Employers are obliged to notify the Redundancy Payments Service ('RPS') (acting on behalf of the Secretary of State) via an 'HR1' form if they are proposing to dismiss as redundant 20 or more employees at one establishment within a 90-day period.
After 30 November 2025, employers must use a new online HR1 form to provide this notification.
The timing of the HR1 form depends on the number of proposed dismissals. If the proposal is to dismiss 20-99 employees, the HR1 form must be received by the RPS at least 30 days before the first dismissal takes effect (i.e. the date on which notice is to expire or employment is to end). If the proposal is to dismiss 100 or more employees, the HR1 form must be received at least 45 days before the first dismissal takes effect.
The Insolvency Service has now launched an online version of the HR1 form. It claims the new online form will mean quicker submissions, fewer errors and will ensure employers always use the up to date version of the form. The form can be found here.
From early September 2025, employers may decide whether to use the online HR1 form or a downloadable paper form. After 30 November 2025, the online form will be the only way to submit the HR1 form.
Guidance for those completing the online form states:
- the form has 8 parts and takes on average 40 minutes;
- the form will not save information until it is submitted at the end – so closing or leaving the page for longer than 90 minutes means starting again;
- before submitting, employers should save/print the final summary page - they will only be sent an email confirming receipt of the form, not a copy of the answers provided;
- up to 4 attachments may be uploaded at the end of the form before submitting it;
- the employer will need the following information to hand:
- company number - find company information
- nature of the business - find (SIC code)
- timing and location of redundancies
- expected number of redundancies
- reasons for redundancies
- trade union and/or employee representative(s) details.
Employers carrying out or proposing to carry out collective redundancies should familiarize themselves with the new online HR1 form. It is worth remembering that failure to provide the notification to the Secretary of State is a criminal offence and the employer will be liable on summary conviction to a (potentially unlimited) fine.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
