Paternity pay and leave
How to claim
You claim Paternity Leave and Pay through your employer.
You do not need to give proof of the pregnancy or birth.
Notice periods
You must tell your employer the baby’s due date at least 15 weeks before the baby is expected.
You can do this by filling in the online form (previously called form SC3). Once you have completed the form, you will need to download or print it and send it to your employer.
Check if your employer has their own form. If they do, use that instead.
The rules and forms are different if you adopt.
At least 28 days before you want to take Paternity Leave you must tell your employer:
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when you want your leave to start, for example, the day of the birth or the week after the birth
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if you want 1 or 2 weeks’ leave
Use the paternity planner to find out when you need to claim Paternity Leave by.