You do not require a doctor's sickness certificate for any illness lasting 28 days or less. Your employer may however require you to complete a self-certification form (SC2) which is available from your employer or on the HMRC website.
Evidence that you are sick
If you are sick for more than seven days, your employer can ask you to give them some form of medical evidence to support payment of SSP (statutory sick pay).
Your employer 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. This is called self-certification.
If you're sick and off work for more than 28 days, your employer will probably ask for proof of your illness. Most employers ask for a fit note from your GP.
However, this will also depend on your employer's company policy on sick leave (or sickness absence). This policy should tell you how many days you can be off sick before you need to provide proof of illness or a fit note.
You could also provide evidence from someone who is not a medical practitioner, e.g. a dentist. Your employer will decide whether or not this evidence is acceptable. If your employer has any doubts, they may still ask for a medical certificate from your GP.
Statement of Fitness for Work - ’Fit Note'
The 'fit note' was introduced on 6 April 2010. With your employer's support, the note will help you return to work sooner by providing more information about the effects of your illness or injury.
For more information see the DirectGov website (where this information was sourced)
Fit note
The fit note was launched in April 2010 to replace the old sick note. It allows doctors to give more information to patients about the functional effects of their health condition on their fitness for work, to help people return to work where appropriate.
Fit note
The fit note was launched in April 2010 to replace the old sick note. It allows doctors to give more information to patients about the functional effects of their health condition on their fitness for work, to help people return to work where appropriate.
DWP Rules
Doctors do not need to issue a fit note for the first seven calendar days of a patient’s sickness absence. Patients can self-certify for this period.
Doctor can issue a fit note on the day that they assess their patient; or on any day afterwards.
This can be via:
• a face-to-face or telephone consultation
• consideration of a written report from another doctor or healthcare professional (for example, nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists).
Can doctors backdate a fit note?
Yes - in certain situations, parts of the fit note may need to include dates, which are earlier than the date of the statement.
If doctors are issuing a fit note based on an assessment conducted at an earlier date, doctor should enter the date of this earlier assessment in the date of assessment field.
If patient’s condition has affected their function for some time without a previous fit note being issued, doctors enter an estimated date that their function was affected from.
Further Information: www.dwp.gov.uk/fitnote