How to handle a flexible working request within two months

An email arrives from someone in your team. They would like to finish at three on school days, or work from home on Mondays and Fridays, and the email says it is a statutory request. You may be happy to say yes, or you may not be sure it can work. Either way, a deadline started when the email landed.

That deadline is two months, and it covers the whole process: the conversation, the decision and any appeal. This guide sets out what makes a request statutory, the steps that have to fit inside the two months, the grounds on which you can refuse, and what the file should show.

As checked on 23 October 2026, the statutory right to request flexible working is in force under Part 8A of the Employment Rights Act 1996 and applies to employers in England, Scotland and Wales. The two-month decision period and the duty to consult before refusing have applied since 6 April 2024. Section 80G, Employment Rights Act 1996. The Employment Rights Act 2025 will change the test for refusing a request. The government timetable, updated 22 October 2026, lists flexible working under measures that will take effect in October 2027, and says all future dates remain subject to parliamentary processes and may change. Government implementation timetable. Until then, the rules below are the ones to follow.

Check whether it is a statutory request

The right belongs to employees, from their first day. Acas on the right to request, last updated 14 January 2026. The old 26-week qualifying period was removed on 6 April 2024. The Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023. Acas says someone is not likely to be an employee if they are an agency worker, a casual worker or on a zero-hours contract, so it is employment status that counts, not the label on the contract.

A statutory request has to be in writing and say that it is a statutory request. The Acas Code says it must also include the date, the change asked for to hours, times or place of work, the date the employee would like it to start, and whether and when they have made a previous request. Acas Code of Practice on requests for flexible working, paragraph 4. The employee no longer has to explain what effect the change would have on the business or how to deal with it; that requirement was removed in April 2024. Section 80F.

An employee can make two statutory requests in any 12 months and can have only one live at a time. A request stays live until you decide it, it is withdrawn, you agree an outcome, or the two months end, and it stays live through any appeal or agreed extension. Section 80F and Acas Code, paragraphs 6 and 7.

Not every conversation about hours is a statutory request. Acas says an arrangement can be agreed informally, and that the statutory procedure and Code then do not have to be followed. Acas on options for agreeing changes. A practical approach, if a written request leaves out one of the required details, is to tell the employee what is missing rather than set it aside. The Code says employers should make clear to employees what a statutory request must include. Acas Code, paragraph 5.

Put the two months in the diary on the day it arrives

The law requires you to tell the employee your decision within the decision period, which is two months beginning with the date the application is made, or a longer period you both agree. Section 80G(1)(aa) and (1B). A request is taken as made on the day it is received. Unless the contrary is proved, that is the day of delivery if handed over, the day it would arrive in the ordinary course of post if posted, and the day it is sent if you have agreed that requests can be sent electronically and have specified the address and the electronic form to use. Flexible Working Regulations 2014, regulation 5.

If you allow an appeal, the decision that has to arrive inside the two months is the appeal decision. Section 80G(1A). So a request received on 2 November 2026 needs its final answer, appeal included, by 1 January 2027 unless you agree more time. Acas says the employer should confirm any extension in writing. Acas on appeals. An extension can be agreed before the period ends, or afterwards with retrospective effect within three months of the day after it ended. Section 80G(1C).

If the employee misses a meeting about the request, Acas says to contact them and rearrange it. Only if they miss both the first meeting and the next one without good reason can you treat the request as withdrawn, and you must tell them you are doing so. Section 80G(1D) and Acas on making a decision, last updated 14 January 2026. The Code says that notice should be in writing. Acas Code, paragraph 36.

A practical approach is to write three dates on the request the day it comes in: the date received, a target date for the meeting within the first two or three weeks, and the last day of the two months. That leaves room for an appeal without running out of time.

Consult, then decide on a statutory ground

You may agree a request in full without a meeting. Otherwise the law requires you to consult the employee before refusing. Section 80G(1)(aza). The Code says the employer should invite the employee to a meeting, held without unreasonable delay and in private, in person, by video or, if neither is possible, by phone. The person holding it should have authority to decide, and a written record should be kept. Acas Code, paragraphs 12 to 19. If the original request cannot be agreed in full, the Code suggests discussing a modified version, other options, or a trial period. There is no legal right to bring a companion, but the Code calls allowing one good practice, at paragraph 31.

You can refuse only because you consider one or more of eight grounds applies. Section 80G(1)(b). They are:

• the burden of additional costs
• detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
• inability to re-organise work among existing staff
• inability to recruit additional staff
• detrimental impact on quality
• detrimental impact on performance
• insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work
• planned structural changes

The law also requires you to deal with the application in a reasonable manner. An employee can complain to a tribunal that you did not, or that a refusal was based on incorrect facts. Section 80H. A general preference for office working is not on the list. The Code says a written refusal should explain the business reason and give any further information that is reasonable to explain the decision. Acas Code, paragraph 24. Acas suggests that could include the steps you took to look at the request, the practical parts of the job that stood in the way, the alternatives you considered and any figures you used, such as staffing levels. Acas on communicating the decision.

Where several people ask for similar changes, Acas advises considering requests in the order received, looking at what is possible rather than matching earlier decisions, and not ranking them by personal circumstances, unless one is a reasonable adjustment for a disability. Acas on considering a request.

If a disabled employee's request relates to their disability, Acas says you must follow both the flexible working procedure and the law on reasonable adjustments. The Code says the two obligations are separate. Acas Code, paragraph 11. So one of the eight grounds can answer the flexible working request without answering the adjustments question; our guide to deciding what counts as a reasonable adjustment covers that test. Acas also says to handle requests from parents, carers and people returning from maternity, paternity or adoption leave in the same way as anyone else's. Acas on the right to request. It says the Equality Act applies to how you handle the request, the decision and what the employee tells you. In its example, women in a team have later start times agreed for childcare, a man asks for the same for school drop-off, and the employer refuses because it thinks childcare matters less to men; with no genuine business reason, Acas says that is likely to be direct sex discrimination. Acas on considering a request.

Offer an appeal and confirm the outcome in writing

There is no statutory right of appeal. The Code says allowing one is good practice and that a written refusal should explain how to appeal and by when. Acas Code, paragraph 25. Acas lists offering an appeal among the things a reasonable process should do. Acas on considering a request. Whatever you offer still has to finish inside the two months.

The appeal should be heard by a manager who was not involved in the first decision. If that is not possible, Acas says to make the procedure as impartial as you can, and that the person hearing it should keep an open mind and be aware of unconscious bias. Acas on appeals. In a business where the owner made the first decision and there is nobody else, a practical approach is the one in our guide to handling a grievance under the Acas Code: say why no one else can hear it and record your reasoning with the outcome, and, as Acas suggests for appeals, look at any new information.

If you agree a change, it usually changes the contract. Where it touches a matter in the written statement of particulars, such as hours or place of work, section 4 requires a written statement of the change at the earliest opportunity and no later than one month after the change. Section 4, Employment Rights Act 1996. Acas puts it as within one month of agreeing the change. Acas on communicating the decision. Our guide to changing contract terms by agreement sets out that record.

A trial period is one of the options the Code suggests discussing, at paragraph 17. Neither the Act nor the Code sets out how to record one. A practical approach is to write down the start and end dates, what you will both look at, when you will review it, and what happens at the end, and to confirm the decision after the review in writing.

Know the claim route and keep the file

An employee can complain to an employment tribunal once you have told them your decision, or once the two months end without one. Section 80H. Since 1 October 2026 the time limit for that complaint has been six months from that first date, where that date falls on or after 1 October 2026, with the usual pause for Acas early conciliation. Section 80H(5) to (7) and SI 2026/954, regulation 4 and Schedule.

If the complaint succeeds, the tribunal can order you to reconsider the request and award compensation of up to eight weeks' pay. Section 80I and Flexible Working Regulations 2014, regulation 6. A week's pay for that award is capped at £751 where the failure, the decision or a notice treating the request as withdrawn was on or after 6 April 2026. Section 227, Employment Rights Act 1996 and SI 2026/310, article 4.

The wider protection does not depend on length of service. An employee has the right not to be subjected to a detriment because they made or proposed to make a request, and a dismissal for that reason is automatically unfair. Section 47E and section 104C. The usual qualifying period for unfair dismissal does not apply to a section 104C dismissal. Section 108. Seek appropriate advice before any dismissal or change to the role of someone who has recently made a request.

A practical file for each request holds the request with the date it was received, the meeting invitation and record, the written decision with the ground and the explanation, any appeal with its record and outcome, any agreed extension, and the section 4 statement if the request was agreed. Our guide to tribunal time limits and leaver records explains how to set a retention period around the six-month limit.

Scheduled for October 2027, subject to the timetable, the Employment Rights Act 2025 will change section 80G so that an employer may refuse only if it considers a listed ground applies and it is reasonable to refuse on that ground, and will have to state the ground and explain in the refusal why it considers refusal reasonable. It also lets regulations set out steps an employer must take when consulting. Section 9, Employment Rights Act 2025. That section is in force so far only for the purpose of making regulations. SI 2026/3, regulation 2(6). Acas published a draft revised Code for consultation on 1 October 2026. The consultation closes at 11:59pm on 17 December 2026, and Acas says that until the changes to the law and the updated Code come into force, employers should continue to follow the current Code. Acas consultation on the draft Code.

The next step is small. Decide who receives requests and who decides them, write the received date and the two-month date into whatever you use to track work, and keep a template decision letter that names the ground and leaves room to explain it. Acas links templates for the acknowledgement and the decision from its guide. Acas on considering a request and Acas on communicating the decision. For a question about one person's request, the Acas helpline is a good first call.

Common questions

How long does an employer have to respond to a flexible working request?

Two months, beginning with the date the request is made, unless you and the employee agree a longer period. A request counts as made on the day you receive it. If you allow an appeal, the appeal decision also has to be given inside the two months. Section 80G, Employment Rights Act 1996. Flexible Working Regulations 2014, regulation 5.

Can an employer refuse a flexible working request?

Yes, but only on one or more of eight business grounds in section 80G of the Employment Rights Act 1996, such as the burden of additional costs or detrimental impact on performance, and only after consulting the employee unless you agree the request in full. The Acas Code says the written refusal should explain the reason. Section 80G. Acas Code of Practice.

Do you have to offer an appeal for a flexible working request?

There is no statutory right of appeal. The Acas Code says allowing one is good practice, and Acas says employers should offer it as part of a reasonable procedure. Any appeal still has to be decided within the two months unless an extension is agreed. Acas Code of Practice, paragraph 25. Acas on appeals.

Is the flexible working law changing in 2027?

As checked on 23 October 2026, the government timetable lists flexible working changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025 for October 2027, and says dates may change. Refusals will then also have to be reasonable on the stated ground. Acas is consulting on a draft revised Code until 17 December 2026 and says employers should follow the current Code until the changes to the law and the updated Code come into force. Government timetable. Acas consultation.