When will additional paternity leave and pay be introduced and what entitlements will staff have?

The Additional Paternity Leave Regulations came into force on 06 April 2010. The regulations give parents of children due or matched for adoption on or after 03 April 2011 greater flexibility in how they use maternity and paternity provisions. 

The Regulations introduce additional paternity leave and pay which can be used by fathers or partners of mothers or adopters at any time as long as the child is over 20 weeks old and under 12 months old, and if at least two weeks leave is taken.

The leave must be taken in multiples of complete weeks and must be taken as one continuous period. The entitlement is in addition to existing rights of fathers and partners of new mothers or adopters to take two weeks leave around the time of the child's birth or adoption.

To be eligible for additional paternity leave:

• The employee must have worked for their employer for at least 26 weeks ending with the relevant week (the relevant week is the 14th week before the child's expected birth). 
• The employee must give at least eight weeks notice to their employer of their intent to take additional paternity leave. The notice should include the child's expected week and date of birth and the dates the employee intends to take as additional paternity leave.
  
• They also need to give a signed declaration stating that the purpose of the leave is to care for the child and that they are the child's father, or are married to, or are  the partner or civil partner of the mother or primary adopter and they have (apart from the mother or primary adopter) the main responsibility for the upbringing of the child. The employee can vary or cancel their leave but must give subsequent notice of at least 6 weeks.
• The mother or primary adopter must be eligible for maternity leave, statutory maternity pay, maternity allowance, adoption leave or statutory adoption pay and must have returned to work.
• The mother or primary adopter must provide the child's father or their partner's employer with a declaration stating their name, address and national insurance number and the date they intend to return to work. They must also state that the child's father or their partner has (apart from them) the main responsibility for the upbringing of the child and that they are prepared for the employer to process information contained in the declaration.

Employers must confirm in writing additional paternity leave dates 28 days after receiving notice. 

Additional paternity leave will be paid at the same rate as Statutory Maternity Pay and Statutory Adoption Pay provided that the new mother or adopter has not exhausted their entitlement to Statutory Maternity Pay or Statutory Adoption Pay which remains at 39 weeks. The remainder of the 39 weeks is transferred to the child's father or partner of the mother or primary adopter.

During paternity leave the father is entitled to carry out up to 10 days work for their employer.