Return to work form template for UK managers

What's on the form

The manager fills the form in with the employee during the meeting, and both sign it. Every field sits in a plain table, so you can add your logo, delete a question or add one of your own without breaking the layout.

The five parts of the return to work form

Part	What it records
1. The absence	Who, the first and last day off, the date back, the working days lost, and whether the absence was reported the way your policy asks
2. Evidence	Self-certified or fit note, the dates the fit note covers, and if it says "may be fit for work", its advice and whether you can follow it
3. The conversation	Readiness to return, the reason in the employee's words, whether it relates to a disability, pregnancy or work, ongoing treatment, and what colleagues may be told
4. Next steps	Support agreed, an occupational health referral, a date to check in, and whether a review point in your policy has been reached
5. Sign-off	Both signatures and the date it went into the absence record

What Acas says the meeting is for

Acas describes the return to work meeting as a conversation to make sure the person is ready to come back and has the support they need. It is not a legal requirement, but Acas recommends having a process for it in your absence policy and holding the meeting as soon as possible after the person returns. In practice it is usually an informal, private chat with the line manager.

Acas lists what the meeting can cover, and the form follows it:

• checking the person is well enough to be back at work;
• updating them on what changed while they were away;
• agreeing support, such as a phased return;
• agreeing what colleagues are told about the absence and what stays confidential.

After sickness, Acas adds that the employer might look at the doctor's recommendations and consider a referral to occupational health. If the employee is disabled, review their reasonable adjustments and decide whether more are needed. The employee doesn't have to share medical details, so the form asks for the reason "in their words" and has a "prefer not to say" box on the disability, pregnancy and work questions.

Fit notes and self-certification

Part 2 of the form records the evidence, under the rules on GOV.UK:

• 7 days or fewer. The employee doesn't need a fit note. When they come back you can ask them to confirm the absence themselves, which is what the form does. The 7 days include non-working days such as weekends and bank holidays.
• More than 7 days. They give you a fit note, which a GP or hospital doctor, registered nurse, occupational therapist, pharmacist or physiotherapist can issue.
• "May be fit for work". The note can advise a phased return, altered hours, amended duties or workplace adaptations. The fit note guidance for employers says that advice isn't binding: if you can't make the changes, you use the same note as evidence that they're not fit for work, and they don't need a new one.
• Coming back early. The employee can return before the note runs out, and nobody needs to be "signed back" to work.

A worked example

Greta Vogel, an account manager at NovaTech, is off sick from Tuesday 6 to Friday 9 October 2026 and comes back on Monday 12 October. That's 4 days in a row, under the 7-day limit, so she self-certifies on the form and no fit note is needed.

Her manager meets her that morning in a meeting room. Greta says she had a chest infection and is still tired, so they agree she'll leave at 3 pm for the rest of the week and skip Thursday's client visit. It's her third absence in 12 months, which is NovaTech's review point, so her manager ticks "review point reached" and arranges a separate absence review for the following week instead of discussing it now. Both sign, Greta keeps a copy, and the absence goes into the record that day.

Keep it separate from an absence review

A return to work meeting is a welfare conversation. If an absence takes someone past a review point in your sickness absence policy, say so and arrange the absence review as a separate meeting. Acas warns that review points shouldn't trigger disciplinary action automatically, and that a punitive feel makes people come back to work while still ill.

Many employers use the Bradford Factor as one of those review points, because it scores frequent short absences higher than one long one. Score a pattern with the free Bradford Factor calculator, and read its section on using the score fairly before you set a threshold.

Keeping the forms

Completed forms hold health information, which is special category data under UK GDPR. The ICO's guidance on workers' health information covers how to handle it. Keep the forms where only the people who need them can see them. For statutory sick pay, GOV.UK lets you choose how you keep sickness absence records, but HMRC may ask to see them if a payment is disputed.

When paper stops working

The form is the conversation; the absence record is everything around it. A sickness absence tracker keeps that record without a folder. In Absenca, sick days are booked by the employee or their manager, even after the day, and a leave type can require a document such as a fit note to be attached. A sick leave type marked private shows only "Away" to colleagues in the calendar and team views, and the Bradford Factor is scored for the leave types you choose. Bradford scoring is on Pro and the Custom Pack, not on the free Starter plan. Recording sickness is free for up to 10 people. See absence management software for the whole process.

Last checked on 23 October 2026 against Acas guidance on returning to work after absence and GOV.UK guidance on sick leave and fit notes. It describes the position in Great Britain. This is general guidance, not legal advice, and your contracts and policy decide the details.