Social Security Act 1975

22 Maternity allowance

(1) A woman shall be entitled to a maternity allowance at the weekly rate specified in relation thereto in Schedule 4, Part I, paragraph 4, if—

(a) she is pregnant and has reached a stage in her pregnancy which is not more than the prescribed number of weeks before that in which it is to be expected that she will be confined (in this section referred to as " the expected week of confinement"); and

(b) she satisfies the contribution conditions for a maternity allowance specified in Schedule 3, Part I, paragraph 3.

(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the period for which a maternity allowance is payable shall be the period of 18 weeks beginning with the 11th week before the expected week of confinement; and this shall be the maternity allowance period for the purposes of this section and the relevant contribution conditions.

(3) A day for which a woman is entitled to a maternity allowance shall be deemed for the purposes of this Part of this Act to be for her a day of incapacity for work.

(4) Where a woman is entitled to a maternity allowance, she shall also be entitled to earnings-related supplement of the allowance, at a weekly rate ascertained in accordance with Schedule 6, Part I, in respect of every day of the maternity allowance period which forms part of a period of interruption of employment and is not earlier than the 13th day of the latter period; but where she has been entitled to the supplement in respect of an aggregate of 156 days in the same period of interruption of employment (including for this purpose any days in that period in respect of which she has been entitled to earnings-related supplement of unemployment or sickness benefit) she shall not be entitled thereto in respect of any further day in that period.

This subsection is subject to Schedule 6, Part II.

(5) A woman who has become entitled to a maternity allowance shall cease to be entitled to it if she dies before the beginning of the maternity allowance period; and if she dies after the beginning, but before the end, of that period the allowance shall not be payable for any week subsequent to that in which she dies.

(6) Regulations may provide that a woman who has become entitled to a maternity allowance shall cease to be entitled to it if her pregnancy is terminated otherwise than by confinement.

(7) Regulations may make provision, as respects cases where the date of the confinement occurs after the end of the expected week of confinement, for extending the maternity allowance period until the end of such week (not being later than the 6th week after that in which the date of the confinement occurs) as may be prescribed.

(8) Regulations may modify subsections (1)(a) and (b), (2) and (5) above in relation to cases where a woman has been confined and either—

(a) she has not made a claim for a maternity allowance in expectation of that confinement (other than a claim which has been disallowed); or

(b) she has made a claim for a maternity allowance in expectation of that confinement (other than a claim which has been disallowed), but the date of the confinement was more than 11 weeks before the expected week of confinement.

(9) Regulations may provide for disqualifying a woman for receiving a maternity allowance if—

(a) during the maternity allowance period, she does any work in employment as an employed or self-employed earner, or fails without good cause to observe any prescribed rules of behaviour; or

(b) at any time before her confinement occurs she fails without good cause to attend for, or submit herself to, any medical examination required in accordance with the regulations.

(10) Where for any purpose of this Part of this Act or of regulations it is necessary to calculate the daily rate of a maternity allowance—

(a) Sunday or such other day in each week as may be prescribed shall be disregarded; and

(b) the amount payable by way of that allowance for any other day shall be taken as l/6th of the weekly rate of the allowance.