Notice and final pay
Notice period calculator: statute against contract
Give your start date, the day notice is handed over and what the contract says: the calculator keeps the longer of the two notices and dates the end of the job.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
An employer who ends a contract must give at least 1 week of notice once the employee has 1 month of continuous employment, then one week for each complete year of service from two years, stopping at 12 weeks after twelve years (Employment Rights Act 1996, section 86; article 118 of the Northern Ireland Order sets the same scale). An employee who resigns owes 1 week unless the contract asks for more. A notice clause in the contract counts only when it is longer than the statutory figure: a shorter clause is overridden. Notice runs from the day after it is given, so a week given on a Monday ends on the following Monday. The calculator compares the two, applies the longer one, gives the last day of employment and multiplies the weeks by your gross weekly pay, which is the sum at stake if the notice is paid in lieu or not paid at all.
Notice your employer owes you
7 weeks
Employment ends on 23 November 2026
| Statutory minimum (7 complete years) | 7 weeks |
| Contract | 4 weeks |
| Rule applied | statute (longer or equal) |
| Value of the notice period, gross | £4,340 |
| Notice given from this date would carry one more week | 10 March 2027 |
Reading the result
The headline is the notice that applies: whichever is longer of the statutory minimum and the clause in your contract. The two lines under it show each figure separately, so you can see which one decided. “Rule applied” says “contract” only when the clause is strictly longer. The last day is counted from the day after notice is given, the rule GOV.UK states for resignations; the calculator counts a dismissal the same way. The value line is weeks × gross weekly pay: that is what you should receive if you work the notice, if you are sent on garden leave, or if the employer pays you in lieu.
The example already filled in describes someone who started on 11 March 2019 and receives notice on 5 October 2026, with a four-week clause and £620 a week. They have 7 complete years, so the statute gives 7 weeks and beats the contract. Employment ends on 23 November 2026 and the notice is worth £4,340 gross. Notice given from 10 March 2027 would carry one more week.
Contract clauses written as months
Many UK contracts say “one month” or “three months”. A month is a calendar month, so its length in days changes with the date it starts. The statutory scale is in weeks, and the comparison turns on years of service:
| Complete years | Statutory weeks | In days | Longer than one calendar month? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 7 | No |
| 3 | 3 | 21 | No |
| 4 | 4 | 28 | Equal to a month starting in February |
| 5 | 5 | 35 | Yes, always |
| 12 | 12 | 84 | Yes, always |
A three-month clause stays ahead of the statute at every length of service, because 12 weeks is 84 days and three calendar months always run past that.
What the calculator leaves to you
- Your start date. Use the date your employer counts continuous employment from; it is on the written statement of particulars. A transfer of business or a previous job with an associated employer can move it earlier.
- Dismissal for gross misconduct. Section 86(6) keeps the right to end a contract without notice for the other party’s conduct. The calculator assumes notice is owed.
- Fixed-term contracts. A contract simply ending on its agreed date needs no notice. Ending it early does.
- Redundancy pay and holiday. They are added in the final pay calculator. If notice is paid in lieu, the date used for redundancy service moves to the end of the statutory notice: see the relevant date.
For the legal background of the scale, read statutory notice periods; for the resigning side, notice when you resign.