Overview of Setting Up a Plan and Type for Paternity Leave
An employee is eligible for Statutory Paternity Pay and leaves based on certain criteria set by the legislation.
An employee is entitled to Statutory Paternity Leave and Pay (SPP) if they meet the eligibility criteria set by the legislation. The rate of pay that the employee receives is also set by the legislation.
- The employee must have been employed for 26 weeks continuously into the qualifying week to receive Statutory Paternity Pay.
- The employee’s average earnings (during the relevant period) must be at or above the Lower Earnings Limit.
- The leave cannot exceed two weeks.
- The leave blocks must be for 7 days.
- For births where the expected week of childbirth begins before Sunday, April 7,
2024 and for adoption where the actual date of placement is before April 6,
2024:
- Statutory Paternity Pay is not payable after the 56th day, after the child’s birth date or placement date.
- For birth where the expected week of childbirth begins on or after Sunday, April
7, 2024 and for adoption where the actual date of placement is April 6, 2024 or
later:
- Fathers or partners may split their leave into two blocks of one week.
- Fathers or partners may take their leave and pay at any point in the first year after the birth or adoption of their child.
If any of these checks fail, the application creates the appropriate certification. Otherwise, it calculates the employee’s entitlement to SPP.
Recording Paternity Leave
The first period of leave must be recorded against the main paternity leave absence type.
If the person is taking a single two week leave block then this should be recorded against the main paternity leave absence type.
Recording of the second part of a leave must be done using the absence type for the second period of the leave. The second period of leave must be linked to the first period of leave by selecting the main period of leave from the drop-down list on the field ‘Linked Paternity Adoption/Birth’.
Payment Calculation for Paternity Leave
The statutory rules require the payment calculation for paternity leave to use the actual birth/placement date. For absences recorded after April 7, 2024 you can enter a Paternity absence without the actual birth/placement date but the payment will not be calculated, a certification will be produced to stop payment.
The actual birth or placement date must be entered to calculate any payments for paternity absences being recorded after the April 7, 2024.