If you’re a self-employed dad-to-be, ideally you’ll want to take some time off from running your business once your child is born. The challenge is that there’s currently no statutory paternity leave and pay for sole traders. This might change as the government is currently reviewing parental leave, but until then, it’s important to manage your own finances and prepare for any time off.
Read on to discover all the options available for self-employed fathers.
is there self-employed paternity pay (and leave)?
planning your finances for paternity leave
running your business while on paternity leave
can limited company directors get paternity leave?
relevant child and family benefits
Is there self-employed paternity pay (and leave)?
Only employees with an employment contract can get Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) and leave – currently, there’s no self-employed equivalent.
This guide is designed to help you plan around that, with ideas and ways of preparing your family’s affairs ready for your new baby’s birth and beyond.
Not sure of your employment status (i.e. whether you’re an employee, contractor, self-employed, casual worker, or something else)? Find out more about your employment status and rights with our up-to-date article.
What is shared parental leave?
Shared parental leave is a way for both parents to share statutory paid time off after having a baby. Shared parental leave means you can:
share up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay between you
take your leave at the same time or separately
You have to take shared parental leave within the first year of your child’s birth – either all in one go or in blocks.
But self-employed people aren’t entitled to shared parental leave. Your partner may be entitled to it, if they’re traditionally employed and meet certain earning criteria, however you both have to meet the eligibility criteria in order to share it.
When you’re self-employed, the amount of paternity leave you take is completely up to you. You’ll want to base this decision on what you can afford, but also on what works for you, your partner, and any other children you may have. Money is very important, but every pregnancy, birth, and baby is different, so have a plan to refer to but stay flexible.
Things to think about:
how much time can you afford to take off?
how will you plan around procedures such as a caesarean, if needed? Remember, this would mean your partner needs extra support and time from you
have you factored in pre-natal appointments and scans, as well as any false alarms for the beginnings of labour?
what will your partner’s maternity pay and leave look like?
if you have any other young children, who will be looking after them at the birth and in the weeks after?
“Start saving as soon as you find out, even if it’s just a small amount each week or month, so you can take some time off without added financial stress.”
Ben Gatenby Self-employed locksmith
Ben Gatenby, a self-employed locksmith in Leeds, took two weeks off when his child was born.
“While it wasn’t a long break, it was important to me to be present during those early days,” he says.
“Although due to the emergency nature of the locksmith industry, I still ended up nipping out on the odd occasion for our most regular customers just to try and ensure we didn’t lose their custom. They do say there’s no such thing as a day off when you’re self-employed!”
“Preparing for time off needed planning in advance. I saved up as much as possible in the run up to cover any lost income. I also took on more out of hours work than usual just to bank that bit extra. I was also upfront with regular customers, letting them know about my availability well in advance. Thankfully, most were understanding, which helped take away some of the stress.”
Save 5% of your monthly income
Dad.info is a great resource for dads and dads-to-be. In their guidance for self-employed fathers, they recommend saving about five per cent of your monthly income, for each week you want to take off to be with your partner and new baby. So if you find out about the pregnancy at the start of month two, you’ll have another seven months to save.
Whether this is manageable and realistic for you is another question. But planning around the birth with seven months to go is much better than seven weeks (or days) before the due date. But if you have left it until the last minute, don’t panic. Focus on your partner, the baby, and those first couple of weeks, and rope in as much support from your family and friends as you can.
Planning your finances for paternity leave
Sadly, there’s no equivalent to SPP for self-employed fathers. This may change (we hope it does), but for now the best thing you can do is start getting a plan in place for how you’ll manage family affairs, before the baby arrives.
Statutory paternity leave and pay is generally designed to kick in on or right around your baby’s day of delivery, covering you and your family for the time you’d need to spend away from work. It makes sense for your plan to focus on these days and weeks in particular. Once you’re clear on the due date and fortnight or so afterwards, think about how you’ll manage things if the baby arrives early, or a little (or a lot) later than expected.
Finally, bear in mind those all-important scan dates and antenatal appointments. If you’re not sure, ask your partner for a list of what’s coming up. You may not decide to be at all of them, but being self-employed means you’ll need to factor in the time for any you do attend.
‘Communicate clearly with customers about your plans’
“Plan as much as you can in advance,” Ben advises.
“Start saving as soon as you find out, even if it’s just a small amount each week or month, so you can take some time off without added financial stress.
“Communicate clearly with customers about your plans, they’re often more understanding than you might expect. Most importantly, I would prioritise being present for the child, although I know that’s easier said than done when faced with financial stress. But those first few weeks are priceless. Money comes and goes, but you will never be able to get those early days with your child back.”
Can limited company directors get paternity leave?
While you can’t get paternity leave if self-employed, company directors are another matter entirely. Since you’re technically employed – even though with your own company – and paying yourself through PAYE, you can claim up to two weeks of paid paternity leave.
To be eligible for paternity leave from your own limited company you’ll need to:
give 15 weeks’ notice (even just to yourself/your own company)
have been employed by your limited company continuously for a minimum period of 26 weeks up to the 15-week notice period
be employed by your limited company up to the date the child is born (or adopted)
be on the payroll of your limited company and earn a minimum of £120 gross weekly income during an eight-week period
You’ll need to take this leave in consecutive weeks and finish it within 56 days of the baby’s birth date (or adoption date). You can’t work at all while you’re claiming this type of leave. There are no exceptions, so be careful about how you delegate work before taking time off.
During your paternity leave you’ll still draw your salary from your limited company. The company then needs to claim this back from HMRC through payroll.
Paternity leave: self-employed vs limited company directors
Benefit
Self-employed (sole trader)
Limited company director
Statutory paternity pay (SPP)
No entitlement to SPP
Yes, as you’re technically an employee of your own company
Statutory paternity leave
No statutory entitlement. The amount of time you take is entirely up to you
Yes, up to two weeks
Shared parental leave
No entitlement
You’re entitled to shared parental leave as you’re an employee of your company (but both parents will need to meet certain eligibility criteria)
Government reviews parental leave and pay – is change on the way?
The government launched a full scale review of the parental leave and pay system in July 2025 and is currently reviewing evidence from different groups, including parents, businesses, and industry bodies.
A key goal of the review is to support working families and give children the best start in life. It’s looking at maternity, paternity, and shared parental leave with a view to making it fairer and easier to use.
One part of the review is looking at how the maternity and paternity system can be fairer for parents with different employment statuses. Currently, self-employed parents don’t get the same entitlements as those in full-time employment – and dads don’t get anything if they’re self-employed.
‘The best chance in a generation’
George Gabriel, co-founder of The Dad Shift said: “The government’s review of parental leave is the best chance in a generation to improve the system and make sure it actually works for working families.
“When the last Labour government introduced paternity leave it was groundbreaking. But that offer, unchanged since, is now the least generous in Europe. Our broken parental leave has been overlooked for years, and finally sorting it out would be good not only for parents and children but for businesses too. The tens of thousands of mums, dads and future parents that make up our campaign are delighted the government is delivering its promised review, and ambitious for the change to come.”
The government says one in three dads don’t take paternity leave because they can’t afford to, and take-up of shared parental leave remains very low.
The review is expected to take 18 months, but we can expect to hear more once the government has reviewed the evidence.
Relevant child and family benefits
While you can’t get paternity pay and leave as a self-employed father, there are still a number of benefits that could help boost your finances while you focus on your family.
You can access Child Benefit, for example, if you’re responsible for one or more children under the age of 16 (or 20, depending on their education status). Your employment status doesn’t matter, but you may have to pay a tax charge if your income (or your partner’s) is over £60,000.
No, a sole trader can’t get statutory paternity pay. This is because you need to be an employee with at least 26 weeks’ service up to any day in the fifteenth week before the baby is due.
Employed dads can get paid paternity leave but there aren’t currently equivalent rights for freelancers and self-employed workers. This might change as part of the government’s 18-month review of parental leave and pay.
How much paternity leave can a limited company director take?
A limited company director is eligible for two weeks’ statutory paternity leave as they’re effectively an employee of their own company.
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Lucy England has been writing for and about small businesses for around ten years. Initially working as a journalist covering tech startups, Lucy has extensive experience writing about insurance, fintech, tax and financial services for brands including Moneycorp and Muse Finance. Lucy has also supported a number of small businesses with their marketing, across industries as diverse as engineering and management consulting.
This content is for general, informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice. Please obtain expert advice from industry-specific professionals who may better understand your business’s needs. Read our full disclaimer
