New Statutory Sick Pay Rules - Frequently Asked Questions

From 6th April 2026, significant changes to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) took effect under the Employment Rights Act 2025. These changes include the removal of the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) as an eligibility criterion, the removal of waiting days, and the introduction of an earnings-related rate of SSP for lower earners.

The following FAQs address common employee scenarios, including absences that span the tax year changeover and cases where the new rules may result in a different rate of SSP being paid.

1: My employee went off sick before 6th April 2026 and is still off sick. Do the new rules apply to them?

Yes. If an employee was already off sick and receiving SSP before 6th April 2026 and continues to be sick on or after that date, the new rules apply from 6th April 2026 onwards.

However, there is an important transitional protection in place for employees earning between £125 and £154.05 per week. Without this protection, these employees could see a reduction in their SSP, as they would move from the flat rate to the lower earnings-based rate. To prevent this, such employees will continue to receive SSP at the uprated flat rate of £123.25 per week for the duration of their continuous sickness absence.

Example: Joan earns £125 per week. She was off sick before 6th April 2026 and returns to work on 20th April. Her SSP is paid at the 2025-26 rate of £118.75 before 6th April, and then at the transitionally protected rate of £123.25 from 6th April until she returns to work.

Q2: My employee earns below the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) and was not entitled to SSP before 6th April 2026. Are they now eligible?

Yes. From 6th April 2026, the LEL has been removed as an eligibility criterion, meaning all employees are entitled to SSP regardless of their level of earnings, provided they meet the other qualifying conditions.

Their SSP rate will be 80% of their Average Weekly Earnings (AWE), calculated using the relevant period before the first day of their sickness absence.

Example: Daniel earns £90 per week and went off sick on 20th March 2026. He was not entitled to SSP before 6th April due to earning below the LEL. From 6th April, he becomes entitled to SSP at £72 per week (80% of £90).

Q3: My employee was sick before 6th April 2026 and was serving waiting days when the new rules came in. When are they entitled to SSP?

Under the new rules, waiting days have been removed. An employee who was serving waiting days on or after 6th April 2026 will be entitled to SSP from their first qualifying day on or after 6th April 2026. They will not be entitled to SSP for any waiting days that fell before 6th April.

Example: Samira earns £135 per week and went off sick on 5th April 2026. She served a waiting day on that date under the old system. From 6th April, waiting days no longer apply and she is entitled to SSP at 80% of her AWE (£108 per week), as this is lower than the flat rate.

Q4: My employee has two separate periods of sickness that are close together – do they link, and how does this affect their SSP rate?

Yes. If two periods of sickness are separated by less than 56 days (8 weeks), they are treated as one continuous Period of Incapacity for Work (PIW) and are said to be linked.

Where PIWs are linked, the AWE should be calculated using the relevant period before the first day of the first PIW – not the most recent absence. This means an employee's SSP rate will remain the same for all linked periods, even if their earnings have since increased.

Example: Ellis went off sick on 4th May 2026 with AWE of £135 per week (SSP rate: £108). He later received a pay rise raising his AWE to £165, then went off sick again on 8th June 2026 — within 56 days of his first absence. Because the periods link, his SSP rate for the second absence remains £108 per week, based on his original AWE.

Q5: My employee's sickness started before 6th April 2026 but they returned to work briefly and then went off sick again after 6th April. How is their SSP calculated?

If the second absence starts within 56 days of the first, the two periods link and are treated as one continuous PIW. SSP for the second spell will be based on the AWE calculated at the start of the first PIW.

However, note that transitional protection does not apply to linked PIWs. If an employee returns to work and then goes off sick again in a linked period after 6th April, the new earnings-related rate will apply — not the flat rate transitional protection.

Example: Mary earns £148 per week. She was off sick before 6th April and returns to work on 8th May 2026. Her SSP is transitionally protected at £123.25 until that date. She then goes off sick again on 1st June 2026. As this is a new PIW (not a continuation), the transitional protection ends and she is entitled to £118.40 per week (80% of her AWE).

Q6: My employee was sick below the LEL before 6th April 2026 and goes off sick again after 6th April within 8 weeks of the previous absence. How do I calculate their SSP?

Because the two periods of sickness are within 56 days of each other, they link and are treated as one continuous PIW. The AWE should be based on the relevant period before the first absence began, even though the employee was not entitled to SSP at that time.

Example: Maria earns £110 per week. She was off sick from 10th–20th March 2026 with no SSP entitlement (earning below the LEL). She goes off sick again on 10th April 2026. As this falls within 56 days, the periods link. Her SSP rate is based on her AWE before 10th March, giving her an entitlement of £88 per week (80% of £110) from 6th April.

Q7: My employee has had a continuous sickness absence since before 22nd September 2025 and is still off sick on 6th April 2026. Are they entitled to SSP under the new rules?

No. There is a specific exemption for employees who have been continuously absent since on or before 21st September 2025. If such an employee has remained off sick without returning to work at any point between 22nd September 2025 and 5th April 2026, a period of entitlement will not arise when the rules change on 6th April 2026.

Example: Lewis earns £100 per week and went off sick on 15th September 2025. He was not entitled to SSP before 6th April due to earning below the LEL, and he remains continuously absent. Because his sickness has been continuous for more than 28 weeks, he is not eligible for SSP from 6th April.

Q8: My employee's earnings vary each week. How do I calculate their SSP rate under the new rules?

Where an employee's earnings vary, their AWE is calculated by taking the total earnings in the relevant period (typically the 8 weeks prior to their last normal payday before the first day of sickness) and dividing by 8.

Their SSP rate will then be 80% of this figure, provided it is lower than the flat rate of £123.25 per week. The daily rate is then calculated by dividing the weekly rate by the number of qualifying days in the week.

Example: Christopher works 5 days a week with variable earnings. His AWE in the relevant period is £136.33 per week. 80% of this is £109.06. His daily rate is £109.06 ÷ 5 = £21.81. For 4 sick days, SSP payable is 4 × £21.81 = £87.25.

Q9: My employee was off sick before 6th April 2026, resumed work briefly, then went off sick again either side of the tax year change. How do I determine which rate applies for each period?

Where a sickness absence straddles 6th April 2026 due to a resumption and restart within a linked period, the following rules apply:

Any qualifying days paid before 6th April 2026 should be paid at the 2025-26 flat rate of £118.75 per week (i.e. £118.75 ÷ number of qualifying days per week).
Any qualifying days on or after 6th April 2026 should be paid at the new 2026-27 rate, which is the lower of 80% of AWE or £123.25 per week.

Example: Elizabeth earns £200 per week and works 5 days a week. She goes off sick for a second time on 4th April 2026 (linked to a previous absence). She is entitled to SSP from 4th April under the old rules. For 4th and 5th April she is paid at the old rate: £23.75 per day (£118.75 ÷ 5) = £47.50. From 6th April she is paid at the flat rate: £24.65 per day (£123.25 ÷ 5) for 2 days = £49.30. Total SSP paid: £96.80.

Q10: My employee was previously ineligible for SSP due to earning below the LEL, but they returned to work and went off sick again after some time. Is this treated as a new PIW?

Yes, provided the gap between the two sickness periods is more than 56 days. In this case, the two periods do not link and the second absence is treated as an entirely new PIW. The AWE will be recalculated based on the relevant period before the new absence begins.

If, however, the employee goes off sick again within 56 days of the previous absence, the periods will link and the AWE used for SSP purposes will still be based on the first day of the first linked PIW — even where that original absence pre-dates the new rules.

Example: Priya earns £120 per week and has had a series of linked sickness absences going back to 1st September 2025. All three periods are within 56 days of each other and therefore link. From 6th April 2026, she becomes entitled to SSP for the first time, with her rate calculated from the start of the first PIW. Her AWE is £120, giving her an SSP entitlement of £96 per week (80% of £120).