What is unpaid parental leave and how do I use it?

This is the most under-used family right in the system, and the removal of the service qualification in April 2026 brought a very large number of people into it who do not know they are in it. It is unpaid, which is why people overlook it, but it is also the only family leave an employer effectively cannot say no to — and it is the standard way of extending time off around a birth, covering school holidays, or being at home when a child is ill for a long period.

Step by step

1. Check you are an employee with parental responsibility.Employees only — not workers, not the self-employed. You must be the child's parent, have parental responsibility, or be named as the child's guardian, and the entitlement follows the child, not the job.
2. Check the service position for your nation.In England, Wales and Scotland there is no longer any qualifying service period — the one-year requirement was removed on 6 April 2026. Northern Ireland still requires one year's continuous service, so check nidirect if you work there.
3. Count what you have already used.Eighteen weeks per child in total, across your working life, up to the child's 18th birthday. Because it follows the child rather than the employer, leave taken at a previous job counts. Ask a previous employer to confirm in writing if you are unsure.
4. Respect the four-week annual cap.No more than four weeks per child per year. With twins or two children you have two separate entitlements and two separate caps.
5. Take it in whole weeks — with one exception.Ordinarily it must be taken in blocks of a week or multiples of a week, whatever your working pattern. Where the child is disabled and receives Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment, it can be taken in individual days or even shorter periods.
6. Give 21 days' notice with exact dates.Notice must state the start date and the end date. It does not have to be in writing unless the employer's policy requires it, but putting it in writing is obviously sensible.
7. Know what the employer can and cannot do.They cannot refuse. They can postpone for up to six months where the absence would unduly disrupt the business, and if they do they must say so in writing within seven days and propose alternative dates. They cannot postpone leave taken immediately after a birth or an adoption placement.
8. Use it to extend leave around a birth.The most common use is a partner adding weeks to two weeks of paternity leave, taken immediately after the birth — which is precisely the case the employer cannot postpone.
9. Check the effect on pay and benefits.It is unpaid, so it reduces earnings for that period and can affect entitlements calculated on earnings. Your terms and conditions otherwise continue, and it does not break continuity of employment.

Tips

• Book it immediately after paternity leave if you want it around a birth. That is the one case the employer cannot postpone.
• Ask a previous employer in writing how many weeks you took there before you claim a full 18 at a new job.
• If your child receives DLA or PIP, say so in the request — it unlocks taking the leave in days rather than weeks.

Common mistakes

• Not knowing it exists — It is the only leave an employer cannot refuse, and the April 2026 change brought around a million and a half more parents in Great Britain into scope.
• Giving notice without exact dates — The 21-day notice must state the start and the end. A vague request is not valid notice and does not start the clock.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask