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A significant change to employment law came into force on 1 October, with the deadline for bringing most Employment Tribunal claims increasing from three months to six months.
The change, introduced under the Employment Rights Act 2025, applies to claims including unfair dismissal, discrimination, unlawful deductions from wages, working time disputes and TUPE-related complaints.
Importantly, the new limit only applies where the act, omission or dismissal took place on or after 1 October. Earlier cases remain subject to the previous three-month deadline.
A longer window for workplace disputes
The extension gives employees significantly more time to seek advice, gather evidence and exhaust internal processes before deciding whether to pursue a claim.
While that may help some disputes reach a resolution without tribunal proceedings, employers should also expect claims to be more thoroughly prepared by the time they are lodged.
Don’t focus on the six months
The potential exposure period is often much longer.
Acas Early Conciliation can pause the limitation clock, and additional time may be added once conciliation ends. Combined with tribunal administration times, employers may not receive notification of a claim until many months after the original incident.
The assumption that a matter is effectively closed after a few months is becoming increasingly difficult to rely on.
Check your retention policies
The biggest practical implication may be document retention.
Many organisations still operate deletion schedules that were created when most claims had to be brought within three months. Emails, Teams messages, managers’ notes and CCTV footage may be routinely erased long before a claim reaches the employer.
Now is a good time to review how long records connected to dismissals, grievances, disciplinary action, investigations and other employment disputes are retained.
Key takeaway
The extension of tribunal time limits means employment disputes can remain live for much longer than before. Employers should ensure their record-keeping practices, retention policies and HR procedures reflect that reality.
If records are deleted too soon, organisations may find themselves defending a claim months later without the evidence needed to support their case.
If you would like advice on the impact of the new time limits, reviewing your document retention practices, or managing workplace disputes effectively, get in touch with Backhouse Jones’ employment law team by emailing employment@backhouses.co.uk.