If your job is in Northern Ireland, eligible employees may take one or two weeks of Paternity Leave after a birth or adoption placement. The rules here are separate from Great Britain: in Northern Ireland the leave entitlement generally requires 26 weeks with the same employer by the qualifying week or adoption matching week. Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) has its own service and earnings tests, so qualifying for leave does not automatically mean qualifying for pay.
Northern Ireland rules apply
Give notice early
Leave and pay have separate tests
Northern Ireland and Great Britain use different rules
This page is for employees whose job is governed by Northern Ireland rules. The separate Great Britain Paternity Leave guide covers England, Scotland and Wales, including the day-one leave change from 6 April 2026. Do not use that service rule for a Northern Ireland job. The UK maternity and paternity pay comparison explains the shared 2026/27 statutory-rate context; this page focuses on the NI leave request and employer SPP process.
Who may qualify for Paternity Leave
You must be an employee and meet the relevant relationship and care conditions. Depending on the birth or adoption route, this can include the child’s biological father, the mother’s or adopter’s husband, partner or civil partner, an adopter, or an intended parent in a surrogacy arrangement who is eligible to apply for a Parental Order. You must plan to use the time off to support the mother or care for the child and be involved in the child’s upbringing.
For a birth, you generally need at least 26 weeks’ continuous employment with the same employer by the end of the 15th week before the week the baby is due. For adoption, the service test is tied to the week you are told you have been matched with a child. Workers who are not employees may not have the leave right, although some may qualify for SPP. Check your employment status and the relevant route before relying on an entitlement.
How much leave and when to take it
You may take one or two weeks. If you take two weeks, they must be consecutive; separate odd days are not allowed. A week is based on your normal working pattern. A multiple birth does not create an extra paternity-leave period.
For a birth, leave cannot start before the child is born and must finish within 56 days of the birth. If a baby arrives early, the nidirect leave guidance uses the first day of the expected week as the reference for the leave deadline. Adoption has a separate matching and placement route, so confirm the leave dates with the employer. For SPP after an adoption, the nidirect pay guidance says the period must finish within 56 days of placement. Confirm leave and pay dates independently.
Notify your employer
For a birth, tell the employer the expected week of birth, whether you want one or two weeks, and when you want the leave to start. Give the notice at least 15 weeks before the beginning of the expected week of birth. For adoption, notify the employer within seven days of being told you have been matched with a child, unless that is not reasonably practicable.
If you need to change the start date, give 28 days’ notice where possible. If a valid reason means you cannot meet the normal notice period, give as much notice as you can and explain why. Ask the employer to confirm the dates and process in writing, and keep a copy of your notice.
Use the Paternity Leave Timeline Planner with Northern Ireland selected to map the 26-week service reference, due-week notice and 56-day finish date. The result is a date reminder only; your employer confirms the continuous-service and SPP tests.
Statutory Paternity Pay is a separate claim
SPP generally requires you to be the child’s father, adopter, the mother’s or adopter’s spouse or partner, or someone with or expecting responsibility for the child’s upbringing. You normally need 26 weeks’ continuous service by the qualifying week, must continue working for the employer through the birth or placement, and must have average weekly earnings of at least £129 before tax under the 2026/27 threshold.
For 2026/27, SPP is £194.32 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower, for one or two consecutive weeks. Your employer pays it with normal wages and deducts tax and National Insurance through payroll. The statutory rate is not a guaranteed net amount. If you have more than one job, check each employment separately because a qualifying claim may be possible through more than one employer.
Give your employer the required notice and complete the applicable self-certificate, commonly form SC3 for becoming a parent. This is an employer/payroll process, not a separate DWP benefit application. If the employer says you do not qualify for SPP, it should give you form SPP1 with the reason. Contact HMRC if you think the decision or amount is wrong. If you qualify for leave but not SPP, do not assume another benefit will replace it; check any separate Universal Credit entitlement using your household circumstances.
Plan a Northern Ireland Paternity Leave request
- 1Confirm the job is governed by Northern Ireland rules and check employee status, relationship category and the continuous-service date.
- 2For a birth, give the due-week, leave length and start information at least 15 weeks before the expected week; for adoption, notify within seven days of matching.
- 3Ask payroll to assess SPP separately using the qualifying week, continued employment, average earnings and current 2026/27 rate.
- 4Submit the employer’s requested notice and SC3 evidence, then keep written confirmation of the dates and pay decision.
- 5If SPP is refused, request SPP1 and check its reason; contact HMRC about a disputed statutory-pay decision or amount.
Other leave and workplace rights
For the separate pre-placement time-off rights, see the UK adoption appointments guide, which compares the main and second adopter’s appointment allowances and pay treatment.
Paternity Leave is distinct from Shared Parental Leave and Pay, which has separate eligibility and booking steps. See the Northern Ireland Shared Parental Leave and Pay guide. Adoption cases also involve separate Statutory Adoption Leave and Pay; read the Northern Ireland Adoption Leave and Pay guide for the NI match-notice and employer-pay process. The UK Adoption Leave guide covers the Great Britain route. During paternity leave, employment protections continue under the applicable rules. If the employer refuses leave or you experience detriment, raise the issue promptly through the employer’s grievance process and seek current Northern Ireland employment-rights advice.
If a baby needs neonatal care, that does not create a separate NI Paternity Leave or Statutory Paternity Pay period. Read the Northern Ireland neonatal-care leave and pay guide for the current position and the proposed Good Jobs reform; use this guide for the existing NI paternity route.