Statutory Pay Rates from April 2026: What Employers Need to Know

5th February 2026

By Helen Scullion Assoc. CIPD | 6 minute read | Last reviewed: May 2026

The statutory pay rate changes that came into force on 1 April 2026 affect most employers in the UK. If you haven’t yet updated your payroll, checked your contracts or briefed your managers on the new rates, now is the time. Some of these changes are significant, and errors in pay calculations create both legal risk and employee relations problems.

Key facts at a glance

The National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over increased to £12.71 per hour from 1 April 2026.
Statutory Sick Pay increased to £123.25 per week and became a day-one right. The earnings threshold that previously excluded lower-paid workers was removed.
Statutory Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Pay all increased from April 2026. Check the current rate on Gov.uk if your payroll hasn’t already been updated.
Employers must pay at least the new National Minimum Wage rates for all hours worked. There is no grace period after the rate change date.
Salaried employees who work variable hours should be checked to make sure their effective hourly rate still exceeds the National Minimum Wage after the increase.

These aren’t optional changes. They apply from the date they came into force and affect your entire workforce. Here’s what changed and what you need to have in place.

National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage from April 2026

The new hourly rates that came into force on 1 April 2026 are:

National Living Wage (aged 21 and over): £12.71 per hour
National Minimum Wage (aged 18 to 20): £10.85 per hour
National Minimum Wage (under 18): £8.00 per hour
Apprentice rate: £8.00 per hour (applies to apprentices under 19, or 19 and over in the first year of their apprenticeship)
Accommodation offset: £11.10 per day

If you haven’t updated your payroll yet, do it now. There is no grace period. Paying below the National Minimum Wage is a criminal offence and can result in the business being named publicly on the government’s enforcement list, as well as significant back-pay liability. The current National Minimum Wage rates are published on Gov.uk.

One area that catches many employers out is salaried employees on fixed annual salaries who work variable or additional hours. If their effective hourly rate drops below the National Minimum Wage when those hours are factored in, they’re being underpaid. This is a common compliance gap, particularly after a rate rise.

April 2026 Statutory Changes Article

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Statutory Sick Pay changes from April 2026

Two significant changes to Statutory Sick Pay came into force in April 2026 as part of the Employment Rights Act 2025. The weekly rate increased to £123.25 (or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower). More significantly, SSP became a day-one right. The earnings threshold that previously meant lower-paid employees didn’t qualify has been removed. All employees are now entitled to SSP from their first day of sickness absence, regardless of what they earn.

For employers, this means reviewing your absence policy to remove any reference to a waiting period or earnings threshold, checking that your payroll system calculates SSP correctly under the new rules, and making sure managers know that SSP now applies to employees it may not have covered before. If you’re using any HR software for absence management, check it has been updated for the April 2026 changes.

Statutory family pay rates from April 2026

Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay, Statutory Shared Parental Pay and Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay all increased from April 2026. The standard weekly rate for Statutory Maternity Pay (from week 7 onwards) is now £194.32, or 90% of average weekly earnings if that is lower. These rates are uprated annually and the current weekly amounts are published on Gov.uk. If you have employees currently on or about to take family leave, make sure your payroll is calculating using the updated rates.

The April 2024 changes also introduced day-one rights for paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, removing the previous qualifying periods. If you haven’t updated your family leave policies to reflect both the 2024 and 2026 changes, they need attention.

What these changes cost and how to check your payroll

The National Living Wage increase from April 2026 is meaningful for any employer with workers on or near minimum wage. If you employ people in retail, hospitality, care, cleaning or other sectors where minimum wage is common, the impact on your wage bill should be calculated and planned for if you haven’t already.

The practical checks every employer should run are: confirm all employees aged 21 and over are now paid at least £12.71 per hour; check any salaried employees who work variable hours for effective hourly rate compliance; confirm SSP calculations have been updated for the new rate and eligibility rules; and check that any family pay currently being processed uses the updated weekly rates.

What you should do now

Confirm your payroll has been updated for all April 2026 rate changes.
Check salaried workers who work variable hours for National Minimum Wage compliance.
Update your absence policy to remove any reference to SSP waiting days or earnings thresholds.
Update your family leave policy if it doesn’t yet reflect day-one paternity and parental leave rights.
Brief managers on the SSP changes, particularly that more employees now qualify and from day one.
If you’re not certain your payroll calculations are correct, get them checked. Back-pay liability for NMW underpayments can go back several years.

How Limelite can help

We help organisations across Worcestershire, Birmingham and the wider UK stay on top of statutory rate changes, update their policies and make sure their payroll calculations are correct. If you’re not confident that everything has been updated following the April 2026 changes, our HR project support team can carry out a focused compliance review.

Or if you’d prefer ongoing support so these changes are never a last-minute scramble, find out about our retained HR service. Book a free 30-minute discovery call to talk it through.

Book a free 30-minute discovery call

About the author

Helen Scullion Assoc. CIPD, HR Client Manager at Limelite HR & Learning. Helen supports organisations with day-to-day HR management, employee relations and practical people support. Connect with Helen on LinkedIn.

FAQS

What is the National Living Wage from April 2026?
The National Living Wage increased to £12.71 per hour for workers aged 21 and over from 1 April 2026. The National Minimum Wage for workers aged 18 to 20 is £10.85 per hour, and for workers under 18 and apprentices in their first year or under 19, the rate is £8.00 per hour. There is no grace period after the rate change date. Employers paying below these rates from 1 April 2026 are in breach of the law.
Has Statutory Sick Pay changed in April 2026?
Yes, in two ways. The weekly rate increased to £123.25 (or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower). More significantly, SSP became a day-one right from April 2026. The earnings threshold that previously excluded lower-paid workers was removed. All employees are now entitled to SSP from their first day of sickness absence, regardless of earnings. Employers should update their absence policy and check their payroll system reflects both changes.
What happens if I pay below the National Minimum Wage?
Paying below the National Minimum Wage is a criminal offence. Employers found to be non-compliant face back-pay liability for underpayments, which can go back several years, plus financial penalties of up to 200% of the underpayment. They can also be named publicly on the government’s NMW enforcement list. The Fair Work Agency, which launched in April 2026, has proactive powers to investigate compliance without waiting for an employee complaint.

Do salaried employees need to be checked against the National Minimum Wage?
Yes. The National Minimum Wage applies to all hours worked, not just the hours specified in a contract. If a salaried employee regularly works additional hours and their effective hourly rate falls below the National Minimum Wage, the employer is in breach. After a rate increase, employers should recalculate effective hourly rates for any salaried employees who work variable or additional hours to confirm compliance.
What are the April 2026 family pay rates?
Statutory Maternity Pay, Paternity Pay, Adoption Pay, Shared Parental Pay and Parental Bereavement Pay all increased from April 2026. These rates are uprated annually. The current weekly amounts are published on Gov.uk. If you have employees currently on or about to take family leave, confirm your payroll is using the updated rates. Remember also that paternity leave and unpaid parental leave became day-one rights in April 2024, so any employees who joined after that date have these rights from day one.
What should I check if I'm not sure my payroll is up to date?
Run through four checks: confirm all employees aged 21 and over are paid at least £12.71 per hour; check salaried workers with variable hours for effective hourly rate compliance; confirm SSP calculations reflect the new £123.25 rate and the removal of the earnings threshold; and check that any family pay being processed uses the correct April 2026 weekly amounts. If you’re not confident in any of these, get a payroll compliance review done now rather than waiting for an issue to surface.

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