How long are contract terms protected by TUPE?

Where the transfer took place before 31 January 2014 (or in the case of any transfer in Northern Ireland), there is no legal time limit to the protection provided to terms and conditions under TUPE.

For all transfers after 31 January 2014 in England, Wales and Scotland (but not Northern Ireland), there is no legal time limit to the protection of a contract term unless it has been incorporated from a collective agreement, in which case the provisions set out on pages 479-481 apply.

In all cases, the more time that passes, the harder it is to show, in practice, that the transfer was the reason for the contractual change, rather than some other unrelated reason, such as an economic downturn, or the offer of a new role.