Employed by DH - am I entitled to SMP? Will it cost him money?

[LenniEd]

I have worked for DH (who runs his own business as a sole trader) since I left employment as a teacher when DD was 9mo. I started working for him on 01 Sept 2007 but worked as self-employed until 5th April 2008 because it was easier to wait until the new tax year for me to become employed - not sure why, accountants advice. He pays me £6000 a year for book-keeping and I work about 30 hours a week (at very odd hours, around looking after DD). I am now 8wks pg with no. 2 and am not planning on working in the last month of the pregnancy or in the first 12 weeks after the baby is born. DH will need to pay someone else to do his book-keeping whilst I am not working and so cannot afford to keep paying me. Will I be entitled to SMP? And does he have to contribute to that? Have had a look on the HMRC website but not really sure what does and doesn't apply since I am working for a relative.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

depends whether you have been paying tax and NI, your local jobcentreplus is the best place to ask. If you can't have SSP you may qualify for maternity Allowance.

I claimed it when I had a limited company but I think I had to have been employed in the company for 10 months before becoming pregnant.

The cost of SMP gets taken off the NI contributions make by your company.

If you are employed you are entitled to SMP. I'm not sure if you have enough service, I'm a bit rusty on the maternity regs.

Your DH can claim back the money he pays you on SMP, and I think for a small business it may even be more than 100% of the total cost.

Thanks everyone, so I need to know whether I have enough service and if I pay tax and N.I.

I think I just about pay tax - only on a few hundred pounds of my income, as I think my personal allowance is just over £5000 a year. I'm not sure on N.I. - I really should be since I do the payroll! I will check it all out when I'm next in the office.

If I don't have enough service for SMP would I be able to claim maternity allowance even though I am no longer self employed? I was self employed for 7 months and 1 week before I became employed, although all the work I did whilst self employed was for my DHs business.

if you don't qualift for SSP they wil automatically check if you qualify for MA, and basically I think you will if you have been in paid employment and paid NI some time in the previous couple of years.

You can claim MA if you don't qualify for SMP. The Benefits Agency or whatever they are called now can advise.

LenniEd have a look here about the conditions for SMP, and here about MA.

Thanks everyone, all your comments have been really helpful. I think I will need to apply for MA as I don't think I have earnt enough to qualify for SMP because of my NI contributions. Thanks very much