11. Neonatal Care Leave and Pay

The key legislation in regard to Neonatal Care Leave and Pay is the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023, The Neonatal Care Leave and Miscellaneous Amendments Regulations 2025 and The Statutory Neonatal Care Pay (General) Regulations 2025.

Eligibility for neonatal care leave is available to all employees whose child was born on or after 6 April 2025, regardless of their length of service. The right to neonatal care leave is a day-one entitlement, meaning it is available to employees from the start of their employment. However, there is a qualifying period for statutory neonatal care pay.

Neonatal care incorporates:

medical care received in a hospital;
medical care received in any other place where the baby was an inpatient in hospital and the care continues to be administered once the baby is discharged from hospital; and the care is under the direction of a consultant; and the care includes ongoing monitoring by, and visits to the baby from, healthcare professionals arranged by the hospital where the baby was an inpatient; and
palliative or end of life care.

Neonatal care is treated as being received continuously without interruption, throughout any period where the baby is being transported from one care setting to another.

Unfortunately, any medical care which does not fall within the definition above will not qualify, nor will any medical care which does not begin within the first 28 days of the baby’s birth.

The following employees are eligible to take Neonatal Care Leave:

The baby’s parent who has or expects to have responsibility for the baby’s upbringing;
The partner of the baby’s mother, who expects to have main responsibility (apart from the mother) for the baby’s upbringing;
The baby’s adopter, who has or expects to have responsibility for the baby’s upbringing;
The partner of the baby’s adopter, who expects to have main responsibility (apart from their partner) for the baby’s upbringing;
The baby’s overseas adopter with responsibility for the upbringing of the baby;
The partner of the baby’s overseas adopter with main responsibility (apart from their partner) for the baby’s upbringing.
The intended parents (in relation to surrogacy).

Partner is defined as a person who lives with the baby’s mother or adopter and is in an enduring family relationship with them, but is not a relative. Unfortunately, grandparents or the partner of the biological father (if not the mother) would not be eligible for neonatal care leave.

Leave Entitlement

Neonatal care leave must be taken to provide care for the baby. In the very sad circumstances where the baby passes away after the leave has been accrued, an employee can still take the leave because the requirement to care for the baby is waived in such circumstances.

The leave is available to the parents of a baby whose neonatal care starts within the first 28 days (from the day after the baby’s birth) and the neonatal care lasts for a period of at least seven continuous days. The entitlement to begin taking a period of neonatal care leave only begins once the baby has spent seven consecutive days in neonatal care.

The employee is entitled to one week's leave for every seven continuous days the baby spends in neonatal care, capped at a maximum of twelve weeks.

Examples:

the baby spends 40 consecutive days in neonatal care; therefore the employee would accrue five week’s leave, this is because you only count each seven days of care and not the odd days.
the baby is admitted into neonatal care at one day old and then discharged at 10 days old. The baby is then re-admitted into neonatal care at 14 days old and discharged at 18 days old. In this example, whilst the baby is in neonatal care for a total of 14 days, there was only one period of care lasting 7 consecutive days and therefore the parents would only accrue 1 weeks neonatal care leave. It is important to note that the re-admission needs to be within the first 28 days.

The leave may be taken while the baby is receiving the neonatal care or can be taken at a later date, providing it is taken within 68 weeks following the date of the baby’s birth.

Where the employee takes neonatal care leave during a period where their baby is receiving neonatal care (or in the seven days immediately following discharge) then the employee is able to take neonatal care leave in non-consecutive weeks. This is known as ‘Tier 1’ leave.

Where the employee takes accrued neonatal care leave at any point after seven days has elapsed since their baby’s discharge from neonatal care then they must take any accrued leave in consecutive weeks. This is known as ‘Tier 2’ leave.

Where more than one baby is in receipt of neonatal care, each baby is generally to be treated separately as regards entitlement to take neonatal care leave. However, if more than one baby is receiving neonatal care at the same time, entitlement only accrues once. So, for example, if twins spend the same four weeks in neonatal care then the employee will accrue four weeks of neonatal care leave during this period, not eight. Irrespective of the number of babies receiving neonatal care, the employee will still only be able to take a maximum of 12 weeks neonatal care leave.

Notification Requirements

If an employee wishes to take a period of neonatal care leave, they must give notice of their intention to take neonatal care leave to the Company, specifying:

their name;
the baby’s date of birth and where relevant in cases of adoption, the date the baby is placed, or in cases of overseas adoption, the date the baby enters Great Britain;
the date or dates that the baby started to receive neonatal care;
if the baby is no longer receiving neonatal care, the date the neonatal care ended;
the date on which they choose the period of absence to begin;
the number of weeks of neonatal care leave the notice is being given for; and
that they are taking the leave to care for the baby; and
that they are eligible to take this form of leave.

The Company can reserve the right to request that the employee provides documentation from the hospital evidencing the baby’s neonatal care.

Where any initial notice is given before the baby has stopped receiving neonatal care, they must inform the Company of the date that the neonatal care ends, as soon as is reasonably practicable after that date. If neonatal care then starts again after the employee has notified the Company that it has ended, the employee should inform the Company of the date that neonatal care started again as soon as possible.

If the leave is to start during the Tier 1 period, the employee must give notice before they are due to start work on the first day of absence or if that is not possible then as soon as reasonably practicable. When taking leave during the Tier 1 period, there is no requirement for them to provide the notice in writing.

If the leave is to be taken later (during the Tier 2 period) then, for a single week, notice must be given no later than 15 days before the first day of leave to which the notice relates. If it is for two or more consecutive weeks then notice must be given no later than 28 days before the first day of the leave to which the notice relates. This notice must be in writing.

As an employer, you can waive or reduce the notice requirements set out above if you consider it reasonable to do so.

Interaction with other Family Leave

Neonatal care leave can be taken in addition to maternity, paternity, adoption, and shared parental leave. If the employee qualifies for multiple types of leave, they may take them consecutively, ensuring they receive the maximum support available. Neonatal care leave does not reduce the length of any other statutory leave entitlement.

As maternity leave starts automatically on the day after the birth of the baby (if not already started before then) and cannot be stopped and restarted, then Tier 1 leave is only likely to be taken by the father or the mother’s partner. If the employee is on maternity leave, then they can request to take Tier 2 leave at the end of their maternity leave. Likewise, the same will apply to adoption leave.

Neonatal Care Leave Pay

Unlike neonatal care leave, statutory neonatal care pay (SNCP) is not a day-one right. In order to be eligible for SNCP during any period of neonatal care leave the employee must:

Have been employed for a continuous period of at least 26 weeks ending with the relevant week;
Earn at least the lower earnings limit for National Insurance contributions (calculated over eight weeks up to and including the last payday before the relevant week); and
Provide the necessary documentation and notification to the Company.

The "relevant week" is usually the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth for birth parents, or the week of notification of a match with a child for adoptive parents. If the baby is born before the relevant week, the employee will still be treated as having been employed in the relevant week.

An employee is required to give the Company notice of the weeks during which they wish to claim SNCP.

For statutory pay weeks beginning in the Tier 1 period, notice must be given before the end of the period of 28 days beginning with the first day of the first statutory pay week to which the notice relates.

Notice for a statutory pay week beginning in the Tier 2 period must be given (for a single week) no later than 15 days before the first day of leave to which the notice relates, and if it is for two or more consecutive weeks then notice must be given no later than 28 days before the first day of the leave to which the notice relates.

Provided all requirements are met, Statutory Neonatal Care Pay will be paid at the lower of either the government-set rate or 90% of the employees average weekly earnings, for up to 12 weeks (matching the duration of neonatal care leave). SNCP rates are reviewed every April.

Employers may choose to offer enhanced pay or additional leave to support employees beyond the statutory requirements, demonstrating a commitment to employee well-being.

An Employee’s Rights and Obligations during Neonatal Care Leave

As with all statutory family leave, when an employee is on Neonatal Care Leave, they will continue to benefit from the terms and conditions of employment, except pay. Their continuity of employment is not disrupted and they will continue to accrue holiday entitlement.

During Neonatal Care Leave, the employee remains bound by their contractual obligations, including their obligation of good faith to the Company and confidentiality. If the contract of employment states they cannot work for another employer, this continues to be the case during Neonatal Leave.

Protection from Dismissal or Detriment

Employees taking neonatal care leave are entitled to the same protections as those taking other forms of statutory family leave. This includes protection from detriment and unfair dismissal, as well as the right to return to the same job or a suitable alternative if it is not reasonably practicable to return to the same role. Employees who have taken six consecutive weeks of neonatal care leave are also entitled to enhanced redundancy protection, which includes priority for suitable alternative employment.

Data Privacy and Confidentiality

The Company must respect the privacy of employees taking neonatal care leave, particularly regarding sensitive medical information about the baby. Any information shared should be limited to what is necessary for processing the leave request and should be handled in compliance with data protection regulations.

Step-by-Step Guide to Managing a Neonatal Care Leave Case

Employee advises you they wish to take Neonatal Care Leave;
Read and familiarise yourself with the Neonatal Care Leave Policy;
Check to see if the employee meets the eligibility criteria to take Neonatal Care Leave;
Remind the employee of the policy;
Ask the employee to complete a Neonatal Care Leave & Pay Form to provide notice or put their request in writing (they do not have to put their request for leave during Tier 1 in writing);
Check to see if the employee meets the eligibility criteria for Neonatal Care pay;
Send a letter to the employee acknowledging their request for Neonatal Care Leave and/or Pay.