Northern Ireland Becomes First UK Region to Introduce Paid Miscarriage Leave
Northern Ireland has today become the first part of the United Kingdom to introduce a statutory legal entitlement to paid leave for parents affected by miscarriage at any stage of pregnancy — a landmark moment for workplace rights and compassionate employment law.
What the Law Provides
From today, 6 April 2026, employees in Northern Ireland who experience a miscarriage — including spontaneous loss and specified medical interventions such as ectopic and molar pregnancies — are entitled to two weeks of paid statutory leave. The entitlement also extends to partners and others with a defined connection to the woman who experienced the miscarriage.
The leave can be taken as a single continuous two-week period or as two separate one-week blocks, and can be used at any point within 56 weeks of the miscarriage occurring or being discovered. Statutory miscarriage pay is set at £194.32 per week — the standard statutory rate — and is a day-one right, meaning employees qualify from their very first day of employment with no qualifying period.
Crucially, no medical evidence is required. Employees need only submit a simple written self-declaration confirming they meet the eligibility requirements, including their name and the date the miscarriage happened or was discovered. This approach was deliberately designed to be sensitive during what is an acutely distressing time, and to avoid placing additional burdens on the health service.
A Pioneering Step
Northern Ireland is the first region in the UK to introduce specific statutory paid miscarriage leave. Great Britain is expected to introduce unpaid miscarriage leave in 2027 under the Employment Rights Act 2025, making Northern Ireland's provision both earlier and more generous. It is estimated that over 9,000 people per year in Northern Ireland are affected by miscarriage, either directly or as a partner.
The Department for the Economy, which championed the legislation, described the change as an acknowledgement that miscarriage is a bereavement — one that deserves compassion and understanding in the workplace, and that should not force parents to return to work before they are ready to grieve and recover.
Why It Matters
For the thousands of families in Northern Ireland who experience pregnancy loss each year, today's change means they will no longer have to choose between their grief and their income. It is a recognition that miscarriage — long a subject of silence in workplaces — deserves the same compassion as other forms of bereavement. Employers across Northern Ireland are now updating their HR policies and payroll systems to reflect the new entitlement.
What's Next
The Labour Relations Agency (LRA) has recorded a webinar to help employers understand and implement the new requirements. Great Britain is expected to follow with its own miscarriage leave provisions in 2027, though the current proposal is for unpaid leave rather than the paid entitlement now available in Northern Ireland.
Full details of the new entitlement are available at Department for the Economy and BBC News.
