Statutory Sick Pay
Key information
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is money paid to you by your
employer if you are sick and unable to work.
Applies to: England, Wales, Scotland and
Northern Ireland
Age rules: There are no age rules
Type of benefit: Non
means tested
Taxable: Yes
Administered by: Your employer
Index
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Who does it help?
Most employees get SSP, including part-time workers and agency
workers and workers on a fixed-term contract.
You must earn an average of at least £107 a week to qualify for
SSP. If you do not earn enough to qualify for SSP, or if you
are self employed, then you can claim Employment and Support Allowance
instead.
You do not get SSP for the first three days you are sick. It is
paid from the fourth day. However, if you have already had a period
of sick leave in the previous eight weeks, you can usually claim
SSP from the first day as it is counted as one period of
'incapacity for work'.
You can get SSP for up to 28 weeks of sickness. After that,
if you still cannot work, you can claim Employment and Support Allowance.
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What help does it provide?
SSP is money paid by your employers in the same way that they
pay your wages and at the same time. You can spend it on what
you want.
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How much does it pay?
SSP is a fixed amount of £85.85 a week. You may get more sick
pay on top of this if your contract of employment says you
will.
If you are getting SSP you may get Income Support on top of this depending on your
circumstances.
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How do I make a claim?
The way you claim SSP depends on your employer. They can
make their own rules about how you should show that you can not
work.
Usually, you have to fill in a form provided by your employer
for the first week you are unable to work. Or you could write a
letter explaining that you are sick (the postmark is taken as the
date you informed them), or phone them.
Another option is to fill in Form SC2 (Employee's Statement of
Sickness) which you can get from your doctor's surgery or download:
Form SC2 (PDF file
size 66kb link opens in a new window).
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What documents will I need?
After the first week, you usually have to send in a doctor's
certificate to get SSP.
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Challenging decisions
If you disagree with a SSP decision made by your employer, you
can contact HM Revenue and Customs Statutory Payments Disputes
Team. This may affect your job and your relationship with your
employer so you may want to seek specialist advice on this matter
first.
Further information on
Challenges and complaints
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Change of circumstance
You must report to your employer changes in
your circumstances which might affect your entitlement to this
benefit
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Further help
The website of
HM Revenue and Customs (link opens in a new window) has
more information about SSP.
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This information has been produced by Citizens
Advice.
Last updated: 6 April 2012
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