Fertility treatment leave

We offer paid and unpaid leave options to help support you and your partner, if you have one, as you go through fertility investigations and treatment. 

Managers are expected to treat requests for leave with sensitivity.  

Eligibility and entitlement

During the investigation stage

During fertility investigations, your appointments will be treated in the same way as doctor, dentist and hospital appointments. 

Book your appointments outside of working hours or use flexible working wherever possible. If this is not possible, for example when you are not given a choice, you can get paid time off to attend your appointment. 

Once treatment starts

If you cannot book fertility treatment appointments outside of your working hours or cover them using flexible working, you can get up to 5 days' paid leave for each cycle of medical appointments including: 

• consultant appointments 
• egg collection 
• monitoring tests 

Booking time off for fertility investigations or treatment

Tell your manager as soon as you can once your appointment is booked.

Once agreed, this leave should be booked as ‘medical leave' in My Oracle.

If you’re off sick due to the side effects of fertility treatment

If you’re off sick due to the side effects of fertility treatment, your absence will be treated in the same way as any other sick leave. 

Sickness absence associated with fertility treatment is regarded as ‘pregnancy-related sick leave’ from the point at which the fertilised embryo has been implanted.

This will not be included in the absence management triggers, which means managers will disregard this time off when monitoring your sickness absence.

If unsuccessful, this protected period ends two weeks after the date you find out the implantation was not successful. 

This leave should be booked as sickness absence in My Oracle.

If your partner is having fertility treatment 

If you’re the partner of someone going through fertility treatment, speak to your manager about using flexible working to attend medical appointments.

If this is not possible, you can book 'unpaid leave' in My Oracle.