Maternity Pay

blond_2

Hi I'm new here!!

I'm getting married in May and we're planning a honeymoon baby - me thinks it ain't gonna happen quite like that but anyway ....

Does anybody know anything about maternity pay - I'm a bit worried as to how the overdraft and credit card debt will be paid if I'm only receiving £106 per week - a substantial drop in my normal salary! Don't think I'd be able to clear all my debts before I went on maternity leave - this is all hyptothetical of course as I'm not even pregnant but lets pretend if I was...

Any advice welcome!

angeluk69_2

Your employer will look at your gross earnings paid to you in a set period. This is usually the eight week period up to and including the 15th week before your expected week of childbirth. The period your employer uses may vary depending on how often you are paid – weekly, monthly or other intervals.

If you get a pay rise which is backdated into the set period your employer should re-calculate your SMP. This changes from 6 April 2005, as a result of a judgement by the European Court of Justice. If your employer awards a pay rise which is effective at any time from the start of the set period used to work out your SMP and the end of your maternity leave your employer must work out your SMP again and pay you any balance due to you. For more information about this judgement and its impact on your SMP see some questions and answers about the ECJ Judgment.

See leaflet NI 17A – A Guide to Maternity Benefits or speak to your employer for more details of how your SMP is worked out.

carpool72

This may or may not make a difference to your plans...

SMP entitlement will be increased from 6 to 9 months from April 2007, paid at a higher rate (sorry can't find the link now, but I'm sure it was an improvement) and with better paternity entitlements as well.

Enjoy your big day!

randy_4

Have a look on here: http://www.tiger.gov.uk/maternity/index_april03.htm

Statutory pay is 90% of your salary for the 1st 6 weeks and then £106 per week for the remaining 20 weeks of ordinary maternity leave.

You will also get some benefits. More info here: http://www.entitledto.co.uk/

nej

Don't forget you'll get taxed on it... I didn't realise this until my wife got her first payslip with her £106 / week on it a month or so ago.

cheggers

Don't forget you'll get child benefit £68 a month

You may be entitled to child tax credits (All families with children can claim Child Tax Credit if their income is no more than £58,000 a year (up to £66,000 if you have a child under one).)

My advise is clear your debts as quick as you can before you start a family, as once the baby arrives you'll struggle to pay any debts off. Me & my Mrs delayed starting a family for 4 months so we cleared and credit card and loans. If we had not done this I am sure we would have still had the debts. Don't forget you'll need £1500 at least for nursery stuff, pram, cot and other stuff.

nej

You'll also be suprised at how much stuff you are given, so £1500 may be off the mark here.

We got given a cot, crib, moses basket, bags and bags of clothes, and more other stuff than I can even think of now.

We bought a Mamas & Papas pushchair from E-bay for £100, a new mattress for the cot was £80 which my parents bought, and we got given loads of vouchers that bought a lot of other stuff. We bought a glider chair for £100 from ebay also. £60 on a wardrobe from Argos, four rolls of wallpaper and a lick of paint and the nursery was sorted.

Check out charity shops for clothes - they grow out of them in a couple of weeks sometimes so spending loads of money in BabyGap is a waste.

You can do this without spending too much. So many new parents get the best of everything because they want the best stuff for their baby, but the baby doesn't know and doesn't care that you bought a Mamas and Papas cot for £400 instead of a second-hand one for £30.

Lydia.42

Very interested in this thread, as my OH and i would like children.
I see from one of the posts i would be taxed on the £106 per week SMP. Would i also be taxed on the £17 per week Child Benefit? Or any Tax Credit i might be entitled to?

jellyhead

no, also when you write down your income for working out tax credits you don't include the child benefit.

sarahlouise210

Also ... maternity pay is not considered income for tax credit purposes..therefore you can report a change of circumstances eg income has reduced even though maternity pay is still being paid.

jellyhead

i'm no expert, my maternity money was under a hundred but i thought that maternity money under a hundred isn't sounted when working out tax credits but anything over a hundred a week is counted? i could be wrong though, i often am :-)