Maternity allowance

tweetyshells

Hi if i was to get pregnant in june/july next year having worked part time all the time, if i was to give up work (long story) in september would i be intitled to any Maternity pay of any sort?
I am guessing the answer would be no but no harm in asking.

Spendless

The rules when I claimed MA (back in 03) were you had to have worked 26 weeks (didn't have to be consecutive ones) in the 66 weeks leading upto the baby's due date and have earned at least £30 a week in that time. There was a further rule to do with if you were self-employed that I don't recall. I'd google 'maternity allowance' for what the current rules are.

tweetyshells

I just looked it up like i should have before posting. It says if you have averaged £30 or more in the 60 months before expected delivery week.
They use 13 of the weeks as test period.

So i think i should be intitled.

stazi

The MA Test Period (TP) is the 66 weeks(15 months), before the week before expected childbirth.
For the employment test- you have to have been self/employed for at least 26 weeks in the TP.
For the earnings test- you need to pick your best 13 weeks earnings in the TP, and they must average at least £30pw. The more you've earned, the more MA you will get up to the present limit of £112.75pw.

tweetyshells

I can't get my head around it.
If things worked out when i want them too then i will have worked for AT LEAST 6 months out of the 15 months, but i get confused on when in the 15 months they would make me work it out. Say i was only working for the first month or 2 of being preg, then stopped working but was working up until that point . Would i still be intitled?

I am confusing myself!

stazi

Example-
Baby due 1/7/08
Test Period 66 weeks/15 months before 1/7/08 is approx from
1/4/07 to 30/6/08.

To satisfy the Employment Test, you must have been self / employed for at least 26 weeks from 1/4/07 to 30/6/08.

To satisfy the Earnings Test,you must pick your best 13 weeks earnings. When added together and then divided by 13, these earnings must be at least £30pw. The higher the earnings the more MA is payable up to the max.
MA is then payable for a max of 39 weeks at 90% of these earnings.

For example- Ave earnings are £150pw, 90% of these would be £135, but MA max payable is at present £112.75pw.

Spendless

tweetyshells wrote: »

Say i was only working for the first month or 2 of being preg, then stopped working but was working up until that point . Would i still be intitled?

Yes if you'd worked 26 weeks out of the 66 weeks. This happened to me gave up my p-time job due to ill-health in pregnancy sometime in Autumn, had dd on her due date end of March was entiltled to MA.

BTW my MW initially told me I didn't need my MATB1 as I wasn't working at the time, I told her I did. My friend was also pregnant at time and told she didn't qualify by her MW for similar reasons, she believed her, despite me telling friend she'd been given incorrect info and lost out on money to which she was entitled.