Martyn's Law is already law, but its duties aren't in force yet. The Act received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. The duties start only when the government brings them in by regulations, and the regulator expects that to be in spring 2027. Until then, nothing is required of your venue by law.
For what the law asks, start with what is Martyn's Law?
Why it's law, but not in force
An Act can pass and still wait to start. This one says its main parts come into force "on such day as the Secretary of State may by regulations appoint", and that different days can be chosen for different purposes or areas (the Act, section 37).
The Home Office says it expects an implementation period of "at least 24 months" from Royal Assent, and that there's no legal requirement to comply until the law comes into force (overarching factsheet). Twenty-four months from 3 April 2025 is 3 April 2027, so the duties can't be expected before then.
The Security Industry Authority (SIA), the regulator, says it expects the Act to come into force in spring 2027, and that it "will confirm the exact date" ahead of time (SIA: its role as regulator).
The dates so far
| Date | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 3 April 2025 | The Act receives Royal Assent and becomes law. | The Act |
| 10 April 2026 | The first commencement regulations bring in one section: the duty for the Home Office to publish guidance. | SI 2026/320 |
| 15 April 2026 | The Home Office publishes its statutory guidance, and the SIA opens a consultation on its own guidance (it closed on 12 June 2026). | Home Office, SIA |
| 15 June 2026 | The second commencement regulations start the SIA's duties to write guidance and give advice. | SI 2026/622 |
| 17 July 2026 | The SIA explains how it will regulate, and that it expects the law to start in spring 2027. | SIA |
| 11 September 2026 | The SIA says its optional templates are coming over the following months, a scope tool in the new year, and that telling the SIA about your venue will be done through GOV.UK. | SIA |
None of these puts a duty on your venue. The commencement regulations so far start the work of writing guidance, not the duties themselves.
What's expected next
These dates are expected, not confirmed. We'll update this page when they're announced.
| When (expected) | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn 2026 (expected) | The SIA publishes its final guidance on how it will use its powers, and a report on its consultation. | SIA, 16 June 2026 |
| Early 2027 (expected) | The SIA's templates and scope tool, and testing of the way to tell the SIA about your venue. | SIA, 11 September 2026, SIA: its role |
| Spring 2027 (expected) | The duties come into force, at least 24 months after Royal Assent, once regulations bring them in. The SIA will confirm the date. | SIA: its role, overarching factsheet |
Put the dates in your calendar
Download the key dates. It's a calendar file: open it and the dates still to come go into your calendar, with a yearly reminder to review your plans. If you subscribe to its address instead, your calendar picks up changes when the dates move.
Every new publication from the Home Office, the SIA and Parliament goes on what's changed, in plain English, with an RSS feed you can follow.
What to do now
There's no rush, and nothing is due. The Home Office encourages venues in scope to begin considering what the law asks (overarching factsheet). Starting early just means you can do it calmly, at your own pace.
- Check whether your venue is in scope. Count your busiest occasion: a festival at the temple, the quiz night at the pub, the big match at the club. The busiest day calculator helps.
- Agree who the responsible person is, and put it in your minutes.
- Write your four plans: get everyone out (evacuation), bring everyone in (invacuation), lock down (lockdown) and keep people informed (communication). Our free templates help.
- Brief the people with a role, hirers included. No course is needed.
- Tell the SIA about your venue once the way to do it opens.
The quick guide puts all of this on two pages, and the readiness check shows what's left.
hailo does steps 3 and 4 with you: it drafts your plans from your answers and briefs your people by link. See how it works.
Where to read more
- The Act, section 37: commencement
- Home Office: overarching factsheet
- SIA: understanding Martyn's Law and the SIA's role as regulator
- SIA: Martyn's Law scope, support and what's next
General information, not legal advice.