How is Statutory Sick Pay calculated in the UK?

Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) for 2026/27 is £123.25 per week (or 80% of your average weekly earnings if that is lower). It is paid by your employer from the first qualifying day of illness for up to 28 weeks. From 6 April 2026, the 3 unpaid 'waiting days' are abolished — SSP is now payable from day 1. Once you have exhausted 28 weeks of SSP, your employer should issue form SSP1 so you can claim Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit from DWP.

From 6 April 2026, the eligibility rules are: you must be classed as an employee, you must have done some work for your employer, and you must be ill for at least one full working day. The old Lower Earnings Limit (LEL) qualifying condition is abolished — employees of any earnings level now qualify, provided they are genuinely ill and have worked at least one day for that employer.

SSP is paid through your employer's payroll and is subject to income tax and National Insurance in the usual way. If you are ill for repeated short periods (rather than one continuous period), you may be able to 'link' absences within 8 weeks of each other — linked periods count as one period of incapacity for the 28-week maximum.