Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Work

Chat with other users about all things related to working life on our Work forum.

Self employed and maternity....

7 replies

PregnancyQuery · 05/12/2008 11:32

How does it work?

I've been reading up on maternity allowance, and it says about being 90% of your normal earnings. Atm, I don't take any earnings, it just gets ploughed back in as I decided I would rather pay off all my bills as the business was starting and then profit from it.

I am assuming that means I wouldn't be eligible for anything.

Do you still get the sure start grant thing as S/E?

I will probably close shop for about 4 weeks p/n - is it worth doing the MA, and if so, how do I work it?? Do i start paying myself £x for a period beforehand??

Baffled of Kent....

OP posts:
PuzzYuleLogs · 05/12/2008 15:44

BUMP

blinder · 30/12/2008 18:01

Not too sure about this - but I would start taking an income for a few weeks before claiming if possible.

Hopefully someone will answer this query - it seems quite important.

nuttygirl · 30/12/2008 18:17

If you
● are registered as self-employed, and
● have paid Class 2 National Insurance
contributions, and
● do not hold a Small Earnings Exception
certificate
you will be treated as having enough weekly
earnings to result in the standard rate of MA for any
week covered by that Class 2 National Insurance
contribution.

from the claim form. HTH.

lou031205 · 30/12/2008 18:25

It all depends on your national insurance contributions. If you are paying class 2 national insurance contributions, then you are classed as having earnings equal to £130.20, which will then entitle you to Maternity Allowance of £117.80 per week, as long as you have been self-employed for 26 weeks in the 66 weeks prior to your EDD, and paying the class 2 contributions for at least 13 weeks in that period.

If you are self-employed but hold a small earnings exception certificate, then you will be treated as having earnings equal to the Maternity Allowance Threshold for earnings, which is £30 per week, which will entitle you to MA of £27 per week, as long as you have been self-employed for 26 weeks in the 66 weeks prior to your EDD, and held the small earnings certificate for at least 13 weeks in that period.

The other scenario is that if you have been employed in the 66 weeks prior to EDD, and self-employed, you can submit whichever details come out best for you, and you also submit your best earnings.

So, for instance, if you had been employed for 13 weeks, earning £300 per week, but now have a small earnings certificate which you have held for 13 weeks, you are able to cobble together the two types of employment, totalling 26 weeks, but submit the payslips from your employment, which would give you MA of £117.80 per week, as opposed to your small earnings exception, which would only entitle you to £27 per week.

Obviously, if you only close shop for 4 weeks, you can only claim MA for 5 weeks 3 days, as you would have 4 weeks closed, then 10 days as keeping in touch days.

lou031205 · 30/12/2008 18:32

To answer your other question, the sure start maternity grant is dependent on Child Tax Credits. If you receive more than the minimum rate of CTC (currently, April 2008 to April 2009 this means a Child Tax Credit rate of £548 a year or more [£10.54/week], or £1,095 a year or more [£21.06/week] if you have a baby under one year old) either before the baby is born, or within 3 months of the baby being born, then you are entitled to the Sure Start Maternity Grant of £500 per baby.

lou031205 · 30/12/2008 18:33

Also, if your baby is due after 06 April 2009, you will get a Health in Pregnancy Grant of £190, you get the form from your midwife.

Laugs · 06/01/2009 09:59

lou031205, please can you help me too??

I currently hold a Small Earnings Exemption Certificate. I couldn't decide whether to pay class 2 contributions or not and I was advised by someone in our self-employment office that if I did become pregnant, I would be given the option to begin paying NI. Is this correct?

I decided not to pay Class 2 (because they were going to fine me if I did, but not if I didn't!) but now I am panicking about it.

If they allow me to start paying NI, will I still be eligible to base my MA on my 13 highest weeks of earning, or would I have it capped at £27?

New posts on this thread. Refresh page