Statutory Sick Pay Changes From April 2026

Important changes to the Statutory Sick Pay rules come into force on 6th April 2026.

These changes will mean more employees will get access to statutory sick pay for the first time, and increase the burden of costs for the employer.

The changes are:

SSP will be payable from day one – currently, it is only paid after the fourth day.

SSP to be paid to those earning under the lower earnings limit, currently, employees must have an average pay of £125pw to qualify for SSP from day one
The first 3 “waiting days” of the period of incapacity to work has been abolished so SSP will now be payable from day one of sickness. 

SSP paid to those earning under the Lower Earnings Limit 

SSP will now be paid to those earning under the LEL.

This will be paid at 80% of an employee’s normal weekly earnings, where 80% of the normal weekly earnings is less than the flat rate of SSP, which from April 2026 is £123.25pw. The LEL from April 2026 is £129pw.

This does mean that for some employees who earn at or slightly above the LEL, they will be paid a lower weekly rate than before.

The DWP have reasoned that with the removal of the waiting days, these employees may be paid less per week, but they will be paid from the first day of absence, meaning overall they are better off.