Am I eligible for Shared Parental Leave? We answer some of your most often asked questions relating to your partners eligibility, on this topic… 99% of the time the answer is yes!

There are two eligibility thresholds for SPL - a higher one for the parent who wishes to use SPL, and a lower one for the parent who is sharing responsibility for the child but isn’t intending to take any shared parental leave themselves. 

The higher threshold is the same as the one for maternity leave - you must have completed 26 weeks of work with the same employer by the qualifying week (15 weeks before the due date). The government website has a handy eligibility checker that will generate the dates for this for you based on your due date - to save you counting weeks on a calendar! You can find this here: https://www.check-shared-parental-leave.service.gov.uk/nature-of-parenthood  If it is just the mother taking shared parental leave you only need to check your own eligibility - within the checks they will ask you questions about your partner to establish whether they meet the lower threshold for just you to take SPL. If you get two ticks at the end you are good to go!

Select this option if it will just be the mother taking SPL

The lower threshold for the partner not taking SPL requires the following:

• That they have worked 26 weeks out of the 66 weeks before the due date. These do not have to be with a current employer, or all with the same employer. They can be done through self employment, and can be part time weeks. 

• They must have earnt £390 (£30 on average) across 13 of those weeks (£30 on average)

• The work must have been done in the UK, if your partner is employed abroad then you will not be eligible. 

The declaration a partner must sign if they are not taking leave themselves.

Below we’ll answer some of the questions we commonly get asked on this topic.

1.We are both teachers, does this affect how we can use SPL?

No it doesn’t at all, when the mother is using SPL the partner can stay at work as normal, so you will both always receive full pay for the school holidays. The partner would stay on full pay throughout unless they booked their own blocks of SPL. 

2. We both work in the same school, does this affect SPL?

No, it doesn’t matter that you have the same employer - you are two separate employees and can only be put onto SPL if you yourself have requested it. As above, the partner can choose to work throughout with no impact on pay. 

3. My partner is self-employed, can we take SPL?

Yes, your partner will not be able to take any leave themselves, but provided they have met the criteria of earning £30 a week for 13 weeks in the 66 weeks before the due date, then they meet the criteria for the mother/ primary adopter to take SPL. 

4. My partner is not currently employed, can we take SPL?

This depends - if they were employed (or self employed) for 26 weeks out of any of the 66 weeks before the due date then yes you can take SPL even if they are not currently employed. If they become unemployed during the SPL year this is not a problem as eligibility is only looked it in that 66 week period. 

5. My partner is thinking about changing jobs soon, will this affect our eligibility?

No, if they had met the eligibility criteria in relation to the 66 weeks before the birth then it doesn’t matter if they change job/ leave their job - they won’t be able to take SPL themselves, but it will not stop the mother/ primary adopter from taking it. 

6. My partner’s employer offers a great paternity leave package, does this affect SPL?

Paternity leave is completely separate to SPL, so taking this will not impact your maternity/ adoption leave or the amount of SPL you can take. 

7.  I have split up from my partner, can I still take SPL?

Yes, as long as your former partner/ the child’s father is willing to sign the forms and meets the requirements you can take SPL. The rules are that they must share responsibility for the child (be on the birth certificate/ have some role in their life - note this does not mean that they have to take time off work to look after the child, or have any formal custody arrangements in place) and meet the lower threshold mentioned above. You will need to provide their NI number and ask them to sign the forms that go to your employer - but nothing has to go to their employer. 

8. I’ve done the eligibility checker and my partner has crosses next to his section, can we take SPL?

Yes as long as you have ticks, this often causes confusion! If you have ticks it means that your partner has met the lower threshold - so you can take leave. The crosses mean that they cannot take any SPL themselves .

If you get this outcome then the mother/ primary adopter can take SPL

9. If our circumstances change after the birth does this affect our eligibility?

No, eligibility is determined by the 66 weeks prior to the birth. It doesn’t matter what happens in terms of your partners employment/ your relationship after the birth - as long as the partner keeps sharing responsibility for the child. (The only exception to this is the death of a partner - this actually gives you more rights/ flexibility with your SPL, priovided it is alreafdy booked, rather than less). 

10. I don’t have a partner (single adopter or mother going down sole parenting route with no father on the scene) can I take SPL?

Unfortunately not. In order to take SPL there must be either two people living together in an enduring relationship, a civil partner or a father of the child. The second person cannot be a family member such as a grandparent even if you are living with them and they are helping with care. We agree that this is not fair, but it is the current legal situation.