What's covered in this guide?:
What is SSP (Statutory Sick Pay)?
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is a UK government-mandated payment that employers must provide to eligible employees who are unable to work due to illness.
It provides employees with a minimum level of income during periods of sickness absence and is paid by the employer through payroll.
Key Features of SSP:
Paid by employers (not directly by the government).
Paid at the lower of:
80% of the employee’s average weekly earnings, or
£123.25 per week (statutory cap for the 2026–27 tax year).
Payable for up to 28 weeks of sickness.
Treated as normal earnings and subject to PAYE income tax and National Insurance contributions.
SSP generally begins after the first 3 qualifying days of sickness (known as waiting days).
Important: Employees who began an SSP absence before 6 April 2026 will continue to receive SSP under the previous flat-rate rules, so they are not disadvantaged by the new calculation method.
SSP Eligibility Criteria:
Employees may qualify for SSP if they:
Have a valid employment contract
Are off sick for at least 4 consecutive days (including non-working days such as weekends)
Earn at least £123 per week on average (Lower Earnings Limit)
Provide proper notice and evidence of illness where required
Enable SSP in Workforce Payroll
The Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) leave type is included by default in Workforce Payroll.
To allow staff to use SSP leave, you must assign the leave type to employees.
To enable SSP:
Navigate to Payroll > Payroll Settings →> Leave Types
Select Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from the list
Under Who will the leave rule apply to?, select All staff (or the relevant employees)
How SSP Works in Workforce Payroll
Workforce Payroll helps automate SSP processing by:
Checking eligibility requirements
Calculating SSP based on the employee’s average weekly earnings and HMRC statutory cap
Including SSP payments in regular payroll runs
The system will not pay SSP:
For the first 3 qualifying days of absence (waiting days)
If the absence lasts less than 4 consecutive days
If the employee does not meet the earnings threshold
Important: Workforce does not automatically exclude the first 3 unpaid waiting days when SSP leave is created. These must be recorded separately.
Create SSP Leave Requests
Under HMRC rules, SSP is payable from the 4th qualifying day of sickness.
The first 3 qualifying days are known as waiting days and are not paid.
To ensure correct payroll calculations, you should create two leave requests.
Step 1 – Record waiting days
Create Unpaid Sick Leave for the first 3 qualifying days.
You may need to create a separate unpaid leave type for this.
Step 2 – Record SSP leave
Create Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) leave starting from the 4th qualifying day onward.
Separating these leave types ensures:
Accurate SSP payroll calculations
Clear tracking of waiting days
Compliance with HMRC SSP rules
Example
If an employee is sick Monday to Friday and normally works those days:
Monday–Wednesday > Unpaid Sick Leave (waiting days)
Thursday–Friday > SSP leave
SSP Daily Rates
Workforce calculates SSP automatically based on:
The employee’s average weekly earnings
The HMRC SSP statutory cap
The employee’s working pattern and qualifying days
SSP is paid at the lower of:
80% of average weekly earnings
£123.25 per week (statutory cap)
You do not need to enter these values manually, as Workforce applies the correct rules automatically.
To view the most current SSP guidance, visit:
gov.uk/statutory-sick-payNote: No need to enter this manually. Workforce applies the rate automatically. Workforce uses the latest SSP rules and statutory cap set by HMRC, which are updated annually. For the current SSP rate and guidance, visit gov.uk/statutory-sick-pay.
Example calculation
If an employee normally earns £200 per week:
80% of average weekly earnings = £160
SSP cap = £123.25
Because SSP is paid at the lower value, the employee would receive:
£123.25 for that week (subject to waiting days).
How SSP Is Paid in Workforce Payroll
SSP appears as a separate line item in payroll.
It is:
Paid on the employee’s normal payday
Subject to PAYE income tax and National Insurance
SSP payments stop when:
The employee returns to work
The employee reaches 28 weeks of SSP
The employee becomes ineligible (for example due to maternity leave)
Helpful Links
Need Help?
If you need support with SSP in Workforce:
Contact the Support Team support@workforce.com
Use the HMRC calculator to double-check manual edge cases.