The Tribunal Procedure and Employment Tribunal Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2026 (S.I. 2026/115) were made on 5 February 2026, laid before Parliament on 9 February, and come into force on 2 March 2026. Made by the Tribunal Procedure Committee under the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 and the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, the Rules were allowed by the Lord Chancellor and signed by Sarah Sackman, Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice.
Time limits for seeking written reasons are shortened across several First‑tier Tribunal chambers. In the War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Chamber, applications for a written statement of reasons now have a 28‑day window, reduced from 42 days. In the Property Chamber, the period falls from one month to 14 days. For the Immigration and Asylum Chamber, appellants in the UK must apply within 14 days; where the appellant is outside the UK, the 28‑day period remains.
In the Tax Chamber, decision notices must be issued as soon as reasonably practicable, replacing the former “within 28 days” formulation. Parties will ordinarily receive findings of fact and reasons with the decision; the previous default that reasons could be omitted if all parties agreed is removed. Where reasons have been given orally at a hearing, a separate written statement is not required. Requests for a full written statement of findings and reasons must be made within 14 days, and any such statement must be provided as soon as reasonably practicable.
The General Regulatory Chamber introduces case tracks set initially by practice direction: a standard track and an open track. The Tribunal may re‑allocate cases between tracks if the interests of justice require, save where specific transfer provisions to the Upper Tribunal apply. In standard track cases, a decision notice and either a written summary of reasons or full written reasons must be provided within 21 days, or as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter. In open track cases, a decision notice and full written reasons must be provided as soon as reasonably practicable. Where only a written summary is issued, a party has 14 days to request full written reasons.
Within the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber, the Tribunal may determine proceedings concerning specified Education, Health and Care needs assessment decisions without a hearing where it considers it can dispose of the matter on the papers. The change references decisions under sections 51(2)(a) and 73(2)(a) of the Children and Families Act 2014 and is intended to streamline straightforward assessments while preserving the Tribunal’s discretion.
The Employment Tribunal regime is remodelled around two defined categories of reasons. “Full reasons” must identify the issues decided, set out findings of fact, state the relevant law and its application to those findings, and-where a financial award is made-show how the sum is calculated. “Summary reasons” provide a brief explanation of the Tribunal’s decision on each issue. This structure is intended to bring clarity to what parties can expect at, and after, a hearing.
Where reasons are given orally at an Employment Tribunal hearing, the presiding member must state whether they are summary or full. If summary reasons are given, written summary reasons will only follow if requested at the hearing or by a written request received within 14 days of the written record of the decision. Any written summary must explain that full written reasons will only be provided on written request within 14 days of sending the summary; the Tribunal may choose to provide full reasons in response to a summary request where appropriate.
Employment Tribunal records and publication practices are aligned with these categories. A copy of any judgment and any written full reasons must be entered in the public Register, subject to existing privacy and national security rules. Written summary reasons are not required to be registered. Exceptions are added so that judgments dismissing withdrawn claims and certain refusals of reconsideration applications need not be entered.
Early case management is tightened. Claims and employers’ contract claims that do not contain any grounds, cannot sensibly be responded to, or amount to an abuse of process may be rejected. Likewise, responses or replies that do not contain any grounds may be dismissed in whole or in part. The Tribunal may, in the interests of justice, disapply the usual consequence of non‑presentation of a reply to an employer’s contract claim where no reply is received within the time limit.
Case management powers are clarified. The Tribunal may direct a party to provide a draft case management order to the Tribunal or to another party. Time provisions are adjusted so that acts required “within” a period may be expressed as needing to occur “within or no later than” a stated number of days, reducing ambiguity in directions and orders.
Preliminary hearings explicitly include two evaluative routes. Judicial assessment is available with the parties’ consent and provides an evaluation of prospects and potential remedies. A dispute resolution appointment may be directed without the parties’ consent and serves a similar evaluative function on the material available. Both are positioned as part of the Tribunal’s alternative dispute resolution toolkit alongside judicial mediation.
When a decision is announced at an Employment Tribunal hearing, the parties must receive a written record of that decision. Purely procedural rulings about the conduct of a hearing do not require a written record unless a party asks for a specific decision to be recorded. Reconsideration timelines are aligned so that time runs no later than the date on which written summary reasons or written full reasons are sent, where these are issued separately from the judgment.
Operationally, the changes compress several key windows to 14 days and move a number of “within 28 days” duties to an “as soon as reasonably practicable” standard for Tribunals. Employers, representatives and public bodies should update litigation calendars, pleading templates and advice notes to reflect shorter deadlines for requesting reasons and the potential for paper determinations and early evaluative hearings.
Analysis: The instrument is designed to accelerate disposal and improve consistency across chambers by reducing delay around reasons, clarifying what must be published, and broadening early resolution tools. Summary reasons at the Employment Tribunal aim to give rapid clarity while reserving full written decisions for cases where parties actively seek them. The General Regulatory Chamber’s tracks should help proportionate handling of routine and complex cases. No impact assessment has been produced on the basis that no, or no significant, sectoral impact is anticipated.