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Letter telling your employer you are off sick (UK)
England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales · in English · for employees
€2.00This document is sold blank, to print and complete by hand.
Made for use in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales
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This document is sold blank, to print and complete by hand.
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For an employee anywhere in the UK who is off work sick and wants to tell the employer in writing. The letter gives the day the absence began and when you expect to return, says you are self-certifying the first seven days and will send a fit note if the absence lasts longer, and asks for statutory or contractual sick pay, which since 6 April 2026 is payable from the first day. It describes no illness. Sent by email or handed in. Sold blank, to complete by hand, as it holds health data DocMuse does not collect.
- Made for use in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales
- Last updated October 29, 2026
- Document in English
Where a UK document reproduces the words of legislation or of a government publication — UK, Scottish or Northern Irish — it contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Published byDocMuse
When to use this document
- You are too ill to work and want to tell your employer in the UK in writing.
- HR has told you they will not pay you for your sick days.
- Your manager keeps asking you to work while you are off sick.
- You want to send a sickness absence letter before you have a fit note.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Sender
- Sender's address
- Town or city
- Sender's postcode
- Date
- Employer
- Recipient's address
- Recipient's postcode
- Absent from
- Absent until
- Phone
Common questions
- Do I need a fit note for the first week off sick?
- No. For the first seven days of sickness, counting days you would not normally work, you certify the absence yourself. Your employer may ask you to complete its own form or HMRC's free form SC2, but cannot require medical evidence for statutory sick pay in that first week. From the eighth day it can ask for a fit note from a doctor or another healthcare professional allowed to issue one; GP practices issue them free for this purpose.
- From which day is statutory sick pay paid?
- Since 6 April 2026 statutory sick pay is paid from the first day of sickness, with no waiting days and no lower earnings limit. It is the lower of a weekly flat rate and 80% of your average weekly earnings, and your contract may give more. Tell your employer within the time limit its sickness rules set. If it refuses to pay, ask for its reasons in writing; Acas in Great Britain, the Labour Relations Agency in Northern Ireland and Citizens Advice explain, free, how to challenge a refusal.
- Do I have to tell my employer what illness I have?
- This letter says only that you are unwell. A fit note states the condition, and your employer's sickness absence policy may ask for the reason, but you choose how much to share beyond what the policy requires. Health details are special category data under the UK GDPR, which is why this letter is sold blank, to complete by hand. Acas in Great Britain and the Labour Relations Agency in Northern Ireland publish free guidance on sickness absence for employees and employers.
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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