sickness absence, for up to 28 weeks.

Average weekly earnings are calculated based on the 8 weeks before the sickness absence. Payments are rounded up to the nearest penny.

Calculating sick pay for linked periods of sickness

Being off sick for the same reason more than once might be a 'linked period of sickness'.

In a linked period of sickness, the initial period's average weekly earnings will be used for subsequent calculations.

To be linked, the periods of sickness must be 8 weeks apart or less.

Fit notes

An employer might ask a worker for a fit note before they'll pay statutory sick pay.

A fit note is sometimes called a 'sick note'. It is a statement from a registered healthcare professional giving their medical opinion on a person's fitness for work.

A worker must get a fit note if:

• they have been sick for more than 7 calendar days
• their employer requests one

An employer should be understanding if there's a delay getting a fit note. A worker might have difficulty getting a doctor's appointment.

Find out more about fit notes and proof of sickness

If someone's not eligible for statutory sick pay

If someone is not eligible for statutory sick pay, their employer must tell them why in writing. They can do this in either:

• an SSP1 form
• a letter or email

Find employer form SSP1: statutory sick pay on GOV.UK

Someone who is not entitled to statutory sick pay might be entitled to benefits or financial support to help with living costs.

Find out about benefits and financial support on GOV.UK

If there's a problem with statutory sick pay

Contact HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) statutory payment dispute team if you think your employer has:

• not paid you statutory sick pay when you're eligible
• paid you the wrong amount of statutory sick pay

More about statutory sick pay

You can find:

• statutory sick pay information on GOV.UK
• for employers, statutory sick pay for different employment types on GOV.UK

3. Sick pay and holiday pay

Sickness and holiday can happen at the same time. For example, a worker might:

• take holiday while on sick leave
• become sick while taking holiday

In these circumstances the employer and worker should talk with each other and discuss whether:

• the time off will count as sickness or holiday
• the worker will get sick pay or holiday pay

If the employer has a policy on this, they should apply it in a fair and consistent way.

The employer and worker should put what they agree in writing, for example in a letter or email.

Taking holiday while off sick

A worker can use their paid holiday (annual leave) while off sick. For example, if they:

• are not physically able to work, but physically able to take a holiday
• have a mental health condition that might be helped by a holiday
• are off sick long term and a holiday might help with their recovery

A worker can choose to request holiday while off sick. An employer cannot force a worker to take holiday while off sick.

If the employer approves the worker's holiday request:

• sick leave can be paused while the worker takes holiday
• the worker should get holiday pay while they are on holiday

After the worker has taken the holiday, sick leave can continue if they're still not well enough to return to work.

If a worker is sick on holiday

A worker must report their sickness to their employer if they want to take any holiday as sick leave.

In this case the worker can:

• get statutory sick pay for the time they were sick – as long as they are entitled to it
• keep the time they were sick to use as holiday another time

Building up holiday entitlement when off sick

Workers 'accrue' (build up) their holiday entitlement as normal when they're off work because of sickness or injury.

Employers can have different rules on how they pay for holiday and sick leave. Workers should check the employment contract or any policy the employer has.

Long-term sick leave

Sick leave is usually considered long term if it lasts longer than 4 weeks.

If someone has not been able to use their holiday because they've been on long-term sick leave, they can carry it over.

Workers on long-term sick leave can carry over 4 weeks' unused holiday entitlement, unless the employer allows more to be carried over. This holiday must be used within 18 months from the date it's carried over.

A worker might not need to carry over any unused holiday. For example, if they return from sick leave and still have enough of the holiday year left to use their holiday.

Find out more about holiday entitlement

Irregular hours workers and part-year workers

There are different rules about sickness and holiday for irregular hours workers and part-year workers.

Someone is an irregular hours worker if, under their contract in that year, the number of hours they work in each 'pay period' is wholly or mostly variable. A pay period is how often someone gets paid, for example weekly or monthly.

Someone is a part-year worker if their contract:

• says they are required to work only part of that year
• says there are periods of at least a week when they are not required to work and which they are not paid for
• is in place all year around, including when they're not working

Find out more about holiday and sickness for irregular hours workers and part-year workers

4. If sick pay runs out

Workers will still build up paid holiday if they're off sick, even if they're not getting sick pay. They could talk to their employer about using their holiday entitlement if their sick pay runs out.

They might also be eligible for benefits from the government.

Find out more about getting money after your sick pay runs out from Citizens Advice

Even if sick pay runs out, there's still an employment contract between the employer and the worker.

The worker should continue to:

• report their sickness to the employer
• follow the employer's rules for sickness

The employer should:

• keep in touch with the worker while they're off
• be clear about sick pay entitlement and when it's due to run out

If sickness is affecting someone's ability to do their job

If sickness is affecting a worker's ability to do their job, their employer should plan:

• any support or adjustments that might help the worker return to work
• how the worker will return to work, once they’re well enough

If a worker is disabled, their employer must make reasonable adjustments.

Sometimes a worker's sickness means they cannot return to work. This can be a complex area. For advice on what to do in this situation, contact the Acas helpline.