October 1, 2026/
Business & Tax News and Developments September 2026 Home News Business &...
Employee sickness is an unavoidable part of running a business, but the way an absence is reported and documented matters.
For short-term sickness, employees generally do not need medical evidence. Instead, they can self-certify their sickness for the first seven calendar days of an absence. If the absence continues beyond seven days, medical evidence in the form of a fit note will normally be required.
For employers, understanding the distinction is important not only for managing absence but also for operating Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) correctly and maintaining appropriate employment records.
Self-certification sickness allows an employee to confirm that they are unable to work because of illness for the first seven calendar days of an absence without obtaining a fit note from a healthcare professional. The seven days include weekends, bank holidays and other non-working days. (Acas)
An employer can have a procedure for recording the absence, such as requiring the employee to provide relevant sickness information or complete a self-certification record when they return to work.
However, self-certification does not mean an employee can simply disappear from work for seven days without making contact. Employees should still follow the employer’s sickness reporting procedure and notify the employer that they are unable to work.
When an employee becomes ill, they should notify their employer in accordance with the organisation’s sickness absence procedure.
The employer may ask for information such as:
The employee does not normally need a fit note for an absence lasting seven calendar days or less. They can self-certify instead. (Acas)
HMRC also provides an SC2 Employee’s Statement of Sickness which employees can use when claiming SSP from their employer. The SC2 asks for information including the dates of sickness and the employee’s last working day before the absence began. (GOV.UK)
Businesses can incorporate sickness reporting requirements into their own absence procedures, provided these comply with the applicable employment and SSP rules.
If an employee is sick for more than seven calendar days, they should normally obtain a fit note.
A common mistake is to count only working days. The seven-day period is based on calendar days, including weekends and bank holidays. This remains the case where the employee works part-time or would not normally work on some of those days. (Acas)
For example, if an employee becomes sick on a Wednesday, the following Tuesday is the seventh calendar day of sickness. If the absence continues beyond that period, a fit note will normally be required.
A fit note is formally known as a Statement of Fitness for Work. It can state that the employee is:
Fit notes are no longer restricted to GPs. They can be issued by eligible registered healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists and physiotherapists. (GOV.UK)
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Employers should be careful here.
For SSP purposes, GOV.UK states that an employer can only ask for a fit note where an employee has been off work for more than seven days in a row, including non-working days. (GOV.UK)
Government fit note guidance also confirms that employees can self-certify during the first seven calendar days. If an organisation nevertheless requires medical evidence during that initial period, a healthcare professional may charge for providing it, and the cost should be met by the employer. (GOV.UK)
This is one reason employers should avoid treating self-certification as merely an informal alternative to a doctor’s note. It forms part of the established sickness absence and SSP framework.
The interaction between self-certification sickness and Statutory Sick Pay is particularly important because the SSP rules changed significantly from 6 April 2026.
For sickness absences beginning on or after 6 April 2026, SSP is payable from the first full day of sickness absence, rather than from the fourth qualifying day under the previous waiting-day rules. The Lower Earnings Limit for SSP eligibility has also been removed. (GOV.UK)
For eligible employees, SSP is now calculated as the lower of:
For 2026/27, the flat weekly rate is £123.25, subject to the 80% earnings comparison. (GOV.UK)
This is an important distinction from older guidance that states an employee must be sick for four consecutive days before SSP becomes relevant. That rule no longer applies to new sickness absences beginning on or after 6 April 2026.
Self-certification and SSP should also not be confused. Self-certification concerns evidence of sickness; SSP concerns entitlement to statutory sick pay. An employee can self-certify during the first seven days while still receiving SSP where the relevant eligibility conditions are met.
Not necessarily.
Employers should have a clear method for employees to report sickness and record the necessary information. ACAS, for example, includes completion of a self-certification form on return to work as an optional provision within its written statement template. (Acas)
HMRC’s SC2 form is also available where an employee needs to provide a statement of sickness for SSP purposes. (GOV.UK)
A business may therefore use its own internal process, but it should ensure that its requirements do not conflict with statutory SSP rules.
Self-certification works most effectively when it sits within a properly documented sickness absence policy.
A clear policy can explain:
Consistency matters. Applying different sickness procedures to different employees without a legitimate reason can create unnecessary employee relations and potentially legal problems.
Good absence records can also help an employer identify recurring patterns, unusually frequent short-term absences or situations where workplace support may be appropriate.
A fit note does more than confirm that an employee is unwell.
A healthcare professional can assess an employee as “might be fit for work” and suggest measures that could support their return. These might include:
Employers should consider these recommendations carefully rather than automatically treating a fit note as evidence that an employee must remain away from work until it expires. (Acas)
Depending on the employee’s circumstances, employers may also need to consider their wider obligations under employment and equality law, particularly where an illness or health condition may amount to a disability.
From an employer’s perspective, sickness self-certification should not be treated as a paperwork exercise.
The absence record can affect payroll, SSP calculations and wider employment records. A simple but consistent process linking HR absence information to payroll can significantly reduce errors.
This has become particularly important following the April 2026 SSP reforms. Employers relying on old payroll procedures may still be working on the assumption that SSP starts after three waiting days or that employees below the former Lower Earnings Limit do not qualify. Those assumptions can now produce incorrect SSP calculations.
Employers should therefore review their sickness policies, payroll settings and internal procedures together rather than considering each in isolation.
Where repeated short-term sickness becomes a concern, the appropriate response is usually to investigate the circumstances and follow a fair absence-management process rather than simply demanding medical evidence during the self-certification period.
Self-certification sickness provides a straightforward way for employees to evidence short-term illness without unnecessarily obtaining medical certification.
The core rule is simple: employees can generally self-certify for the first seven calendar days of sickness, while an absence continuing beyond seven days will normally require a fit note.
For employers, however, the wider compliance position involves more than collecting a form. Sickness reporting procedures, SSP calculations, payroll records and absence policies should all work together.
With the SSP rules having changed from 6 April 2026, businesses should ensure that older policies and payroll processes have been updated accordingly.
Naail & Co supports UK businesses with payroll administration, Statutory Sick Pay and wider employer compliance.
If you are unsure whether your payroll is applying the current SSP rules correctly, or you need support managing the payroll implications of employee sickness, professional advice can help prevent errors before they become more difficult to correct.
Get in touch with Naail & Co to book your free initial consultation.
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Self-certification sickness allows an employee to confirm that they are unable to work because of illness without obtaining a fit note for the first seven calendar days of absence. The seven-day period includes weekends, bank holidays and non-working days. Employees must still follow their employer’s sickness reporting procedure, while employers should maintain appropriate absence and payroll records.
Self-certification sickness normally requires the employee to notify their employer of the absence and provide the information required under the employer’s sickness procedure. This may involve completing an internal self-certification form or providing an Employee’s Statement of Sickness. If the absence lasts more than seven calendar days, the employee will normally need a fit note from an eligible healthcare professional.
An employee will normally need a fit note when their sickness absence lasts for more than seven calendar days. The seven days include weekends and other days the employee would not normally work. During the first seven days, employees can generally self-certify. Employers should ensure their sickness absence policy clearly explains when self-certification ends and medical evidence becomes necessary.
Yes, an eligible employee can receive Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) while using self-certification sickness. A fit note is not normally required during the first seven calendar days simply to establish an SSP claim. For sickness absences beginning on or after 6 April 2026, SSP is generally payable from the first full day of sickness absence, subject to the applicable eligibility rules.
No, employees do not normally need a doctor’s fit note for sickness lasting seven calendar days or less. They can self-certify their absence instead. Employers can require employees to follow reasonable sickness notification and record-keeping procedures, but should distinguish these internal requirements from the statutory rules governing medical evidence for SSP purposes.
Self-certification sickness gives employers a structured way to record short-term absence without requiring employees to obtain unnecessary medical evidence. Accurate records also support payroll processing, SSP calculations and absence management. A consistent procedure can help employers identify recurring sickness patterns, reduce payroll errors and ensure employees understand when they must report an absence or obtain a fit note.
For 2026/27, SSP is calculated using the lower of 80% of the employee’s normal weekly earnings or the statutory weekly rate of £123.25. The rules changed from 6 April 2026, including the removal of the previous Lower Earnings Limit requirement and waiting days for new sickness absences. Employers should ensure their payroll software and sickness procedures reflect the current SSP rules.
No, self-certification alone is not normally sufficient once an employee has been sick for more than seven calendar days. If the absence continues, the employee should generally obtain a fit note from an eligible healthcare professional. The fit note may state that the employee is not fit for work or might be fit for work with appropriate adjustments or support.
Common mistakes include counting only working days, requesting a fit note too early and applying outdated SSP rules. The self-certification period covers seven calendar days, including weekends and bank holidays. Employers should also ensure that payroll systems have been updated for the SSP reforms effective from 6 April 2026 and that sickness procedures are applied consistently across the workforce.
Employers should document self-certification sickness within a clear sickness absence policy and link the procedure to their payroll controls. The policy should explain how and when employees report sickness, what information is required, when self-certification should be completed and when a fit note becomes necessary. Employers should also maintain accurate absence records and ensure SSP is calculated under the current rules.
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