Skip to main content

Request a sick note for work



Important: Self-certification

You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting seven days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or via the Gov.UK website.

If you’ve been off sick for more than 7 days

To request a sick note:

If you’ve been off sick for 7 days or less

If you're off work sick for 7 days or less, your employer should not ask for medical evidence that you've been ill. Instead, they can ask you to confirm that you've been ill. You can do this by filling in a form yourself when you return to work. We call this self-certification.

Find out more about sick notes on the NHS website.