Can someone explain Maternity Allowance to me please?

[Eliza9919]

I was looking at maternity allowance earlier and my understanding is that you need to have been in your job for 26 weeks before you can claim, but MA is for people that are self employed so do you just need to have been paid for 26 prior to claiming or do you need to have been in the same job? And if not, what if you had a week where you didn't get paid? Do they not allow for holidays or time between contracts?

www.gov.uk/maternity-allowance seems to imply that it's not continual but needs to be 26 out of the 66 weeks before you are due.

it states:
If you’re self-employed

To get the full amount of Maternity Allowance, you must have paid Class 2 National Insurance for at least 13 of the 66 weeks before your baby’s due.

I've been properly self employed since September 2018. I've had 2 weeks where I haven't earned any money in that time, 1 week at Christmas and 1 week in-between my last contract and this one.

Re: the NI, I've just sent an email to check with my accountant that I'm paying class 2 NI.

I was temping for my first pregnancy and just had to prove 26 weeks out of the previous 66, and obviously cherry picked the highest wages to prove i was eligible for the full MA.

I don’t remember the details, but do remember how easy it was to do - literally just one form sent off with payslips and a couple of weeks later the payments began. Good luck!

Ok thanks, I can do that.

I'm concerned now about the marriage bit, I understand it as if you are married within 66 weeks of giving birth, you only get MA for 14 weeks instead of 39? I really hope thats not true as I've paid tax and NI as my own person for nearly 25 years. And now that I'm getting married I'm not entitled to what I would be if I wasn't married. That's a serious fucking pisstake otherwise.

I think you're getting confused with the 14 weeks bit as that would apply if you're not working or self employed but help out your self employed spouse in their business.

www.gov.uk/maternity-allowance/eligibility

Ok brilliant, thank you!

@Eliza9919
I don't think being married has anything to do with it unless as pp said it is that you are helping With your spouse's business as apposed to your own.
I also managed to pick my highest paid 13 weeks of the 66 week period to ensure highest MA payment.
It's complicated but they're also really helpful over the phone.

And to check I've got this bit right, all they pay is £148.something? It's only 90% of your pay if your pay is less than that?

I'd love to know what they work that out on and what they expect you to with that 🙄

CALM DOWN

It’s simple.
You can be single or married or with someone.
You are eligible if pregnant / had baby and worked whether self employed or employed after conception.
On the application form they have a perpetual calander - you use that to work out your eligible weeks and from that you pick the ones you earned the most.

I received maternity allowance as I started a new job after conception so wasn’t entitled to SMP. I used weeks from last job and new job and got full amount.

It is the same as SMP but the government not employer pays.

My h was on a social security ban - visa - and I still got it.

If you are self employed you are assumed to be working continuously since you registered, and your earnings to be the average over that period, so you will get 90% of that or 148 per week, whichever is lower. There is a silly dance you have to do with NI contributions, as they are collected with your self assessment tax return (so not due until the January after the end of the tax year). Get your 18-19 tax return done and paid ASAP, but don't be surprised if, after you apply for MA, you initially get told you haven't paid enough NI (although if you were employed up to last sept you might be ok just from that). Ring them, explain you are self employed, and you will get a letter asking for you to pay more NI. Pay it straight away, then you will get a letter saying you are entitled to the full amount (assuming you are!). You may well then get a letter refunding some (I then got ANOTHER letter wanting more paid, and then another refund...)