Can Employees Take Time Off for Medical Appointments During Work Hours?

“It feels like I’ve got people constantly asking for time off for doctors’ appointments, dentist visits and hospital check-ups. One person had three appointments last month alone. Do I have to give paid time off for every medical appointment? Can I ask them to book appointments outside work hours? And routine check-ups versus urgent appointments - surely there’s a difference?”

The legal position is more nuanced than most employers realise: some appointments have real legal protection, others have none, and you have more control than you might think. Here’s the map.

The Four Categories

1. Pregnancy-related appointments: paid time off, legally required

Pregnant employees have a statutory right to reasonable paid time off for antenatal care - appointments, scans, antenatal classes, all of it, with no limit on number as long as it’s reasonable. Partners have a statutory right to unpaid time off to accompany a pregnant woman to up to two antenatal appointments. You can ask for appointment evidence and reasonable notice, but you can’t unreasonably refuse.

2. Disability-related appointments: paid time off as a reasonable adjustment

Where an employee has a disability, time off for related medical care - treatment, monitoring, occupational health referrals, mental health appointments - may be a reasonable adjustment you’re legally required to make. The test balances the frequency and impact of the appointments against your business size and resources, and whether unpaid leave would be adequate. A chronic condition needing monthly hospital appointments is a different proposition from a routine check-up.

3. Genuine emergencies: flexible and sympathetic

Sudden illness, emergency dental pain, urgent mental health crises, follow-ups for workplace injuries. These can’t be planned, so rigid policy treatment is both unreasonable and reputationally stupid. Deal with them flexibly and sort out the pay treatment afterwards.

4. Routine appointments: your call - and this is where you have control

Routine GP appointments, dental check-ups, optician visits, repeat prescriptions, elective procedures. There is no automatic right to paid or unpaid time off. You can reasonably expect these to be booked outside working hours where possible, or taken as annual leave or unpaid leave.

Sample Policy Wording

“Emergency appointments: paid time off, notify your manager as soon as possible. Pregnancy-related appointments: paid time off with reasonable notice. Disability-related appointments: paid time off as a reasonable adjustment - discuss with your manager. Routine appointments: book outside working hours where possible; otherwise take as annual leave or unpaid leave, with reasonable notice. All appointments require as much notice as possible and consideration of business needs.”

That paragraph ends about 90% of appointment disputes.

The Person With Three Appointments a Month

Your instinct that a pattern is forming isn’t discrimination - but how you handle it can be. The good conversation looks like this:

“I’ve noticed you’ve had several appointments recently. I want to make sure you’re getting the support you need, but I also need to understand whether this is ongoing so I can plan cover. Is this related to an ongoing condition we should talk about adjusting for?”

That opens the reasonable-adjustment conversation if there is one, and gathers the information you need if it’s not. If the pattern continues without explanation, you can require medical evidence for frequent or extended absence under a clear policy - applied consistently, not selectively.

Mental Health Appointments

Treat counselling and therapy as you’d want treatment for any ongoing health condition handled: supportively, and with flexible working often more valuable than individual days off. Ongoing mental health conditions can be disabilities in law, which pulls them into the reasonable-adjustment category above. An occupational health referral is worth its cost when work-related stress is in the picture.

Common Mistakes

• Blanket refusal - “no time off for any appointments” walks straight into pregnancy and disability discrimination, both claimable from day one
• No policy - ad-hoc decisions produce inconsistent treatment, which is how discrimination claims are built
• Never asking for evidence - reasonable evidence requirements for frequent appointments are fair; taking everything at face value invites drift
• Ignoring the disability behind the appointments - treating a chronic-condition appointment the same as a hair cut fails the adjustment duty

Practical Management

• Know your critical cover periods and communicate them
• Encourage advance booking
• Offer flexible working as an alternative to repeated short absences - often better for both sides
• Cross-train so appointments don’t break the rota
• Document decisions and reasoning, and store any medical information securely and separately

The Bottom Line

Pregnancy-related appointments: paid, protected, no service requirement. Disability-related: paid as reasonable adjustments. Emergencies: sympathy and flexibility. Routine: outside hours, annual leave or unpaid - your policy sets it. Clear policy, consistent application, and a supportive conversation when a pattern emerges - that’s the whole game.

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Emma Armytage is The HR Goddess, providing practical, jargon-free HR support to UK SME owners. She helps business leaders manage their teams confidently while staying compliant - without the corporate fluff.