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INFORMATION ABOUT SICKNESS CERTIFICATE

In our experience there is often a lot of confusion over the requirement for certification for absence from work on health grounds and whether you need to see a doctor or not.

Here is some simple guidance, which we hope will help sort out most of the problems:

The law states that you may self-certify your illness for 7 days before any need for an official medical sickness certificate. This means that you can make the decision that you are not well enough to go to work without having to go to your GP.

If your illness continues for more than 7 days and you feel unable to return to work, your GP can issue an official Department of Health Statement (this is called a Med3 certificate) certifying your illness.

You will have to be seen and examined by your GP in order for the Med3 certificate to be issued. It cannot be issued by telephone request. The only exception to this is if your request is for a consecutive continuation of a previous certificate. Even then it is at the discretion of your GP and you may still have to be seen in the surgery before the certificate can be issued.

Important Note:
If you request a “sick note” for an illness of less than 7 days’ duration, then you may request a Private Doctor’s Statement. There is a fee for this. and is payable by either yourself or, in some cases, your employer. Information about the fee may be obtained from the Reception Desk. You will have to be seen by your GP for this certificate to be issued. Please feel free to contact the Practice Reception Staff if you have any queries about your sickness certificates.