What's changing
Two statutory instruments extend the time limit for bringing certain employment tribunal claims from three months to six months, with effect from 1 October 2026.
The Employment Tribunal (Extension of Time Limits) (Miscellaneous Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/758) amend seven sets of regulations, covering claims such as part-time worker, fixed-term employee, blacklisting and zero-hours exclusivity complaints. The Employment Tribunals Extension of Jurisdiction (England and Wales) (Amendment) Order 2026 (SI 2026/759) makes the equivalent change for breach of employment contract claims.
Separately, SI 2026/954 brings the Employment Rights Act 2025 increase for unfair dismissal, discrimination and other complaints into force on the same date. See "Unfair dismissal and discrimination limits are governed separately" below.
The key facts are set out below.
- SI 2026/758
- Made 6 July 2026 — extends to England, Wales and Scotland
- SI 2026/759
- Made 6 July 2026 — extends to England and Wales only
- SI 2026/954
- Made 1 September 2026 — brings Employment Rights Act 2025 section 152 and Schedule 12 into force
- In force
- 1 October 2026 (all three instruments)
- Time limit before
- Three months from the act or failure complained of
- Time limit from 1 October 2026
- Six months
Which complaints are affected
SI 2026/758 extends the time limit for complaints under the following:
- Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000
- Fixed-term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2002
- Information and Consultation of Employees Regulations 2004
- Employment Relations Act 1999 (Blacklists) Regulations 2010
- Exclusivity Terms in Zero Hours Contracts (Redress) Regulations 2015
- Employment Rights Act 1996 (NHS Recruitment - Protected Disclosure) Regulations 2018
- Exclusivity Terms for Zero Hours Workers (Unenforceability and Redress) Regulations 2022
SI 2026/759 separately extends the time limit for breach of employment contract claims. See "Where these changes apply" below for which parts of the UK each instrument covers.
Where these changes apply
SI 2026/758 extends to England, Wales and Scotland, so the seven complaints listed above are covered across Great Britain.
SI 2026/759 amends the England and Wales Order only, so it does not cover breach of contract claims in Scotland. The government's published timeline gives 9 November 2026 for the change in Scotland, but no amendment to the Employment Tribunals Extension of Jurisdiction (Scotland) Order 1994 had been published on legislation.gov.uk when this page was checked on 15 September 2026.
Employment law is devolved in Northern Ireland. Complaints there go to the Industrial Tribunals and the Fair Employment Tribunal under separate Northern Ireland legislation, and these instruments do not change those time limits.
What employers should do
Some categories of claim can now be brought for twice as long as before, so your records and evidence need to survive longer.
- Extend document retention. If your retention schedule is built around a three-month claim window plus early conciliation, review it. Keep notes of decisions, rota and shift records, contract variations and correspondence for at least the longer period.
- Note the date of the act, not the date of the claim. Which window applies turns on when the act or failure happened. Keep a clear record of the date of any decision that could be challenged.
- Review zero-hours and fixed-term arrangements. Exclusivity term and less-favourable-treatment complaints are among those covered, so your exposure on these arrangements now runs longer.
- Brief managers and HR. Anyone who assumes a matter is time-barred after three months may be working from the wrong date.
None of this changes your underlying obligations. It changes how long a complaint about them can be presented.