Pillar Guide - Family Leave and Pay - 2026/27

Statutory Neonatal Care Pay 2026/27: Eligibility and Rates

Statutory Neonatal Care Pay and Leave — known informally as Tim's Law — gives eligible parents up to 12 weeks of extra paid leave when their baby needs neonatal care, on top of maternity, paternity, or adoption leave. This guide explains exactly who qualifies, how much it pays in 2026/27, how long the leave lasts, and how employers reclaim the cost.

Updated 1 July 2026

Key Facts

2026/27 rate: £194.32/week or 90% of average earnings, whichever is lower

Leave entitlement: Up to 12 weeks, day-one right

Pay qualifying condition: 26 weeks' service + earnings at or above £129/week

Must be taken within: 68 weeks of the birth

What Is It?

Statutory Neonatal Care Leave and Pay is a relatively new UK employment right, in force for babies born on or after 6 April 2025. It is widely known as Tim's Law, named after a campaign by parents whose premature baby spent an extended period in neonatal care. Before this right existed, parents in that situation often had no choice but to use up their maternity, paternity, or annual leave simply sitting beside their baby in a neonatal unit — leaving little or no leave left once the baby came home.

The right recognises that neonatal care is fundamentally different from ordinary parental leave: it is unplanned, often stressful, and can last anywhere from just over a week to several months. It gives eligible employees extra time off, paid at the standard statutory family-pay rate, specifically to cover this period, without reducing their other leave entitlements.

Leave Entitlement

Neonatal Care Leave applies when a baby is admitted to hospital for neonatal care starting within the first 28 days of life, and that care continues for 7 or more consecutive days. The entitlement builds up at a rate of one week of leave for every 7 consecutive full days the baby spends in neonatal care, up to a maximum of 12 weeks.

It is a day-one right — there is no minimum length of service needed to take the leave itself
It is available to both parents or partners, not only the birth mother, provided each meets the relationship-to-the-child conditions
It is taken in addition to maternity, paternity, adoption, or shared parental leave, not instead of it
The leave (and any pay) must be taken within 68 weeks of the child's birth, giving families flexibility to use it immediately or defer part of it

Pay Entitlement and Rate

While the leave itself is available from day one, Statutory Neonatal Care Pay carries the same qualifying conditions as other statutory family payments. To qualify for the pay, in addition to meeting the leave conditions, you must have:

At least 26 weeks of continuous employment with your employer by the relevant qualifying week
Average weekly earnings of at least the Lower Earnings Limit, which is £129 a week in 2026/27

If you meet both conditions, Statutory Neonatal Care Pay is paid at £194.32 a week in 2026/27, or 90% of your average weekly earnings, whichever amount is lower. This is the same flat statutory rate used for Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay, and Statutory Shared Parental Pay once those payments move past any higher initial rate, so it is a familiar figure for most employers already administering family leave.

An employee who has not yet reached 26 weeks' service can still take the unpaid leave, but will not receive the statutory pay until they meet the service condition — this can matter for parents who started a new job shortly before the birth.

Eligibility Conditions

The baby must be born in England, Scotland, or Wales on or after 6 April 2025 (Northern Ireland has its own separate, similar provisions)
The baby must be admitted to neonatal care starting within the first 28 days of life
The neonatal care must last for 7 or more continuous days
For the leave: no minimum service is required (day-one right)
For the pay: 26 weeks' continuous employment by the qualifying week, and average weekly earnings at or above the Lower Earnings Limit (£129/week in 2026/27)
Both parents or partners may separately qualify with their own employer, based on their own service and earnings

Worked Example

Priya gives birth prematurely, and her baby is admitted to a neonatal unit on day 2 of life, remaining there for 28 consecutive days before being discharged home. Priya has worked for her employer for three years and earns £32,000 a year, so she meets both the service and earnings conditions.

Her baby's 28 days in neonatal care (four full weeks of 7 consecutive days) entitle her to 4 weeks of Statutory Neonatal Care Leave and Pay. Because her average weekly earnings are well above the threshold where 90% would exceed the flat rate, she receives the standard £194.32 a week for each of those 4 weeks.

Priya takes her Neonatal Care Leave immediately after her baby comes home, before starting her separate 52 weeks of statutory maternity leave and pay. Her partner, who also works and meets the 26-week service condition with his own employer, separately claims 2 weeks of Neonatal Care Pay from his employer to be with the baby during the same admission, since both parents can potentially claim in respect of the same neonatal care period.

Common Pitfalls

Assuming it replaces maternity or paternity leave. Neonatal Care Leave and Pay is additional to, not instead of, other family leave entitlements — families should not feel they must choose between them.
Missing the 68-week deadline. Leave and pay not taken within 68 weeks of the birth is lost, so parents who want to defer part of the entitlement need to plan around this window.
Overlooking the second parent's entitlement. Partners sometimes assume only the birth mother can claim; in fact both parents can potentially claim separately through their own employers.
Confusing the leave right with the pay right. An employee with less than 26 weeks' service can still take the leave itself, even though they will not receive statutory pay until they meet the service condition.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Statutory Neonatal Care Pay and Leave?

Statutory Neonatal Care Pay and Leave — sometimes called Tim's Law — is a UK statutory right for employed parents whose newborn baby needs neonatal care in hospital. It gives up to 12 weeks of extra paid leave, on top of maternity, paternity, adoption, or shared parental leave, so parents do not have to choose between being with a critically unwell baby and returning to work. It applies to babies born on or after 6 April 2025.

Who is eligible for Neonatal Care Leave?

Neonatal Care Leave is a day-one employment right, meaning there is no minimum length of service required to take the leave itself. It applies to an employee whose baby is admitted to neonatal care within the first 28 days of life, where that care lasts for 7 or more continuous days. Both parents or partners can potentially take the leave if they each meet the conditions relating to their relationship with the child, not just the birth mother.

Who is eligible for Statutory Neonatal Care Pay?

Unlike the leave, the pay element has qualifying conditions similar to other statutory family payments: you must have at least 26 weeks of continuous employment with your employer by the relevant qualifying week, and your average weekly earnings must be at least the Lower Earnings Limit, which is £129 a week in 2026/27. An employee can qualify for the leave without qualifying for the pay if they have not yet met the 26-week service requirement.

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How much does Statutory Neonatal Care Pay pay in 2026/27?

The 2026/27 rate is £194.32 a week, or 90% of your average weekly earnings, whichever is lower. This is the same flat statutory rate used for Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay, and Statutory Shared Parental Pay after their initial higher-rate weeks, so it is paid at the standard rate for the entire period rather than starting higher and stepping down.

How much Neonatal Care Leave can I take?

You can take up to 12 weeks of Neonatal Care Leave in total. The exact entitlement is calculated as one week of leave for every 7 consecutive full days your baby spends in neonatal care, up to that 12-week cap. For example, if your baby spends 21 continuous days in neonatal care, you would be entitled to 3 weeks of Neonatal Care Leave.

When must Neonatal Care Leave be taken?

Neonatal Care Leave and Pay must be taken within 68 weeks of the child being born. This gives parents flexibility to take the leave immediately after the neonatal care period ends, or to save some or all of it to use later — for example, after other family leave such as maternity or paternity leave has ended — as long as it falls within that 68-week window.

Is Neonatal Care Leave in addition to maternity or paternity leave?

Yes. Neonatal Care Leave and Pay is a standalone entitlement that sits on top of existing maternity, paternity, adoption, or shared parental leave and pay — it does not replace or reduce those entitlements. A mother, for instance, can take her full maternity leave and pay and separately claim Neonatal Care Leave and Pay for the time her baby spent in neonatal care.

Can both parents claim Statutory Neonatal Care Pay for the same baby?

Potentially, yes. Neonatal Care Leave and Pay is not restricted to the birth mother — a father, partner, or second parent can also qualify if they meet the relevant relationship-to-the-child conditions and, for the pay element, the 26-week service and earnings tests with their own employer. Each parent's entitlement is worked out separately by their own employer based on their own service and pay history.

Can employers reclaim Statutory Neonatal Care Pay from HMRC?

Yes. Employers can usually reclaim most of the Statutory Neonatal Care Pay they pay out, in the same way they reclaim other statutory family-related payments such as Statutory Maternity Pay. Most employers can reclaim 92% of what they pay, while small employers who qualify for Small Employers' Relief can reclaim 100% plus a small percentage of compensation, which is designed to offset the employer's National Insurance contributions.

Does the baby need to be born in the UK to qualify?

The entitlement described in this guide applies to babies born in England, Scotland, or Wales. Northern Ireland has introduced its own separate but broadly similar neonatal care leave and pay provisions, so parents there should check the specific Northern Ireland rules rather than assume the same dates and figures apply automatically, even though the policy intent is closely aligned.

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About the author

Emma Clarke

UK Tax Writer

Emma Clarke has been writing about UK personal tax since 2018, with a particular focus on Self Assessment, PAYE coding and the practical mechanics of how HMRC actually applies the rules to ordinary salaries. Her work concentrates on translating the dense language of HMRC manuals and Finance Act schedules into worked examples that show, pound by pound, how income tax and National Insurance reduce a gross salary to the figure that lands in a UK bank account. Emma covers the full PAYE lifecycle: tax codes (1257L, BR, K codes, emergency codes), the Marriage Allowance, the High Income Child Benefit Charge, salary sacrifice arrangements and their effect on pensionable pay, the Apprenticeship Levy, and the differences between the rUK and Scottish income-tax regimes. She is particularly interested in the edge cases that catch PAYE employees out — the £100,000 personal-allowance taper, the 60% effective marginal rate it creates, and the interaction between student-loan plans and pension contributions. Every figure in Emma's articles is verified against the current HMRC rates pages and worked through a Self Assessment calculation by hand before publication. She writes to CalcHub's editorial standards: primary-source citations, plain English, no promotional language, and clear "this is general information, not financial advice" disclaimers where appropriate.

Personal-finance writer since 2018
UK tax specialism — PAYE, Self Assessment, National Insurance
Writes to CalcHub editorial standards (primary-source citation, annual review)

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Disclaimer: This guide is for general information only and does not constitute personal financial, employment, or legal advice. Always confirm current eligibility and figures with your employer, ACAS, or a qualified adviser before making a claim.