Self-Certification Letter

1. Tell us what your employer has asked for

Bring the exact wording if you have it. Requests vary enormously, and a letter that does not say the right thing is no use to you.

2. Assessment

The GP assesses you and establishes what can honestly be confirmed.

3. Letter issued

Stating what was assessed, when, and by whom — with a GMC number your employer can check.

First, check you need this rather than a fit note

They are different documents and employers use the terms interchangeably, which causes a lot of wasted appointments.

• Absence of seven calendar days or fewer — you self-certify. No doctor's note is required by law. This letter is for when an employer wants something more than your own word
• Absence over seven days — you need a fit note, which is a different document

Bring your employer's exact wording. A letter that does not address what they actually asked for is worth nothing, and the request is frequently more specific than people remember.

Ask your employer to pay first

Worth doing before you book. An employer may ask for evidence for an absence under seven days, but ACAS guidance is that it is reasonable for the employer to meet the cost of obtaining it. One email costs you nothing and quite often means you do not pay at all.

What the GP can and cannot confirm

This is the part people are least prepared for. The letter can state what was assessed, on what date, and what was found on that date.

Where you were unwell a fortnight ago and are well now, the GP can record what you have described and attribute it clearly to you — but cannot present it as their own clinical finding. That distinction is what makes the letter worth anything to the person reading it.

Expect questions about the pattern

If this concerns repeated short absences, expect the GP to ask about the pattern rather than only the latest episode. Frequent short absences quite often have one underlying cause — migraine, IBS, anxiety, poorly controlled asthma, perimenopause — and finding it is more useful to you than another letter would be.

Useful when

• Your absence was under seven days but your employer wants more than self-certification
• You have had several short absences and a pattern is being questioned
• An occupational health or return-to-work process needs supporting evidence
• You need to document a short absence for a client, insurer or university

Before you book

Check whether a full sick note is what is actually being asked for — they are different documents, and employers often use the terms interchangeably.

The letter comes to you, not to your employer

You decide what to pass on. It is written to confirm the effect on your ability to work without naming a diagnosis wherever that is possible — which is usually all an employer needs and all they are entitled to.

If you would prefer particular wording left out, say so during the consultation rather than after it is written.

Sending it on

Send it to whoever handles absence, keep a copy, and upload it to any absence-reporting system as well as emailing it — the two are frequently not connected, and a letter sitting in a manager's inbox does not always reach HR.

If your employer says it is not enough

Ask them to put in writing exactly what they require. In most cases the gap is that they wanted a fit note, which covers a different period and serves a different purpose.

If they are asking for a diagnosis you would rather not disclose, that is worth pushing back on — employers are entitled to know that you were unfit and broadly why, not to your full medical detail.

If short absences keep recurring

Repeated certification is treating the paperwork rather than the problem. Where a pattern is emerging, a proper look at what is driving it is a better use of an appointment than another letter — and it is usually what stops the absences.

Do I actually need this? I was only off three days.

Legally, no. For the first seven calendar days of illness — including weekends and days you would not have worked — you self-certify, and no doctor's note is required.

Some employers ask anyway, which their contract may permit. This letter exists for that situation. But check the policy before booking, because a good proportion of people who book this did not need to.

Should I have to pay for it?

Arguably not, and it is worth asking. ACAS guidance is that where an employer requires medical evidence for an absence of seven days or fewer, it is reasonable for the employer to bear the cost.

One email before you book. Many employers will either pay or drop the request.

What is the difference between this and a sick note?

A fit note certifies that you are unfit for work over a defined period, and supports statutory sick pay. It is used for absences over seven days.

A self-certification letter confirms that you were medically assessed and what was found. It supports a short absence you have already self-certified, or a formal HR process.

Employers and HR systems use both terms loosely, which is why bringing their exact wording matters.

Can you write it for an absence last month?

Partly, and the distinction matters. The GP can record what you describe and attribute it clearly to you — "Mr X reports that he was unwell from the 3rd to the 6th with..." — and can confirm the assessment made today.

What cannot happen is presenting that as an independent clinical finding for a period nobody assessed. A letter that did would be worthless to the reader and a GMC matter for the doctor.

Will it say what was wrong with me?

Not necessarily, and you can ask. The letter is normally written around the effect on your ability to work rather than a diagnosis — which is usually all an employer needs.

Say during the consultation if there is something you would rather was not named.

My employer keeps asking every time I am off.

They may be entitled to under your contract, but it is worth asking what the policy actually says. Repeated requests for short absences are sometimes a sign of a capability or attendance process starting, and it is better to know that than to keep buying letters.

It is also worth asking whether a single underlying condition explains the pattern, because frequently one does — and treating it serves you better than certifying it repeatedly.

What if you cannot support what my employer has asked for?

You will be told, and the consultation fee still applies because it covers the assessment. Raise the request at booking rather than at the end — if what is being asked for is not something any doctor could honestly write, it is far better to know before you pay.

In practice the consultation usually still produces something useful, even where the specific letter requested cannot be written as worded.