Day one family leave rights April 2026:

What SME employers need know about the Day one family leave rights April 2026

From 6 April 2026, the Employment Rights Act reforms are due to make two family-related leave entitlements available much earlier in employment:

• Paternity Leave becomes a “day one” right, removing the current qualifying service requirement.
• Ordinary (unpaid) Parental Leave also becomes a “day one” right, removing the current one-year service requirement.

For SMEs, the main operational impact is that you will have employees—particularly new starters—who can request leave far sooner than you may be used to managing. The compliance risk is not just payroll; it is outdated handbook wording, inconsistent manager responses, and contract clauses that still refer to service thresholds.

1) Paternity Leave becomes a day one right

At present, many employers are familiar with paternity leave being linked to a service requirement. From 6 April 2026, employees will be eligible for Paternity Leave from their first day of employment, provided they give the correct notice.

The important distinction: leave versus pay

One area that is likely to cause confusion (and disputes) is the difference between the right to take leave and the right to be paid during that leave.

The reforms are focused on the leave entitlement becoming available from day one. Statutory Paternity Pay does not become a day one right: the qualifying conditions for pay remain in place, including the 26-week service requirement and earnings conditions.

In practical terms, this means an employee may be able to take paternity leave soon after joining your business, but they may not qualify for statutory paternity pay. If you offer enhanced paternity pay, you will want your scheme wording to be crystal clear on eligibility so you do not accidentally create a contractual promise you did not intend.

Linked change: paternity leave can be taken before or after Shared Parental Leave

A second paternity change is also due from April 2026: the current restriction that effectively prevents paternity leave and pay being taken after Shared Parental Leave and Pay is being removed. This gives parents more flexibility in how they use different types of family leave.

For employers, the key is consistency. Where a business has separate policies (paternity, shared parental, family leave), the wording and internal process need to align so managers do not inadvertently block a request or apply the old sequencing rules.

Transitional notice arrangements (worth knowing now)

The Government factsheet confirms a transitional approach for newly eligible parents so they can access leave from 6 April 2026, including a temporary reduction in notice to 28 days for newly eligible parents and allowing notice to be given from 18 February 2026 for leave taken from April.

2) Ordinary (unpaid) Parental Leave becomes a day one right

Ordinary parental leave is unpaid time off to care for a child. From 6 April 2026, this is also expected to become a day one right, removing the current one-year qualifying service requirement.

What does not change is the basic need for an employee to follow the correct process. The Government factsheet confirms the 21-day notice period remains for unpaid parental leave.

For SMEs, this can be a quiet but meaningful change. Employees who have recently moved roles will no longer “lose” access to unpaid parental leave during their first year with a new employer, so requests may increase—particularly in businesses with a younger workforce, seasonal hiring patterns, or high levels of movement between employers.

What SMEs should update to stay legally compliant

Most compliance issues arise when the policy wording, contract terms and manager practice drift out of line with the law. Ahead of April 2026, employers should review:

Your handbook and family leave policies

Remove legacy references to service thresholds for paternity leave and unpaid parental leave, and update any wording that suggests paternity leave cannot be taken after shared parental leave.

Your contracts and written particulars

If you reference eligibility rules within contracts (rather than in a separate policy), ensure these clauses do not hard-code outdated qualifying periods. It is often safer to reference that statutory leave is available “in accordance with applicable legislation” and then set out the detail in your policies, which can be updated more easily.

Your enhanced paternity pay scheme rules (if you offer them)

Given the leave/pay distinction, you should confirm whether your enhanced pay is linked to statutory pay eligibility, length of service, or other criteria. The aim is to prevent employees being promised paid leave where only unpaid leave is due.

Your templates and manager guidance

Update request forms, letters, and internal guidance notes so managers handle requests consistently, apply notice requirements correctly, and understand how paternity leave interacts with shared parental leave.

How KeyHR can take care of this for you

KeyHR can manage the entire update for SME employers, so you have confidence your documents and processes are compliant and consistent. That typically includes reviewing your current family leave arrangements, updating your handbook and policies (paternity, parental leave, shared parental leave references), checking contract wording, and issuing refreshed templates and manager guidance so the business applies the new rules correctly in practice.