How to ask your employer to reduce your hours (with a letter template)

Your rights in 2026

Asking to work less is not an unusual request. The law treats it as a normal part of working life, and the rules were made simpler by the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023, which came into force on 6 April 2024.

• From day one. Every employee can make a statutory request from their first day in a job.
• Two requests a year. You can make up to two statutory requests in any 12 months, one at a time.
• In writing. A letter or email is fine. It must be dated, say it is a statutory request for flexible working, describe the change you want and when you would like it to start, and say whether you have made a previous request and, if so, when.
• A decision within two months. This includes any appeal, unless you both agree to a longer period.
• Consultation first. Your employer must not refuse without first discussing the request with you.
• Eight reasons only. A refusal must be for one of the business reasons set out in law (see below).

You no longer have to explain what effect the change would have on your employer or how to deal with it. It still helps, though, and the rest of this guide shows how. Northern Ireland has its own rules, so check those if you work there.

What you can ask for

Flexible working covers your hours, your times, your days and where you work. If you want to dial down, the useful options are:

• A share of full-time: for example 80% or 60% of your current hours, with pay and holiday pro rata.
• Fewer days: the same length of day, on fewer days.
• Shorter days: every day, but a later start or an earlier finish.
• Compressed hours: the same hours in fewer, longer days. This keeps full pay but does not give you time back, so it is a different thing.
• Job share: you and a colleague split one role.
• Phased retirement: some employers and pension schemes offer a planned step down over a few years. Ask HR if one exists.

Choose a pattern that you could live with for several years. A glide is easier to plan, and easier to agree, when the first step is clear. Our guide to working 4 days a week before retirement covers the 80% option in more detail.

How to prepare

The request that gets a yes is usually the one that has already answered the questions your manager will ask.

1. Pick your moment. Avoid the busiest weeks of the year. A natural point, such as after a project ends or at an annual review, gives the conversation room.
2. Talk first, then write. A short, informal chat means the letter is no surprise. The written request is what starts the legal clock.
3. Plan the cover. Set out which tasks you keep, which you could hand to colleagues, and how people reach you on days you are not working. Offer to train someone or write things down.
4. Offer a trial. Three months with a review date lowers the risk for your employer and lets you both adjust.
5. Frame it positively. You are not stepping away. You are planning to keep contributing for longer, at a pace you can sustain. Many employers value keeping experience in the building.
6. Think about the role, not just the hours. Doing a full-time job in 80% of the time rarely works. If you want to shape what the role looks like, see writing your job description for the next 10 years.

Pay, pension and holiday

A permanent reduction in hours is a change to your contract, so the money changes too.

• Pay: your gross pay falls pro rata, but your take-home pay falls by less, because the slice you give up is taxed most. On a £45,000 salary in England with a 5% pension contribution, going to 80% costs about £510 a month in take-home pay.
• Workplace pension: contributions are usually a percentage of pay, so yours and your employer’s both fall. Final salary schemes usually count part-time service pro rata. Ask your scheme before you change hours, especially near retirement.
• Holiday: the statutory minimum of 5.6 weeks a year is worked out pro rata, and bank holidays can count towards it.
• State Pension: each year still counts as long as you earn above the National Insurance lower earnings limit.

Letter template

Copy this into an email or letter and replace everything in [BRACKETS]. It includes everything the law requires, and the extra detail that helps your manager say yes.

Keep a copy, and note the date you sent it. The two-month decision period starts from that day.

What happens next

Your employer should arrange to talk with you, consider the request fairly, and let you know their decision in writing. Acas’s Code of Practice on requests for flexible working says that allowing you to bring a colleague or union representative to the meeting is good practice.

If they agree, your contract should be updated with the new terms, as soon as possible and within 28 days. Check the new pay, pension and holiday figures before you sign.

If they cannot agree, the refusal must be for one of these eight reasons:

1. Extra costs that will damage the business.
2. The work cannot be reorganised among other staff.
3. People cannot be recruited to do the work.
4. Flexible working will affect quality.
5. Flexible working will affect performance.
6. The business will not be able to meet customer demand.
7. There is a lack of work to do during the proposed working times.
8. The business is planning changes to the workforce.

A no is often a “not like that” rather than a “not at all”. Ask what would work: a different share of full-time, a longer trial, or a later start date. There is no legal right of appeal, but the Acas Code says allowing one is good practice, and many employers have an appeal process. You can also make a second request within the same 12 months.

An employer cannot be taken to a tribunal just for saying no. A claim is only possible if, for example, the request was not handled reasonably or was refused based on incorrect facts, and it must usually be made within three months. Acas offers free, impartial help if you are unsure.

Reducing your hours is often the first step in a longer glide. Our guide to semi-retirement in the UK covers what comes after.

Questions people ask