Repayment of Contractual Maternity Pay

I was paid contractual maternity pay in addition to statutory maternity pay over the course of my maternity leave, This was paid to me net of PAYE and NI deductions. This was my only income whilst on maternity leave. I chose not to return to work after my maternity leave therefore my employer requested the contractual maternity pay be repaid. They are however requesting that this be repaid gross before deductions. I understand that I should be repaying the amount net of tax (as I recieved it) and they then need to claim back the tax paid. Please could you provide clarification.

You will need to repay the gross amount, and then your employer will work out any tax due if you are still employed by them - if it is a different tax year, or you have left you may have to claim this back yourself. It is classed as an overpayment of wages so they have to follow HMRC rules on this and what to report. There is no legal requirement for them to ask for the the net pay, and they cannot claim your tax refund on your behalf

Hi Charlotte Rosa,
You would need to contact ACAS for advise.
www.acas.org.uk 0300 123 1100.
How Acas can help
Thank you.