do I have to close my business to receive maternity allowance?

[Thinkbright]

Hi everyone,
I run my own business (part time) and will be eligible for maternity allowance. I will employ someone to do the work I currently do while I'm on leave, but my issue is that I will still make money from the business. Will this mean I am not be able to claim maternity allowance? If so that would mean I would have to close down my business for several months and all my customers are long term so I would lose them.
Any advice from mums in a similar situation would be invaluable.
Thanks

Is your business separate to you, ie a Ltd company or are you just registered as self employed?

I'm self employed, I consider myself running a business although no business is registered, if that makes sense. In my situation I am not allowed to receive any income that isn't declared whilst on Maternity Allowance. If I were to receive income then I would have to pay back some MA to make sure they don't over pay me.

In my opinion your business should still be able to make a profit whilst you are on maternity leave but you shouldn't be receiving a monthly income from it whilst on leave just like when you are employed. It does depend on how your business is run, whether you are a sole trader, in a partnership, registered Ltd or employed by the business you have created. It also depends how you are paid.

I'd recommend phoning the job centre, they helped explain things to me quiet well. If you shouldn't claim MA because you will still receive a lesser income from your business then you may be entitled to bump it up with other benefits but that depends on many other factors.

Thanks for your reply pixie.

I am self employed (sole trader). I would pay someone to run the business for me while on the maternity leave but I would probably still be making a profit (although not very much ~£100/month). Perhaps I should pay someone to work a greater number of hours so that I don't make a profit, just break even, and then be able to receive maternity allowance!
I will call the job centre
Thanks

Can your business make a profit that you don't take? I have a ltd company so I may be off the mark, but I take a wage and a dividend from it and the rest of the profit stays there, its taxable at the end of the year but if you're only talking about £1000 then it shouldn't be alot. Its also handy to have that money there for anything you might need, extra stock, repairs etc which can eat up any profit IYSWIM

If you're registered as self employed it's difficult, by receiving money, paying someone else and gaining a profit then you are technically working and earning. Best to check where you stand with the job centre first, the last thing you want is to be awarded maternity allowance and then be in trouble for benefit fraud if you are seen to be working along side receiving the benefit.

If your company was registered, Ltd or you had a business partner it may be different. You could still be ok but it does sound a little complex so best to check first.

Hi I know this is an old thread but was there any answer to this? Thank you

@Georgias87
I'm self employed and to receive the allowance I have to shut my business completely for 6 months. This is what I was told by the job centre during my first pregnancy.
So I don't take the allowance...I think it's only around £100 a week anyway.
I won't be taking the allowance this time round either, I've just put extra money aside to keep me going while I'm off work.
6 months is too long for me to personally shut my business down.

So nobody can even run on your behalf?

Not that I'm aware of no. You'd probably be best ringing them to ask but as far as I was told you need to shut it down