Advise an employee adopting from within the UK on the qualifying criteria for adoption leave and pay

Key points

An employee who adopts a child from within the UK may be entitled to statutory adoption leave and pay.
To qualify for statutory adoption leave, the employee must be matched with a child for adoption by an approved adoption agency or be one of a couple who have been jointly matched with a child for adoption, and satisfy certain notice requirements.
Entitlement to statutory adoption pay is determined by various factors, including the employee's length of service and average weekly earnings.