TUPE Transfer Rights UK 2026: What Happens to Your Job When a Business Changes Hands
TUPE automatically transfers employees, their terms and conditions, and their continuous service to a new employer when a business or service contract changes hands. Here's how it protects you.
What TUPE actually does
The Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, universally known as TUPE, protect employees when the business (or part of it) they work for is sold, merged, or when a service contract they're assigned to moves between providers. Rather than employment simply ending and a new contract being offered by the incoming employer, TUPE automatically transfers the employment relationship, on existing terms, to the new employer.
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Open Redundancy Pay calculatorWhen TUPE applies
| Type of transfer | Example |
|---|---|
| Business transfer | Company A sells a division, or the whole business, to Company B |
| Service provision change (outsourcing) | A council outsources its cleaning service to a private contractor |
| Service provision change (insourcing) | A company brings a previously outsourced IT support function back in-house |
| Service provision change (re-tendering) | A contract for catering services moves from Contractor A to Contractor B at contract renewal |
What automatically transfers
| Element | Effect of TUPE |
|---|---|
| Employment contract | Transfers automatically to the new employer, without a break |
| Terms and conditions | Preserved as they were immediately before the transfer |
| Continuous service | Preserved — treated as if you'd always worked for the new employer |
| Collective agreements | Generally transfer too, in most circumstances |
| Accrued rights (e.g. holiday) | Transfer with the employee |
Can your terms be changed after a transfer?
Generally, no — not if the transfer itself is the reason for the change. Any variation to your contract that is because of the transfer is void, even if you agree to it, unless:
- There is a genuine economic, technical or organisational (ETO) reason entailing changes in the workforce (for example, a genuine need to reduce headcount or change working locations for sound business reasons unconnected to simply harmonising terms), and
- Even then, strict conditions must be met, and changes purely to harmonise terms with existing staff at the new employer are very hard to justify as an ETO reason on their own.
Dismissal connected to a TUPE transfer
Dismissal because of the transfer itself is automatically unfair. The main exception is where the employer can show an ETO reason entailing changes in the workforce — for example, a genuine redundancy situation created by the transfer (such as a role becoming duplicated once merged into the new employer's structure).
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Both the outgoing and incoming employer have duties to:
- Inform affected employees (or their representatives) about the fact of the transfer, its timing, reasons, and legal, economic and social implications.
- Consult with employee representatives about any measures the employer envisages taking in connection with the transfer (such as proposed restructuring).
- The outgoing employer must provide employee liability information to the incoming employer, covering each transferring employee's terms, identity, age, disciplinary and grievance history (within limits), and details of any collective agreements.
Failure to properly inform and consult can result in an employment tribunal award of up to 13 weeks' pay per affected employee.
Pensions and TUPE — a partial exception
Occupational pension rights are treated slightly differently under TUPE — while most terms transfer in full, old-age, invalidity, and survivors' benefits under an occupational pension scheme are specifically excluded from automatic transfer, though the new employer must generally provide some form of pension scheme meeting a minimum matching-contribution requirement.
What to do if you're facing a TUPE transfer
- Read any information provided about the transfer carefully, and raise questions with your current employer or employee representatives.
- Confirm in writing what your terms and conditions, continuous service date, and accrued holiday will be under the new employer.
- If asked to sign a new contract with changed terms, check carefully whether the change is genuinely unconnected to the transfer — if in doubt, seek advice before agreeing.
- Keep records of your existing terms and any communications in case a dispute arises later about what should have transferred.
Use the redundancy pay calculator and notice period calculator with your preserved continuous service date if a TUPE-related redundancy situation arises.
Frequently asked questions
What does TUPE stand for and what does it do?
TUPE stands for the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006. It automatically transfers employees assigned to a business, or part of a business, or a service contract, to the new employer on their existing terms and conditions, without needing new contracts to be signed.
Does my continuous service carry over in a TUPE transfer?
Yes. Continuous employment is preserved as if you'd always worked for the new employer, which matters for statutory redundancy pay, unfair dismissal qualifying service, and other length-of-service rights.
Can the new employer change my terms and conditions after a TUPE transfer?
Generally no, not if the reason for the change is the transfer itself — changes to terms connected to the transfer are void unless there's an economic, technical or organisational (ETO) reason entailing changes in the workforce, and even then strict conditions apply.
Can I be dismissed because of a TUPE transfer?
Dismissal because of the transfer itself is automatically unfair, unless the employer can show an economic, technical or organisational (ETO) reason entailing changes in the workforce, such as a genuine redundancy situation arising from the transfer.
Does TUPE apply to outsourcing and service contract changes, or just business sales?
Yes, TUPE covers both business transfers (e.g. a company sale) and 'service provision changes' — where a service (such as cleaning, catering or IT support) moves from one contractor to another, or is brought in-house, or outsourced for the first time.
What information must I be given before a TUPE transfer?
Employers (outgoing and incoming) must inform and, where there are proposed measures affecting employees, consult with employee representatives about the transfer. The outgoing employer must also provide 'employee liability information' to the new employer, covering terms, disciplinary/grievance history, and any collective agreements.
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