From 1 January 2027, ordinary unfair dismissal protection in England, Scotland and Wales is scheduled to apply after six months’ employment rather than two years. It is a significant change for employees who lose a job relatively soon after starting. It does not automatically create redundancy pay entitlement or guarantee a successful claim.
Information checked on 3 October 2026. The reform is provided for in the Employment Rights Act 2025 and official government guidance gives the implementation date. The timetable updated on 25 September 2026 says future dates remain subject to parliamentary processes and may change. The new rules are not yet in force at the date of this article.
What is unfair dismissal?
A dismissal may be unfair if there is no sufficient fair reason or the employer does not follow a fair procedure. The outcome depends on the circumstances. Employers will still be able to dismiss for legitimate reasons, but must justify their decisions and use an appropriate process. Acas: unfair dismissal.
Ordinary unfair dismissal is separate from discrimination and many automatically unfair reasons, such as dismissal linked to pregnancy or asserting particular statutory rights.
The main change: six months rather than two years
In Great Britain, an ordinary unfair dismissal claim currently generally requires two years’ service. Official guidance says the threshold will fall to six months for dismissals with an effective date of termination on or after 1 January 2027. The existing threshold applies to earlier dismissals. GOV.UK: eligibility to claim.
The government intends the new protection to cover employees who already have six months’ service when the change starts. They will not need to restart the clock in January. This approach is described in the official factsheet.
An example for someone hired in 2026
Marek starts work on 1 June 2026. If his employment ends on 15 January 2027, he has more than six months’ service. If the reform starts as scheduled, he may satisfy the service requirement for an ordinary unfair dismissal claim even though he has not worked for two years. The reason, procedure and other conditions of the claim still need to be considered.
Where a dismissal is close to a qualifying date, do not judge eligibility solely by the date the dismissal letter was handed over. The effective date of termination and rules concerning statutory notice can matter. Ask Acas for advice on the calculation.
Written reasons and the compensation cap
The reform will also reduce the qualifying period for requesting written reasons for dismissal from two years to six months. It will remove the service requirement for protection against unfair dismissal on grounds of spent convictions and remove the compensatory award cap. The Department for Business and Trade’s summary confirms this package.
Removing the cap does not make compensation arbitrary. Compensatory awards will still depend on evidenced actual and projected losses. They should not be confused with statutory redundancy pay or other final payments. Official employer guidance.
A probation period does not override statutory rights
Contractual probation and the statutory qualifying period are separate. A nine-month probation clause will not avoid the six-month threshold once the reform is implemented. Government guidance encourages employers to review how their probation arrangements will work. Business.gov.uk: preparing for the change.
Keep your contract, start date, probation assessments and correspondence about performance. If a dismissal decision is unclear, ask for the reason and details of any appeal process.
Which rights remain separate?
Many automatically unfair dismissal protections and discrimination rights already apply without two years’ service. Short service therefore does not give employers unrestricted freedom to dismiss. Wrongful dismissal concerns a contractual breach, such as failing to pay notice, and does not require the same service period. Acas explains the distinctions.
Six months’ service for unfair dismissal does not mean statutory redundancy pay after six months. That payment generally still requires two years’ continuous employment. GOV.UK: statutory redundancy pay. Check unused holiday separately when employment ends; see our guide to annual leave entitlement in the UK.
Where does the reform apply?
These changes apply in England, Scotland and Wales. They do not apply in Northern Ireland, where this part of employment law is devolved. GOV.UK gives the usual Northern Ireland qualifying period as one year. GOV.UK: territorial differences.
If you have already been dismissed
Do not wait until 2027 to assess an existing case. Record dates, keep documents and contact Acas. The six-month service threshold is not the time limit for bringing a claim. Tribunal deadlines are separate: for most events on or after 1 October 2026 in Great Britain, the limit is six months minus one day. Earlier cases can have shorter deadlines. Acas: time limits and early conciliation.
Sources and checks before publication
The main sources are the Employment Rights Act 2025, GOV.UK’s implementation timetable, Business.gov.uk, the government factsheet and the Acas guidance linked above. If publishing after this preparation date, check the timetable and commencement legislation again.