Running a side hustle on maternity leave is legally possible — but the rules are specific and the consequences of getting them wrong can include losing weeks of Statutory Maternity Pay you have already started receiving.
The core rules break down into three questions. Does your side hustle constitute “working” in a way that triggers Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) rules? How do Keeping in Touch (KIT) days interact with self-employed or gig work? And what happens to SMP if you start a new job or increase existing self-employment during maternity leave?
This guide answers all three — with current 2026 SMP rates, the specific scenarios that are safe and those that are not, and the side hustles that work best around a new baby’s schedule.
For a full overview of UK side hustle options, see our complete guide to UK side hustles.
SMP in 2026 — the Rates and What Affects Them?
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is paid for 39 weeks:
- First 6 weeks: 90% of your average weekly earnings (no upper cap)
- Remaining 33 weeks: £194.32 per week or 90% of average earnings, whichever is lower
The £194.32/week rate applies from 6 April 2026, rising from £187.18 in 2025/26. SMP is paid through your employer’s payroll and is subject to income tax and National Insurance in the same way as normal wages.
Employers reclaim 92% of SMP from HMRC (or 103% if they qualify as a small employer under the Small Employers’ Relief scheme — now at 108.5%).
What Affects Your SMP Entitlement?
SMP eligibility is based on employment status and earnings at a specific qualifying week — 15 weeks before your expected due date. Once SMP begins, the rate is fixed. Side hustle income you generate during maternity leave does not change your SMP amount. The amount was locked in at the start of your leave.
What Can Stop Your SMP?
Two things stop SMP: starting a new job with a different employer during maternity leave, or returning to work for your current employer beyond the permitted KIT days. Self-employment started or continued during maternity leave does not stop SMP.
The Critical Rule: Self-employment Does Not Stop SMP
This is the most important rule in this article, and it is the one that most online guides state incorrectly or incompletely.
You can start, continue, or increase a self-employed side hustle during SMP without any effect on your SMP payments. HMRC and DWP are explicit on this: self-employment during maternity leave does not constitute a return to work for SMP purposes and does not stop or reduce your statutory payments.
This means: selling on Etsy, tutoring, freelance writing, dog walking, dog sitting, Vinted reselling, AI training work, consulting, creating digital products, and any other self-employed activity is legally safe on SMP — you keep your full SMP regardless of how much you earn.
The Distinction From Employment
The rule that stops SMP is returning to work for an employer. Self-employment is not employment in this sense. You are working for yourself, not for another employer. This is the legal distinction that matters.
There is one exception: if you begin working for a completely new employer (not the one paying your SMP) during maternity leave, SMP stops from that date. But starting your own self-employed side hustle is not taking a new job with an employer.
Kit Days — the 10-day Rule and How It Works?
Keeping in Touch (KIT) days allow you to work up to 10 days for your current employer during maternity leave without ending your leave or losing SMP. They are entirely voluntary — neither you nor your employer can be compelled to arrange KIT days.
KIT days are: fully optional for both parties; paid at your normal rate of pay for the day; offset against SMP for that day (your employer pays the KIT day rate, with SMP for that day already accounted for); limited to 10 days total across your entire maternity leave; not available to use for self-employed work with external clients.
What Counts Against Your 10 Kit Days?
Only work for your own employer counts as a KIT day. Self-employed work during maternity leave does not use any of your KIT days. A KIT day is specifically about returning to work for the employer who is paying your SMP.
If you do more than 10 KIT days, your SMP stops from day 11 of working. This is a hard rule — it applies regardless of the reason.
Kit Days and Self-employed Work: No Conflict
A week in which you do 2 KIT days for your employer and also spend 3 days working on your freelance business does not use up your KIT days for the freelance work. The 10-day count applies to days worked for your employer only. Your self-employment is uncounted.
Starting a New Job During Maternity Leave Does Stop SMP
The one firm rule: if you start a new employed job with a different employer during maternity leave, SMP stops from the date that new employment begins.
This applies to: a new PAYE job with a different company; a zero-hours contract for work with a new employer; agency shifts for a new employer. It does not apply to: freelance or self-employed work; adding new self-employed clients; working through platforms as a self-employed contractor.
The practical caution: platform delivery work (Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Just Eat) and similar gig economy roles are classified as self-employment — they do not stop SMP. However, always confirm the employment status classification of any new engagement before starting, because the test is whether you are employed by a new employer, not whether the work feels casual.
Maternity Allowance and Self-employment
Maternity Allowance (MA) is paid by DWP to women who do not qualify for SMP — typically the self-employed, the recently self-employed, or those who are employed but have not met the qualifying conditions for SMP.
MA is paid at £194.32/week or 90% of average earnings, whichever is lower, for 39 weeks.
Self-employment and Kit Days Under Maternity Allowance
If you receive MA (rather than SMP), you may work for up to 10 Keeping in Touch days without losing Maternity Allowance. Crucially, the 10 KIT days under MA include both employed AND self-employed work — unlike SMP, where only employed KIT days count. If you are on MA and do more than 10 days of any paid work (employed or self-employed), you risk losing MA payments.
Note: Maternity Action’s March 2026 guidance indicates this time limit for SPLIT days is expected to increase to six months from October 2026 — confirm current rules at gov.uk at the time you are planning to return to any work.
The Best Side Hustles for Maternity Leave in 2026
Given the rules above, the best side hustles on maternity leave are self-employed activities that:
- Generate income that does not stop or reduce SMP
- Can be done in short bursts (nap time, evening, early morning) with no fixed schedule
- Have low or zero startup cost
- Do not require your full cognitive or physical capacity in the early weeks
Selling Digital Products (Etsy, Gumroad)
Earnings: £30–£300/month once established | Setup once, earn passively
Creating a printable planner, a revision guide, a set of templates, or a digital resource during pregnancy and listing it before or during leave generates passive income throughout maternity leave with no ongoing effort once the product is live. Zero fulfilment work per sale. Income continues while you sleep. The setup investment is front-loaded — ideal if done before the due date.
Vinted or Depop Reselling
Earnings: £50–£300/month | Flexible, completely nap-time compatible
Listing secondhand items takes 5–10 minutes per item and can be done on a phone. Packaging an item for collection takes under 5 minutes. This is the most popular maternity leave side hustle because it perfectly matches the unpredictable schedule of a new parent. Start with your own wardrobe and baby clothes bought before you knew the sex — both sell quickly on Vinted.
Proofreading and Editing
Earnings: £15–£25/hour | Remote, flexible, quiet work
Proofreading work can be done in genuine silence during nap times with no client calls required. Accept work when available; decline when not. Suitable for anyone with a strong command of written English. Platforms: PeoplePerHour, Reedsy (for book editing, higher rates).
Transcription
Earnings: £10–£20/hour | Fully remote, no talking required
Transcribing audio or video files to text — via platforms like Scribie, GoTranscript, or directly through businesses — can be done in complete silence, at any hour, with no client interaction. Rates are modest but the flexibility is genuinely unmatched. Work is available 24 hours a day.
Selling Handmade or Craft Items
Earnings: variable — £50–£400/month | Home-based, creative, schedule-independent
If you craft as a hobby (knitting, sewing, ceramics, candle making, jewellery), listing finished items on Etsy or at local markets provides income alongside a fulfilling activity many new parents find genuinely restorative. Scale with the baby’s growing sleep predictability.
AI Training Tasks
Earnings: £15–£30/hour equivalent | Fully remote, short flexible tasks
Platforms including Outlier, Mindrift, and Surge AI pay for writing, reviewing, and fact-checking AI-generated content in flexible task formats — no schedule, no calls, no minimum hours. Pick up tasks when available, leave them when not. The hourly equivalent is good relative to the flexibility offered.
Mystery Shopping
Earnings: £10–£30 per assignment | Light and social
Mystery shopping assignments that involve visiting a shop, café, or local service with a buggy are genuinely compatible with early maternity leave once you feel ready to leave the house. The work is structured, pays promptly, and many assignments are designed for shoppers with children (reviewing family-friendly services, for example).
The Income Tax Picture on Maternity Leave
SMP is taxable earnings — your employer deducts income tax through PAYE on SMP payments in the same way as a salary. If your SMP takes you below the personal allowance (£12,570), you may be due a tax rebate at the end of the year.
Side Hustle Income and Tax on Maternity Leave
If your gross side hustle income exceeds £1,000 in the tax year, you must register for Self Assessment and file a return, regardless of your maternity leave status. The £1,000 trading allowance applies in the normal way.
Your total taxable income for the year includes your SMP (or salary in the weeks before leave), plus side hustle profit above the trading allowance. If the combined total is above the personal allowance, income tax is owed.
For many women on a full year of maternity leave with earnings replacing most of their salary with SMP, total taxable income is modest — meaning the personal allowance may cover side hustle profit with no additional tax owed.
For the full calculation, see our guide on how the tax threshold applies to maternity-leave income.
Universal Credit on Maternity Leave
If you receive UC alongside SMP, SMP counts as income for UC assessment. UC reduces by 55p for every £1 of income above your work allowance. Side hustle income declared in the same assessment period as SMP is also assessed — adding to the taper reduction.
The UC Minimum Income Floor does not apply during the first 12 months of self-employment, so new side hustles started during maternity leave are assessed on actual profit during the start-up period.
For the full picture of how UC and side hustle income interact, see our guide on the rules if you also claim Universal Credit on maternity leave.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does working on a side hustle during maternity leave stop my SMP?
No — not if the work is self-employed. Self-employment during maternity leave does not stop SMP. Only starting a new employed job with a different employer stops SMP.
Can I do Deliveroo delivery during maternity leave?
Deliveroo classifies riders as self-employed. Self-employed work does not stop SMP. However, the physical demands of delivery work in the early postpartum period make it impractical for most women. From a legal standpoint, it is permitted. From a practical and health standpoint, most maternity advisers would recommend waiting until you are fully physically recovered.
I am on Maternity Allowance, not SMP. Can I do a side hustle?
Yes, but with a 10-day KIT limit. Under MA, the 10 Keeping in Touch days include self-employed work — not just employed work. If you work more than 10 days of any kind, you risk losing MA payments for those days. Plan carefully before starting any regular side hustle activity if you receive MA rather than SMP.
Does my employer need to know about my side hustle on maternity leave?
Not legally, unless your contract requires disclosure of outside work. The same contract rules that apply during normal employment apply during maternity leave. See our guide on whether you need to tell your employer about a side hustle for the full framework.
Does maternity leave count as a gap year for National Insurance?
No. You receive NI credits automatically during maternity leave (SMP weeks), meaning qualifying years for the State Pension continue to accrue. There is no NI gap created by maternity leave.
Can I use KIT days to work on my side hustle clients?
No. KIT days are specifically for working for your current employer (the one paying your SMP). Self-employed work for your own clients is not a KIT day and does not count toward the 10-day limit. You can work on your side hustle entirely separately from KIT days.
What to Read Next?
For the full rules on how benefits — including Universal Credit — interact with side hustle income, see our guide on how side income interacts with maternity pay.
For the UC-specific rules that apply during maternity leave if you also claim, see our guide on the rules if you also claim Universal Credit on maternity leave.
Verified against HMRC and DWP guidance as of 11 June 2026. SMP rates confirmed for 2026/27. Rules around MA KIT days may change from October 2026 — confirm at gov.uk or Maternity Action before planning any return to work activity. This article provides general guidance and is not a substitute for personalised legal or HR advice.
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