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United Kingdom
Key definition
Early Conciliation definition

What does Early Conciliation mean? Early conciliation is the pre‑claim step in which a prospective claimant notifies a statutory conciliator so settlement can be explored before most employment tribunal proceedings begin. In England & Wales and Scotland it is a statutory requirement under section 18A Employment Tribunals Act 1996 and the Employment Tribunals (Early Conciliation: Exemptions and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2014, administered by Acas. In Northern Ireland it is required under the Employment Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 and the LRA (Early Conciliation) Regulations (NI) 2019, administered by the Labour Relations Agency. The claimant provides prescribed information (including the parties’ details, the nature...

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ACAS Early Conciliation Rules for Employment Tribunals: Commencement, Party Contact, Twelve‑Week Period and Certificates (England, Wales and Scotland)

Practice notes
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Employment Tribunals (Early Conciliation: Exemptions and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2014 amended by Employment Tribunals (Early Conciliation: Exemptions and Rules of Procedure) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 SI 2014/254 amended by SI 2025/1153

SCHEDULE

THE EARLY CONCILIATION RULES OF PROCEDURE

Starting early conciliation

1 Satisfying the requirement for early conciliation

To meet the requirement for early conciliation, a prospective Claimant must—

  1. lodge a completed early conciliation form with ACAS in accordance with rule 2; or
  2. telephone ACAS in accordance with rule 3.
2

(1) Where an early conciliation form is presented to ACAS, it must be—

  1. submitted via the online form on the ACAS website; or
  2. sent by post to the ACAS address stated on the early conciliation form.

(2) An early conciliation form must include—

  1. the prospective claimant’s name and address; and
  2. the prospective respondent’s name and address.

(3) ACAS may refuse a form that does not contain the information specified in paragraph (2) or may, at any time during the early conciliation period, contact the prospective claimant to correct...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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