United Kingdom: The Unfair Dismissal Countdown is on!

In brief

The clock is officially ticking. An employee hired today, 1 July 2026, will have unfair dismissal rights when the new regime comes into force in six months’ time.

Key takeaway

Whilst the headline is that the new regime is effective from 1 January 2027, given the way the transitional provisions work, an employee hired now and dismissed with a PILON on Christmas Day 2026 will be deemed to have the qualifying six months’ service.

Proactive management of probationary periods is critical, but employers need to be thinking about the broader impacts of these very significant changes.

Please speak to your usual Baker McKenzie contact for support, and look out for more updates from us on this topic.