Statutory Sick Pay after April 2026: what changed for employers

This is general information about UK rules, checked on the date above. It is not legal advice, and rules change. For a decision that matters, check the sources below or ask a qualified adviser.

If your payroll notes or staff handbook still mention three waiting days or a lower earnings limit, they are out of date. Statutory Sick Pay changed on 6 April 2026, and the changes matter most to employers with lower-paid or part-time staff, many of whom now qualify for the first time.

The short version

• Since 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay is paid from the first day of illness, not the fourth.¹
• The lower earnings limit has gone, so workers no longer need to earn a minimum amount to be eligible.¹
• The weekly rate is £123.25 or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, for up to 28 weeks.²
• Up to 7 calendar days of sickness can be self-certified, with no fit note needed.³

What changed

Acas sets out the two main changes from 6 April 2026: sick pay now starts on the first day of illness rather than the fourth, and the lower earnings limit has been removed.¹ The government’s guidance for businesses describes it in the same way: more employees qualify, with no earnings threshold and no three-day waiting period.⁴

For a business, the practical effect is that a one-day absence can now carry a sick pay cost, and that staff on low hours may now be entitled to pay when they were not before.

How much to pay

The weekly rate is £123.25 or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, and it is paid for up to 28 weeks.² Average weekly earnings are usually worked out over an 8-week period, and employees who have been paid for fewer than 8 weeks still qualify.²

SSP is paid for the days someone would normally work, called qualifying days.² Acas gives this example: someone who works Monday to Friday is sick before work on Thursday and returns on Tuesday, so their qualifying days are Thursday, Friday and Monday.⁵

For someone with no regular pattern, the employer should agree with them which days count as qualifying days.⁵ It is much easier to do that in advance than during an illness.

Some details that catch people out

• Going home sick. You cannot count a day as a sick day if the employee has worked for a minute or more before going home.²
• Night shifts. If a shift ends the day after it started and the employee becomes sick during the shift or after it ends, they are not eligible for SSP for that shift.²
• Repeated absence. Periods of sickness 8 weeks or less apart may count as linked, and an employee stops being eligible after a continuous series of linked periods lasting more than 3 years.⁶
• When SSP cannot be paid or ends. You must send form SSP1 within 7 days of the first day off sick if they do not qualify, and in certain circumstances when their SSP ends.⁶

The rate and details above come from the employer guide on GOV.UK, which is the place to check before you run payroll. Rates can change each tax year.

Evidence of sickness

If someone is off for 7 calendar days or less, including weekends, they can self-certify and do not need a fit note. They should still be paid the sick pay they are entitled to.³

Managing absence fairly

Paying the right amount is only one part of this. Acas’s guidance on the rest is worth following.

Have a written policy. You can use one policy or several, and it may set out things such as whether you use trigger points and what support is available for people returning to work.⁷

Use trigger points carefully. Some employers use automatic review points based on the number or length of absences. There are no legal rules about how or when absence should be reviewed, and a review point system can help, but employers should be flexible and sensitive to individual circumstances.⁸ An employer should not use review points to automatically trigger disciplinary action. If absence might be related to a disability, the employer should consider reasonable adjustments, and may decide that absence related to disability or pregnancy will not count towards review points.⁸

Stay in touch appropriately. An employer can contact someone who is off sick. The right amount of contact depends on the person’s circumstances, and the two of you should agree what is appropriate.⁹

Talk when they return. When someone comes back after an absence, they should talk with their employer to make sure they are ready and have any support they need.¹⁰

Handling the records

Sickness records are sensitive. Information about workers’ health gets extra attention under data protection law, and the Information Commissioner’s Office has specific guidance on handling sickness and injury records.¹¹ HMRC also requires employers to keep records of employee leave and sickness absences as part of their payroll records.¹²

In our view, the simple controls matter most: keep sickness notes out of shared spreadsheets, limit access to the managers who need it, and record the dates and the pay rather than medical detail where you can.

What to do now

Our suggested checklist is short:

1. Update your staff handbook and contract templates to remove any mention of waiting days or minimum earnings.
2. Check that your payroll system applied the April 2026 changes.
3. Agree qualifying days in writing for anyone without a regular pattern.
4. Budget for short absences, which now cost something from day one.
5. Check your review points still treat people fairly.

If absence is tracked in several places today, it can be brought into one record alongside holiday and rotas. See how that looks in our HR and rota software.