Statutory Sick Pay (2026): Day-One SSP Rules Explained

From 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is paid from the very first day of illness, not the fourth, and the earnings threshold that once excluded lower earners is scrapped entirely, both changes arriving under the Employment Rights Act 2025.

What Is Statutory Sick Pay?

Statutory Sick Pay is the legal minimum an employer must pay an employee who is off work sick and meets the qualifying conditions. It is not a state benefit paid by the Department for Work and Pensions; the employer pays it directly through the normal payroll, in the same way as ordinary wages. SSP applies across Great Britain and Northern Ireland alike, because sick pay entitlement is a reserved matter tied to the UK-wide tax and National Insurance framework rather than a devolved employment right. From 6 April 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 changed two core features of the scheme: it removed the three unpaid waiting days that used to sit at the start of a sickness absence, and it abolished the minimum-earnings threshold that had previously shut lower earners out of SSP altogether.

Many employers offer more generous contractual or occupational sick pay on top of the statutory minimum. SSP is the floor, not the ceiling; an employment contract can improve on it but cannot pay less than the statutory rate to an employee who qualifies.

SSP Rates From 6 April 2026

From 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay is paid at whichever is lower: a flat rate of £123.25 a week, or 80% of the employee's average weekly earnings (AWE). This dual-rate formula matters most for low earners, who under the old rules could receive nothing at all if their earnings fell below the Lower Earnings Limit; from 6 April 2026 they instead receive 80% of their actual average pay whenever that figure comes out below £123.25. Higher earners remain capped at the flat £123.25 rate, an uprated version of the £118.75 ceiling that applied before 6 April 2026. AWE is worked out the same way it always has been, using average earnings over the relevant 8-week reference period ending with the last normal payday before the sickness began.

Day One: The Waiting Days Are Abolished

Before 6 April 2026, an employee's first three "qualifying days" of sickness were unpaid waiting days; SSP only started on the fourth qualifying day, so a short illness of two or three days often attracted no SSP at all. From 6 April 2026, that rule is gone. SSP is now payable from the first qualifying day of a period of incapacity for work, which the Employment Rights Act 2025 describes as a day-one entitlement. This closes a gap that particularly affected employees with short, recurring absences, who previously had to string together a longer illness before any SSP was triggered.

A "qualifying day" is still defined by the employee's normal working pattern, agreed with the employer in advance, so the practical mechanics of working out which days count have not changed, only the removal of the unpaid opening period. Employees still need to notify their employer of sickness in the way the employer requires (there is no fixed statutory method, though it cannot be more onerous than a rule requiring notice in person on the first day) and to provide evidence, typically self-certification for the first 7 days and a fit note after that.

Who Qualifies: the Earnings Threshold Is Gone

The second major change from 6 April 2026 is the abolition of the Lower Earnings Limit for SSP purposes. Previously, an employee had to earn at least £125 a week on average to qualify for SSP at all; anyone earning less, common among part-time, low-paid or multiple-job workers, received no SSP whatsoever and had to fall back on state benefits instead. From 6 April 2026, that earnings threshold no longer applies, so all employees who meet the other qualifying conditions are entitled to SSP, calculated as 80% of their actual average weekly earnings where that figure is below £123.25.

The other core qualifying conditions are unchanged by the 2026 reforms. To qualify for SSP, an employee generally needs to:

• Have an employment contract and have started work under it
• Be sick for at least 4 consecutive days, including non-working days (a "period of incapacity for work")
• Notify their employer of the sickness in line with the employer's rules or, absent a rule, by the seventh day
• Provide evidence of illness, usually self-certification followed by a fit note for absences beyond 7 days
• Not already have received the maximum 28 weeks of SSP for a linked period of sickness

How Long Does SSP Last?

SSP can be paid for up to 28 weeks within a period of sickness, or a series of linked periods of sickness treated as one continuous spell. This maximum duration is unchanged by the 6 April 2026 reforms; what has changed is how quickly SSP starts (day one, not day four) and who is entitled to it (everyone who meets the other conditions, regardless of earnings). Once an employee's 28 weeks of SSP entitlement is exhausted, or if they do not qualify for SSP at all, they may need to look at other forms of financial support; the employer should issue form SSP1 explaining why SSP has ended or was refused, which the employee can use to explore alternative support.

Statutory Sick Pay in Northern Ireland

Statutory Sick Pay is a UK-wide, reserved matter, so the £123.25/80% AWE rate, the day-one start from 6 April 2026, and the abolition of the Lower Earnings Limit all apply equally in Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales; there is no separate NI rate or waiting-day rule to check. Where SSP does differ in Northern Ireland is enforcement: a dispute over an employer's refusal to pay SSP, or a related employment claim, is heard by the NI Industrial Tribunal (and, for discrimination-linked matters, the Fair Employment Tribunal), not the Employment Tribunal used in Great Britain, and Northern Ireland has its own body of near-identical employment statutes. The Labour Relations Agency (LRA) is Northern Ireland's equivalent enforcement and conciliation body to ACAS.

Calculate Your SSP

For a quick estimate of what SSP is due for a specific sickness absence under the post-6-April-2026 rules, use the free Statutory Sick Pay calculator. It applies the same lower-of-£123.25-or-80%-of-AWE formula described above and is an estimate only; your employer's payroll calculation, based on your actual contract and pay history, is the figure that legally applies.

This article explains the general rules for Statutory Sick Pay in the UK from 6 April 2026 and is for general information only; it is not legal advice. Sick pay disputes can turn on the specific facts of an employment contract, notification history or medical evidence, so if you are challenging an employer's SSP decision, consult a solicitor or contact ACAS for free, confidential guidance. For wider context on the 2026/27 employment reforms, see the UK employment law hub, part of our broader guide to United Kingdom law. Related changes include Statutory Maternity Pay, holiday entitlement and the unfair dismissal qualifying-period change, all reformed by the same Employment Rights Act 2025.