The two-year cushion is going. Your probation periods need to catch up.
- HRNews
- Jun 19
- 2 min read
What is it?
From 1 January 2027, employees can claim unfair dismissal after six months of continuous service, down from two years. It's retrospective, so anyone with at least six months' service on that date is covered straight away. The compensation cap on unfair dismissal awards goes on the same day.
Here's the part that catches people out. That six-month qualifying period is a statutory right, and it is not the same as your probationary period. Probation is a contractual term you set. The Act doesn't create any statutory probation period (an earlier "light-touch" version was dropped as the Bill went through). So extending probation does not hold the six-month right at bay. If your probation runs nine or twelve months, your employee still picks up full unfair dismissal protection at six months, well before their probation ends.
What does it mean for you?
The window for managing a new starter out without unfair dismissal risk has shrunk from two years to six months, and the quiet word plus a couple of "we need to see improvement" emails won't be enough once that line is crossed. A few practical moves:
Look at shorter probation periods, around three or four months, so you've got room to extend or reassess before the six-month mark rather than running right up to it.
State clearly in the contract that probation continues until you confirm completion in writing. That stops an employee assuming they've passed by default just because the period lapsed and nobody acted.
Check you actually have a contractual right to extend probation. If you don't, you'll need the employee's agreement, so it's worth fixing the wording now.
And with the cap gone, the cost of getting an early dismissal wrong rises, particularly for higher earners.
How Lansbury HR can help.
We can realign your probation periods and onboarding around the six-month line, tighten the contract and policy wording so nothing passes by default, build the review and documentation trail that keeps an early exit defensible, and get your managers acting promptly rather than letting reviews drift.
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