Employment Contracts in the UK (2026): What to Put in Writing From Day One

Every UK business that takes on staff needs to put the main terms of the job in writing, and the deadline is the employee's first day. This guide is for small employers drafting or updating an employment contract in 2026. It covers what the law actually requires in the written statement of employment particulars, which details can wait two months, how to handle probation and notice, what's changing for zero-hours staff and dismissals under the Employment Rights Act 2025, and a section-by-section template outline you can adapt with your own adviser.

Quick answer

A contract exists once a job offer is accepted, but you must give every employee and worker a written statement of employment particulars. The principal statement — names, job, start date, pay, hours, holiday, place of work, length of job, probation, benefits and training — is due on or before day one, along with sick pay, other leave and notice rules. Pensions, collective agreements and disciplinary and grievance rules can follow within 2 months.

• Applies to workers as well as employees who started on or after 6 April 2020

• Tell staff about changes in writing within one month

• Probation is optional; from 1 January 2027 unfair dismissal protection starts after 6 months

• Guaranteed hours and shift-notice rights for zero-hours staff are expected in 2027

• Statutory notice: 1 week after a month, rising to 12 weeks after 12 years

Contract and written statement: what's the difference?

A contract of employment is the whole legal agreement between you and the person who works for you. It can be made up of a signed document, an offer letter, what was said at interview, the staff handbook, a collective agreement with a union, terms the law implies, and long-standing custom such as an annual Christmas bonus. It starts to exist as soon as the person accepts your offer, whether or not anything is written down.

The written statement of employment particulars is the document the law requires you to give. GOV.UK is careful to say it isn't the contract itself, but in practice most employers turn the written statement into a full contract by adding their own terms — confidentiality, intellectual property, deductions, restrictive covenants and so on. That's the sensible approach for a small business: one document, issued on day one, that both sides sign.

Some terms are part of every contract even if you never write them down. GOV.UK gives examples: the employee won't steal from you, you'll provide a safe workplace, the employee is entitled to the legal minimum holiday, a driver must hold a valid licence, and anything done consistently for a long time can become a term. You can't contract out of statutory rights such as the National Minimum Wage, paid holiday or protection from discrimination.

Who must get a written statement

Since 6 April 2020, the right to a written statement applies to employees and workers, from their first day, however short the job. That includes casual and zero-hours workers, and Acas confirms agency workers have the same right. Workers who started before 6 April 2020 don't have the right, though employees who started before then can ask for an updated statement and you must provide it within one month.

Before you hand over a statement, check the person can legally do the job. A right to work check must be completed before employment starts, and from 1 October 2026 that duty also covers many workers and individual sub-contractors. In January 2027 the government also expects to introduce a duty to tell workers about their right to join a trade union, which will add to the paperwork you give at the start; the exact form will be set out in regulations.

What the principal statement must include

The principal statement must be a single document given on or before the first day. GOV.UK lists the minimum content:

• the employer's name, and the employee's or worker's name, job title or description of the work, and start date;
• how much and how often they'll be paid;
• hours and days of work, whether and how they can vary, and whether Sundays, night work or overtime are required;
• holiday entitlement, including whether it covers bank holidays;
• where they'll work, whether they might have to relocate, and the employer's address if they work in several places;
• how long the job is expected to last, or the end date of a fixed-term contract;
• how long any probation period is and its conditions;
• any other benefits, such as childcare support or meals;
• any obligatory training, and whether you pay for it.

For employees, it must also give the date that any previous job started if it counts towards continuous employment — useful when someone moves between companies in the same group. If they'll work outside the UK for more than a month, add how long they'll be abroad, the currency they'll be paid in, any extra pay or benefits, and terms for returning.

On day one you must also give information about sick pay and procedures, other paid leave such as maternity and paternity leave, and notice periods. These can be in the principal statement or in a separate document the person can reasonably access, such as a handbook on your intranet.

When each part of the written statement is due

Due	What it covers
On or before day one (principal statement)	Names, job, start date, pay, hours, holiday, place of work, duration, probation, benefits, obligatory training
On or before day one (may be separate)	Sick pay and procedures, other paid leave, notice periods
Within 2 months	Pensions, collective agreements, other non-compulsory training, disciplinary and grievance procedures
Within one month of any change	Written notice of the change

On or before day one (principal statement)

What it covers

Names, job, start date, pay, hours, holiday, place of work, duration, probation, benefits, obligatory training

On or before day one (may be separate)

What it covers

Sick pay and procedures, other paid leave, notice periods

Within 2 months

What it covers

Pensions, collective agreements, other non-compulsory training, disciplinary and grievance procedures

Within one month of any change

What it covers

Written notice of the change

Worked template outline

Below is an outline for a written statement and contract for a small business, with illustrative wording for a café assistant. It's a structure, not legal advice: Acas publishes free written statement templates you can use as a base, and a solicitor should check anything with restrictive covenants or unusual pay.

Section-by-section outline

1. 1

   Parties and start date

   'This statement is between Harbour Café Ltd (registered office …) and Sam Patel. Your employment starts on 2 November 2026. No previous employment counts towards your continuous employment.'

2. 2

   Job title and place of work

   'You are employed as Café Assistant at 12 Quay Street. We may ask you to work at our Harbour Road branch, within five miles, on reasonable notice.'

3. 3

   Pay

   '£12.71 an hour, paid weekly in arrears by bank transfer every Friday.' That's the National Living Wage for workers aged 21 and over; check the rate for younger workers.

4. 4

   Hours, days and variation

   '30 hours a week, Wednesday to Sunday, 8am to 2pm. Weekend work is required. Overtime is voluntary and paid at the basic rate.'

5. 5

   Holiday

   '5.6 weeks a year including bank holidays, pro rata for part-time hours. The holiday year runs from 1 January.'

6. 6

   Probation

   'The first three months are a probation period, with a review at six weeks and a final review before it ends. Notice during probation is one week on either side.'

7. 7

   Sickness, other leave and notice

   Explain how to report sickness, what sick pay you pay above SSP, and where to find family leave policies. State notice on each side, no lower than the statutory minimum.

8. 8

   Benefits and training

   'Free meal on each shift. Food hygiene Level 2 training is compulsory and paid for by the company.'

9. 9

   Within two months — wider statement

   Pension scheme details, whether any collective agreement applies, disciplinary and grievance procedures, and any optional training.

Hand the statement over on or before day one, ask the employee to sign and date a copy, and keep it with their right to work evidence and starter checklist. If you're also running payroll for the first time, register as an employer with HMRC before the first payday.

Employee, worker, fixed-term or part-time?

Before drafting, decide what kind of relationship you're offering, because the label on the document doesn't decide it — what happens in practice does. An employee works under a contract of employment and gets the full set of rights, including statutory redundancy pay after two years and maternity leave from day one. A worker, such as many casual or zero-hours staff, gets core rights like the minimum wage, paid holiday and a written statement, but not redundancy pay or Statutory Maternity Leave. Someone running a genuine business of their own and invoicing you is self-employed and doesn't need a written statement at all. If the arrangement looks like employment — you set the hours, provide the tools and can't accept a substitute — treat it as employment.

Fixed-term contracts must state the end date or the event that ends them. The government's guidance confirms that not renewing a fixed-term contract when it expires still counts as a dismissal, and that from 1 January 2027 an employee with six months' service on a fixed-term contract must be dismissed fairly when it ends. Give a real reason, such as the end of a project or the return of the person being covered, and record it.

Part-time staff must not be treated less favourably than comparable full-timers just because they work part-time, and being part-time is an automatically unfair reason to select someone for redundancy. Set out holiday, benefits and overtime rates pro rata in the statement so the comparison is easy to show.

Probation periods

There's no legal requirement to have a probation period and no fixed length; Acas says it can be any length of time, and three or six months is common. If you use one, the principal statement must say how long it is and on what conditions. Probation is a chance to assess skills, set expectations and spot training needs, and Acas recommends regular reviews and a fair process even though the employee has limited unfair dismissal rights in the early months.

Day-one rights apply throughout probation: the minimum wage, paid holiday, statutory sick pay, protection from discrimination and whistleblowing detriment, and the right to join a trade union. You can postpone automatic enrolment into a workplace pension for up to three months, but must enrol the employee if they ask.

The big change is coming on 1 January 2027. For dismissals from that date, the qualifying period for protection from ordinary unfair dismissal falls from two years to 6 months, the same reduction applies to the right to ask for written reasons for dismissal, and the cap on unfair dismissal compensation is removed. The government's guidance tells employers to think about how a contractual probation period will work alongside that six-month line. In practice, aim to make the decision on whether someone has passed probation well before six months, and run a proper process — meetings, evidence, a chance to improve — so that a dismissal after that point is fair.

Remember that statutory notice counts towards service: someone dismissed at five months and three weeks with a week's notice can cross the six-month line.

Notice periods

The statutory minimum notice you must give depends on length of service:

Your contract can set longer periods, and the longer period then applies. Many employers set one week during probation and one month afterwards for salaried staff. If you want the option to end employment immediately and pay for the notice period instead, include a payment in lieu of notice clause — GOV.UK explains that it's this clause that lets you end employment with no notice. Payments in lieu are taxed and subject to National Insurance, and must include contractual benefits such as pension contributions for the notice period. The Employment Rights Act 2025 doesn't change notice periods.

Zero-hours contracts now and after the reforms

On a zero-hours contract, you don't have to offer work and the person doesn't have to accept it. They're still entitled to the minimum wage and statutory holiday, and you're still responsible for their health and safety. You can't stop them working for someone else: any clause banning them from looking for or accepting other work is unenforceable.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 will add three new rights for zero-hours and similar workers:

1. Guaranteed hours — a right to be offered a contract reflecting the hours they've regularly worked during a reference period;
2. Reasonable notice of shifts, and of changes to them;
3. Payment for shifts cancelled, cut short or moved at short notice.

None of these is in force yet. The government consulted on the detail — including the reference period, how many hours must be worked to qualify, and how much notice counts as reasonable — from 2 June to 25 August 2026, and is now analysing responses. Its timeline lists the measures for 2027, with timing to be updated after the consultation.

For now, the practical steps are to write zero-hours contracts accurately — no implied promise of hours you don't intend to offer — keep good records of hours each person actually works, and give as much notice of shifts as you can. Those records will matter when the reference period rules arrive. If you use agency staff instead, see the agency workers guide.

Employment Rights Act changes that affect your contracts

6 Apr 2026

Day-one paternity leave and unpaid parental leave; day-one Statutory Sick Pay with no waiting days

1 Oct 2026

Employment tribunal time limit rises from 3 to 6 months for most claims

Jan 2027

Unfair dismissal qualifying period cut to 6 months; compensation cap removed; fire and rehire protections; duty to inform workers of their right to join a union

2027

Guaranteed hours, reasonable shift notice and short-notice pay for zero-hours workers; flexible working changes (timing after consultation)

Changing a contract

You can't change a contract on your own. Changes need agreement, either from the employee or through a collective agreement, unless the contract already contains a clear, reasonable flexibility clause. Whatever the route, you must give written notice of any change to the written statement within one month of the change.

From January 2027, the Employment Rights Act 2025's fire and rehire protections take effect. These restrict dismissing employees for refusing to accept changes to their terms and re-engaging them on new terms. The details will be in the commencement rules, but the safe working assumption is that you should plan for consultation and agreement, not dismissal, when you need to change pay, hours or other core terms.

If you get it wrong

If someone doesn't receive a written statement, or it's incomplete, they can raise it with you informally, then lodge a grievance, and as a last resort ask an employment tribunal to decide what the particulars should have been. If they win another claim against you at the same time, such as unlawful deductions from wages, the tribunal can award up to 4 weeks' pay for the statement failure, using the capped week's pay of £751.

Since 1 October 2026, the time limit for bringing most employment tribunal claims has doubled from three to 6 months (from 9 November 2026 for breach of contract claims in Scotland). Disputes about pay, holiday or dismissal can now arrive half a year after someone leaves, so keep signed statements, change letters and probation review notes for at least that long — in practice, longer.

Day-one contract checklist

0/8

• Right to work check completed and copied before the start date
• Principal statement issued on or before day one, signed and dated
• Pay rate checked against the minimum wage for the worker's age
• Holiday stated, including bank holidays and pro rata for part-time
• Probation length, review points and notice during probation stated
• Sick pay, family leave and notice information provided (statement or handbook)
• Wider statement diarised within 2 months: pensions, collective agreements, disciplinary and grievance
• Zero-hours contracts free of exclusivity clauses; hours worked recorded

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Common mistakes

Waiting until probation ends. The principal statement is due on day one, not after three months.

Copying an old template. Statements written before April 2020 often miss required items such as obligatory training, probation conditions and other benefits.

Leaving workers out. Casual and zero-hours staff are entitled to a statement too.

No pay in lieu clause. Without one, you don't have a clear contractual right to end employment immediately with a payment instead of notice.

Relying on probation as protection after six months. From 1 January 2027 that won't work, whatever the contract says.

Official links

• Employment contracts: written statementWhat must be included and when
• Acas written statement templatesFree templates for employees and workers
• Acas probation periodsReviews, extension and dismissal
• Zero-hours contracts: employer responsibilitiesCurrent rules
• Employment Rights Act 2025 timelineLatest commencement dates
• Unfair dismissal changes from 1 January 20276-month qualifying period

What to do next

Pull out the contracts and statements you already use and compare them with the principal statement list above, then fix gaps before January 2027 brings the six-month unfair dismissal rule. Set holiday correctly with the holiday entitlement guide, explain sick pay with the Statutory Sick Pay guide, and use the salary slip generator so payslips match the pay terms in the contract.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

Is an employment contract legally required in the UK?

A contract exists as soon as someone accepts a job offer, even if nothing is written down. What the law requires in writing is a 'written statement of employment particulars'. The main part, the principal statement, must be given to employees and workers on or before their first day, and the wider written statement within 2 months. Most employers combine both with the contract in one document.

What must be in a written statement of employment particulars?

The principal statement must cover the employer's and worker's names, job title or description, start date, pay and how often it's paid, hours and days of work, holiday, place of work, how long the job is expected to last, any probation period, other benefits and obligatory training. Sick pay, other paid leave and notice periods must also be provided on day one, and pensions, collective agreements, other training and disciplinary and grievance rules within 2 months.

How long can a probation period be in the UK?

There's no legal minimum or maximum, and no legal requirement to have one. Many employers use three to six months. From 1 January 2027 the qualifying period for ordinary unfair dismissal falls to 6 months, so dismissals after six months will need a fair reason and a fair process, whatever the probation clause says. Day-one rights such as minimum wage and protection from discrimination apply throughout probation.

What is the minimum notice period in the UK?

An employer must give at least one week's notice after one month's service, then one week for each full year from two years, up to 12 weeks after 12 years. An employee with a month's service must give at least one week. A contract can set longer notice, and the longer period applies. The Employment Rights Act 2025 doesn't change notice periods.

Are zero-hours contracts changing in 2026?

The Employment Rights Act 2025 will give qualifying zero-hours and low-hours workers a right to be offered guaranteed hours, reasonable notice of shifts and payment for shifts cancelled or cut at short notice. These rights have not yet taken effect: the government consulted on the details until 25 August 2026 and its timeline lists them for 2027, with timing to be confirmed after consultation.

What happens if I don't give a written statement?

The employee or worker can raise a grievance and, as a last resort, ask an employment tribunal to decide what the particulars should have been. If they win another claim against you, such as for unlawful deductions from wages, the tribunal can add compensation of up to 4 weeks' pay for the missing or incomplete statement, subject to the cap on a week's pay.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 9 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.Employment contracts (printable guide) — GOV.UK · accessed 9 October 2026
2. 2.Written statements: the right to a written statement — Acas · accessed 9 October 2026
3. 3.Probation periods — Acas · accessed 9 October 2026
4. 4.Contract types and employer responsibilities: zero-hours contracts — GOV.UK · accessed 9 October 2026
5. 5.Make Work Pay: ending one-sided flexibility – reforms of zero hours and similar contracts — Department for Business and Trade · accessed 9 October 2026
6. 6.Plan to Make Work Pay and Employment Rights Act: timeline update — Department for Business and Trade · accessed 9 October 2026
7. 7.Unfair dismissal rights — Department for Business and Trade (business.gov.uk) · accessed 9 October 2026
8. 8.Making staff redundant: giving staff notice — GOV.UK · accessed 9 October 2026
9. 9.Resignation: notice periods — Acas · accessed 9 October 2026