New rules will make paternity and parental leave available from day one

At present, employees usually need minimum service before they can qualify for certain family leave entitlements. In most cases, unpaid parental leave requires at least one year of continuous employment, while paternity leave requires 26 weeks’ service by the relevant qualifying point before the baby is due (or the equivalent point in adoption cases).

From 6 April 2026, this will change. Under new employment legislation, the service requirement will be removed for both parental leave and paternity leave, meaning eligible employees will be able to take these forms of leave from their first day in a job. However, the eligibility rules for statutory paternity pay will not change, meaning employees may still need to meet a service threshold to receive payment even if they can take the leave itself.

The new day-one entitlement to paternity leave will apply where a child’s expected week of birth falls on or after 5 April 2026, where the child is born on or after 6 April 2026, or where a child is placed for adoption on or after 6 April 2026. Parents who become newly eligible will not be able to take leave under these new rules before that date.

Although the service requirement is being removed, the notice rules are largely staying the same, apart from a short transition period. To help employees access their rights as early as possible, newly eligible workers will be able to submit notice from 18 February 2026, ahead of the day-one entitlement starting in April 2026.

Paternity Leave

To take paternity leave, an employee must inform their employer that they qualify and intend to take time off for the purpose of caring for the child or supporting the child’s mother or adopter. Employers may request confirmation in writing that the employee meets the eligibility requirements and is taking leave for the correct purpose.

Under the standard rules, employees must provide notice no later than the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth. This notice must include the expected week of birth and a declaration that the employee is eligible, such as confirming that they are:

the child’s father, or the mother’s spouse/partner (even if not the biological father);
responsible for the child’s upbringing if they are the father; or
the main person responsible for raising the child (apart from the mother) if they are the mother’s spouse or partner but not the father.

Once the employee has decided the specific dates they want to take paternity leave, they must also give a second notice confirming the intended start date and the length of leave. The government estimates that these changes will bring around 30,000 more people into eligibility for paternity leave and around 1.5 million more people into eligibility for parental leave.

If you require support to update family friendly policies, contact 121 HR Solutions at enquiries@121hrsolutions.co.uk.

New rules will make paternity and parental leave available from day one

121 HR Solutions Ltd