Time off work for medical appointments: the UK rules explained
The statutory exceptions that do exist, the four ways employers usually handle routine appointments, and how to write a policy that's fair to the business and kind to the person in the waiting room.
There is no general statutory right to paid - or even unpaid - time off for routine medical or dental appointments in the UK; it depends on your contract and your employer's policy. The statutory exceptions: pregnant employees get paid time off for antenatal care, a partner gets unpaid time off for up to 2 antenatal appointments, disabled employees may need appointment flexibility as a reasonable adjustment, and unpaid dependants leave covers emergencies - not routine bookings.
Do I get paid time off for medical appointments?
It surprises most people, but the law is quiet here. No statute gives employees a general right to attend a GP, dentist or hospital appointment in work time - paid or unpaid. That means the answer lives in your contract and your employer's policy: some pay for appointments within reason, some ask for the time to be made up, some ask you to book around your shifts, and some treat it as holiday or unpaid leave.
For employees, the practical move is to check the policy before assuming either way - and if there isn't one, ask; you won't be the last person to need an answer. For employers, the absence of a legal rule is exactly why a written policy matters: without one, every request becomes an ad-hoc judgement, and ad-hoc judgements drift into inconsistency.
Which appointments come with statutory rights?
A handful of situations are different, and it's worth knowing them precisely:
| Situation | Statutory right | Paid or unpaid? |
|---|---|---|
| Pregnant employee - antenatal care | Time off to attend antenatal appointments | Paid |
| Partner accompanying to antenatal care | Time off for up to 2 antenatal appointments | Unpaid |
| Disabled employee - treatment or appointments linked to the disability | Appointment flexibility may be required as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act 2010 | Depends on the adjustment agreed |
| Emergency involving a dependant | Time off for dependants - emergencies only, not routine appointments | Unpaid |
The antenatal right is the one employers most often get wrong - it is paid, and it belongs to the pregnant employee by statute, not by the goodwill of the policy. See gov.uk on rights when pregnant and Acas on time off for dependants.
How do employers usually handle routine appointments?
Four approaches cover almost every UK workplace. None is legally required; the failure mode is not choosing one and writing it down.
- Edges of the day. Ask people to book appointments at the start or end of the day (or on non-working days) where they have any choice - most GP and dental bookings can flex this far.
- Paid within reason. Allow occasional appointments in paid time, trusting people not to take advantage - simple, humane, and the norm in salaried office roles.
- Make the time up. The hour out is worked back later in the week - popular where coverage matters but goodwill does too.
- Holiday or unpaid leave. Appointments come out of annual leave or unpaid time - the strictest option, most defensible in tightly-rostered environments, and harshest if applied to things people can't control.
Many policies blend them: edges-of-day where possible, paid within reason for the occasional mid-day appointment, unpaid or holiday for longer or frequent absences. What matters is that the policy says which applies when - and that the statutory exceptions above always override it.
What does a fair appointments policy look like?
- State the default plainly. "Routine appointments are unpaid unless..." or "We allow up to X hours paid per..." - whichever you choose, say it.
- Name the exceptions. Antenatal (paid), partner antenatal (unpaid, two appointments), reasonable adjustments, dependant emergencies - so no manager improvises the law.
- Ask for what's reasonable, not proof of everything. Requiring appointment cards for a single dental check-up buys distrust at a high price.
- Keep the categories visible. If appointment time is its own leave type rather than mislabelled sickness or mystery holiday, both sides can see the record is fair. CoDash ships an appointments leave type - paid, non-deducting, booked by time of day - for exactly this.
- Apply it identically. A policy that flexes for some people and not others is worse than no policy at all.
How should recurring treatment be handled?
Physiotherapy courses, dialysis, chemotherapy, fertility treatment, counselling - recurring appointments are where a routine-appointments rule, applied mechanically, does real damage. Three principles keep it right:
- Check the Equality Act first. If the treatment is connected to a disability, flexibility may be a legally required reasonable adjustment - not a favour. That conversation should happen early and be led by "what would help?", not "what does the policy allow?".
- Agree a pattern, not per-visit permission. Someone attending treatment every Tuesday for twelve weeks should not have to re-request twelve times. Agree the arrangement once and book the series.
- Keep the details private. The rota needs to know someone is out on Tuesday mornings; it does not need to know why. Managers should see availability, and only HR (with the employee) should hold the medical context.
Related reading: when an employer can refuse a holiday request (the rules are very different for annual leave), rota change notice if appointments keep colliding with shifting shifts, and UK annual leave explained for the entitlement basics.
Frequently asked questions
Do I get paid time off for medical appointments?
Not as a general legal right - your contract and policy decide. The big statutory exception is antenatal care, which is paid time off for the pregnant employee.
Can my employer refuse time off for a doctor's appointment?
For routine appointments, generally yes - they can ask you to book around work, make time up, or use holiday or unpaid leave. They cannot refuse paid antenatal time off, and disabled employees may be owed flexibility as a reasonable adjustment.
Is time off for antenatal appointments paid?
Yes - paid, by statute, for the pregnant employee. A partner accompanying them gets unpaid time off for up to two appointments.
What about appointments linked to a disability?
Appointment flexibility may be required as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act 2010. Discuss what would help rather than applying the routine-appointments rule mechanically.
Can I take time off for a child's routine appointment?
Statutory dependants leave covers emergencies only, unpaid. Routine, pre-booked appointments for a dependant rely on your employer's policy - holiday, making time up, or unpaid leave.
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Appointments handled properly, not squeezed into "sick"
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