Statutory Sick Pay 2026/27: £116.75/Week Rules for Employers and Employees

When an employee is too ill to work, both employer and employee need to understand their rights and obligations quickly. Statutory Sick Pay provides a minimum income floor for eligible workers and creates clear payment duties for employers -- but the rules around waiting days, fit notes, and the 28-week limit catch many people out.

SSP Rate and Payment Rules 2026/27

Statutory Sick Pay is set by the government each April and is £116.75 per week for 2026/27. This is the legal minimum -- employers can choose to pay more through enhanced contractual sick pay, and many do. The rate applies per working week and is subject to PAYE income tax and National Insurance deductions where applicable.

SSP is paid by the employer, not the government. This is an important distinction -- unlike Statutory Maternity Pay, there is no mechanism for most employers to reclaim SSP from HMRC. The cost falls on the business directly.

Payment is made through the normal payroll cycle on the usual pay day. If an employee is normally paid monthly, SSP is paid monthly, but is calculated on a weekly basis and multiplied by the number of SSP weeks within the pay period. The daily rate of SSP is £116.75 divided by the number of qualifying days in the week, typically seven -- giving approximately £16.68 per day.

Qualifying Conditions for SSP

Not every sick employee qualifies for SSP. The eligibility conditions are:

Employment status: The individual must be classified as an employee for tax purposes. Workers (a category between employee and self-employed) and self-employed people are not entitled to SSP. Identifying the correct employment status has become more significant following IR35 changes.

Earnings threshold: The employee must earn at least the Lower Earnings Limit (LEL), which is £125 per week in 2026/27. An employee earning below this threshold does not qualify for SSP. This affects very low-hours part-time workers, who may need to claim Universal Credit instead.

Sickness duration: The employee must have been sick for at least four consecutive days -- counting all days including weekends, bank holidays and non-working days.

Notification: The employee must inform the employer of their sickness within the timescale set out in the employer's absence policy. Employers cannot set a deadline of less than seven days. If the employee fails to notify, the employer can withhold SSP for the days the notification was late.

The Waiting Day Rule Explained

The three waiting days rule is the source of most confusion around SSP. For a sickness absence to trigger SSP, the employee must be sick for four consecutive qualifying days. The first three of those days are called waiting days -- they are qualifying days but SSP is not payable for them.

SSP is paid from the fourth qualifying day onwards. For an employee who works Monday to Friday and goes off sick on a Wednesday:

• Wednesday: waiting day 1 (no SSP)
• Thursday: waiting day 2 (no SSP)
• Friday: waiting day 3 (no SSP)
• Saturday and Sunday: non-working days (but these can still form part of the consecutive period)
• Monday: first day of SSP

If the employee returns to work before day four, no SSP is owed at all. If they are sick for exactly four days, SSP is payable for one day only (the fourth).

Linked absences are an important exception. If an employee has two spells of sickness separated by less than eight weeks, the second spell links to the first. In a linked absence, the waiting days do not apply again -- SSP begins from day one of the second absence.

Fit Notes: When and How They Apply

For the first seven calendar days of sickness, employees can self-certify -- there is no legal requirement to produce medical evidence. Employers may ask for a self-certification form (SC2) during this period, but cannot require a GP certificate.

From the eighth calendar day, a fit note is required. Fit notes can be issued by:

• GPs and hospital doctors
• Registered nurses (with relevant training)
• Pharmacists
• Physiotherapists and occupational therapists
• Clinical psychologists

The fit note either certifies that the employee is "not fit for work" or states they "may be fit for work" if certain adjustments are made. The "may be fit for work" category allows employers and employees to explore phased returns, altered duties, amended hours or workplace adaptations before a full return.

The 28-Week Maximum and What Comes Next

SSP cannot be paid for more than 28 weeks in a single spell, or in a series of linked spells. The 28 weeks run from the first day of SSP (not the first day of absence -- remember that the waiting days do not count towards SSP, though they do count towards the overall sickness period).

When the 28-week maximum is reached:

1. The employer must complete form SSP1 and give it to the employee within seven days of the final SSP payment
2. The SSP1 acts as evidence for claiming Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit
3. The employer's obligations to pay SSP cease entirely at 28 weeks

If an employee recovers, returns to work, and then goes off sick again within eight weeks of the previous absence ending, the two spells link together. This means the 28-week clock continues from where it left off rather than resetting.

After 28 weeks, employees who cannot work may be eligible for ESA at the standard rate, which is means-tested and managed by DWP.

Return to Work and Employer Obligations

Managing a return to work after a significant sickness absence requires care, particularly where the underlying condition may constitute a disability under the Equality Act 2010. Any condition that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities is likely to qualify as a disability, placing a duty on the employer to make reasonable adjustments.

Reasonable adjustments might include a phased return to full hours over several weeks, temporary reallocation of physically demanding tasks, or access to specialist equipment. What is "reasonable" depends on the size of the business, the cost of the adjustment and the likely benefit to the employee.

Good practice includes conducting a return-to-work interview on the first day back, however brief the absence, and maintaining contact with employees during longer absences to keep communication open and plan for their return. Proper absence management processes not only reduce the risk of employment tribunal claims but also support employee wellbeing and reduce overall absence rates.