Parental Leave: Now a Day-One Right
Qualifying Period Removed from April 2026
Currently, an employee must have one year of continuous service with their employer before they are eligible to take unpaid parental leave to spend time with their child.
The Employment Rights Act 2025 will remove the one-year qualifying period for parental leave. This change, confirmed to take effect from 6 April 2026, makes the right to take parental leave available to employees from their very first day of employment.
Is Your Business Ready for the Biggest Shift in Employment Law?
What's New?
Day-One Right: The one-year qualifying period for parental leave is removed, making it accessible from an employee's first day, effective 6 April 2026.
Expanded Eligibility: Significantly more employees will now be eligible to take parental leave, impacting workforce planning.
Alignment with Other Rights: This change aligns parental leave more closely with other family-friendly rights like maternity leave, creating a more consistent framework.
How to Prepare
Update Your Family-Friendly Policies: Your parental leave policy must be amended to remove any mention of a one-year service requirement before the 6 April 2026 deadline.
Inform Your Staff: Communicate the upcoming change to all employees, so both existing staff and new starters are aware of their rights.
Train Line Managers: Ensure managers understand that any employee, regardless of their length of service, can request parental leave from April 2026.
Family Leave Entitlements
The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces key changes to family-related leave. Below, we clarify the updates to Parental Leave and Paternity Leave, and explain the crucial differences between them.
What's New with Parental Leave?
Are you aware of the updated rules for unpaid Parental Leave? The 2025 Act changes how and when employees can take time off to care for their children. Get the details here.
Is Paternity Leave a Day-One Right?
Yes, it is. The requirement for a qualifying service period has been removed. We explain what this means in practice and how to update your contracts and policies accordingly.
Employment Rights Act 2025 Download a summary
After more than a year of debate, the Employment Rights Bill became law on 18 December 2025 as the Employment Rights Act 2025. This is the biggest shake-up of employment law in a generation, with over 28 changes rolling out between December 2025 and into 2027. While this phased approach to the reforms gives employers time to prepare, now is the moment to get ahead. Explore what’s changing and what it means for your organisation, including key updates on sickness absence, paternity leave, parental leave, trade union access, and more.
Prepare for the Employment Rights Act 2025
The Employment Rights Act 2025 ushers in the most significant changes to UK employment law in a generation. Our CIPD HR-inform Pro product service is designed to be your essential guide, providing comprehensive resources, expert advice, and practical tools to ensure your business remains compliant and agile.
WARNING: New Fair Work Agency Powers!
The new Fair Work Agency is set to dramatically change the landscape of employment law enforcement. With unprecedented powers to recover underpayments and initiate tribunal claims on behalf of employees, your business could face significant financial penalties and legal battles if you're not fully compliant.
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You didn't start a business to become an employment lawyer. The Employment Rights Act 2025 adds layers of complexity to hiring and managing staff. CIPD HR-inform Pro acts as your virtual HR department, giving you the contracts, policies, and answers you need, so you can focus on growth
HR Managers are Busy Enough
The Employment Rights Act 2025 is the biggest legislative shift in years. You need more than just news; you need actionable tools. CIPD HR-inform Pro provides the technical breakdowns, the model policies, and the strategic roadmaps to help you guide your leadership team through these changes with confidence.