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:
- when you want your leave to start, for example, the day of the birth or the week after the birth
- if you want 1 or 2 weeks’ leave
Use the paternity planner to find out when you need to claim Paternity Leave by.
If you’re a new employee and your baby is due on or after 5 April 2026
From 6 April 2026, employees will be eligible for Paternity Leave from their first day of employment.
To allow for this change, from 18 February 2026 until 25 July 2026, some employees will not need to give the usual 15 weeks notice of their baby’s due date.
You do not need to give 15 weeks notice if both of the following apply:
- your baby is due between 5 April 2026 and 25 July 2026
- you’ll have been employed for less than 26 weeks up to any day in the ‘qualifying week’
The ‘qualifying week’ is the 15th week before the baby is due. This is different if you adopt.
You’ll still need to give 28 days notice of when you want your leave to start and if you want to take 1 or 2 weeks leave.
If your baby is due on or after 26 July 2026, both the usual notice periods will apply.