Employment Rights Act April 2026 Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces legislative changes to remove continuity of service requirements for Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave, and to remove restrictions on the sequencing of Paternity Leave and Shared Parental Leave.

What is changing?

• Paternity leave becomes a day one right for eligible employees, removing the previous requirement for 26 weeks’ service
• Unpaid parental leave will also become a day one right for eligible employees, removing the previous requirement for 12 months’ service
• The Act will also remove the current restriction on taking paternity leave and pay, after taking shared parental leave and pay
• The above changes will come into force in April 2026

This fact sheet explains the respective changes below.

Paternity Leave: Key Changes

Eligibility

• From 06 April 2026, employees qualify for statutory paternity leave from their first day of employment. This removes the previous 26 weeks’ service requirement. However, the 26-week qualifying period for paternity pay remains unchanged
• The new entitlement applies to babies with an Expected Week of Childbirth (EWC) on or after 05 April 2026 (or adopted/placed from 06 April)
• Newly eligible employees will be able to give advance notice to take that period of leave on or after 18 February 2026

Notice Requirements for newly eligible parents

• For babies due before 26 July 2026, the notice period is reduced to 28 days. This transitional period will allow newly eligible parents to take leave from 06 April 2026
• For babies due on or after 26 July 2026, standard notice requirements apply

Interaction with Shared Parental Leave

• Employees may now take paternity leave even after shared parental leave, removing the prior restriction and enhancing flexibility

Unpaid Parental Leave: Key Changes

Eligibility

• From 06 April 2026, unpaid parental leave becomes a day one right, removing the previous one year service requirement
• Newly eligible employees will be able to give advance notice to take that period of leave on or after 18 February 2026
• This applies to all eligible parents, greatly expanding access to time off for childcare

Notice requirements

• The 21-day notice period to take unpaid parental leave shall remain unchanged

Entitlement Level

• The statutory entitlement remains 18 weeks per child and adopted child (up to their 18th birthday), therefore unchanged
• The limit on how much parental leave each parent can take in a year remains capped at 4 weeks per year unless the employer agrees otherwise (no legislative change announced here)

What do these changes mean for employers?

Once day-one rights are introduced, around 32,000 additional dads/partners per year can access paternity leave immediately, with 1.5 million more parents eligible for unpaid parental leave.

Previously, changing jobs could reset eligibility, meaning that parents would lose access to these entitlements if they left to work for a new employer, and would be required to build back up these weeks of service with the new employer before becoming eligible to take the leave.

Currently the law does not allow paternity leave and pay to be taken after shared parental leave and pay, which means that fathers and partners can lose their right to paternity leave and pay as they have misunderstood the rules. The changes increase flexibility in how parents can take their leave.

What should employers do now?
1. Update Policies

• Update employee handbooks, family friendly policies and contracts (if applicable) to reflect the new day one rights
• Ensure references to old qualifying periods are removed

2. Train Management

• Management must have an awareness that new starters can request to take paternity or unpaid parental leave from day one of employment, from April 2026
• They must also be alert to the temporary 28-day notice requirements during the transitional period for paternity leave
• Management must have a comprehensive understanding of the changes, so that these can be communicated to employees and so that they understand their rights
• All managers should be aware that employees are protected from detrimental treatment and dismissal for exercising statutory leave rights, otherwise this may give rise to claims

3. Workforce Planning

• Employers should prepare for operational impacts, and may choose to review any enhanced paternity leave provisions currently in place
• Payroll systems must be ready to handle requests for paternity leave, even after shared parental leave

If you have queries or questions in respect of the changes coming into force under the Employment Rights Act 2025, please do not hesitate to contact a member of the AfterAthena team (part of the Napthens Group) who are able to offer 30 minutes of free advice to QCS members.