Allergy Medical Certificate
Schools, employers and travel providers often ask for formal allergy documentation before they will consider an adjustment. An allergy medical certificate is a doctor's signed letter setting out your allergens, the reactions on record and the precautions you have been advised to take.
It is usually written by your GP, an allergy clinic or specialist, or a private GP. It documents an allergy that has already been diagnosed or reported. It is not an allergy test and it does not establish a new diagnosis.
✔ Usually written by your GP, an allergy clinic or a specialist
✔ Asked for by schools, employers, airlines and travel providers, who each set their own policy
Accepted by most UK employers, universities and insurers, subject to their own policies. All consultations are subject to clinical assessment and certificates are issued only where clinically appropriate.
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They meet the incredibly fast turnaround stated (certificate/letter sent before 9am the following morning if the doctor feels that a letter/certificate is appropriate) which is incredibly quick and I am really grateful for the help provided!
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Fast efficient service for medical certificates. I used the not fit to fly service and was provided with a certificate the next day, the price is very reasonable and enabled a flight credit refund with my airline. Would recommend and would use again if needed.
A fast and efficient service. It wasn't complicated and the Fit-to-fly note was accepted by the Airport without any further questions. Thank you.
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Quick and reasonably pain-free. Received their standard certificate as well as my requested bespoke certificate, by email, by 9am the following morning. Both completed properly, signed and stamped as required. More expensive than my GP, but infinitely quicker and easier.
One of the best experiences. It's easy to get a GP note.
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An allergy medical certificate is a doctor-signed document setting out an allergy you have already been diagnosed with, or that you report, together with the reactions recorded in your history and the precautions you have been advised to take. It is used to support requests in school and university settings, workplace adjustments, travel, medical exemption requests and allergy management plans. It documents an allergy for the organisation asking about it. It does not establish one, and this page explains exactly where that line falls.
Allergy documentation is asked for across a range of settings, from schools wanting written confirmation of a child’s nut allergy, to employers seeking medical evidence to support a change to a workspace, to airlines that ask for a doctor’s letter before a passenger carries adrenaline auto-injectors on board. Every organisation sets its own requirements and decides for itself what it will accept, so find out what yours asks for before you ask a doctor for a letter.
What This Certificate Can And Cannot Do
Documents an allergy
- Sets out the allergen, the reactions on record and any treatment prescribed
- States who made the diagnosis, and when, where that is documented
- Puts it in signed form, addressed to the school, employer or carrier asking for it
- Records the precautions you have been advised to take
Diagnose an allergy
- An allergy is diagnosed by skin prick testing, by blood tests measuring allergen-specific IgE, or by a supervised challenge under specialist care
- The NHS refers people to a specialist for those tests, and none of them can be done through an online form
- If you have never been tested or assessed, speak to your GP about referral before asking for a certificate
- It places no organisation under an obligation to make any particular adjustment
When Is an Allergy Medical Certificate Needed?
Schools & Universities
- Confirming a food allergy for school meal planning and kitchen protocols
- Supporting a request for an individual healthcare plan (IHP) at school
- University catering requests for allergen-free meal provision
- Supporting a request for exam access arrangements where an allergy-related condition such as asthma affects a student
Workplace Adjustments
- Requesting a nut-free or fragrance-free workspace
- Supporting a request for workplace adjustments where a severe occupational allergy affects your work
- Documenting latex allergy in a clinical or industrial environment
- Evidence for an employer’s health and safety risk assessment
Travel, Exemptions & Other
- Airline or cruise paperwork for a severe food allergy, where that carrier asks for it
- A doctor’s letter for carrying adrenaline auto-injectors abroad, where the airline or the destination requires one
- Supporting a medical exemption from allergen-containing medications or vaccines
- Telling a restaurant or food service provider about an allergen, so they can say what they are and are not able to offer
Types of Allergies Covered
Food & Dietary Allergies
- Peanut and tree nut allergies (including anaphylaxis risk)
- Shellfish, fish, egg, milk, wheat, and soya allergies
- Sesame, mustard, and sulphite allergies
- Coeliac disease, which is an autoimmune condition rather than an allergy, where gluten-free provision is needed
Environmental & Non-Food Allergies
- Latex allergy, relevant in clinical, dental, and industrial settings
- Drug allergies, penicillin, NSAIDs, and other medication classes
- Insect venom allergy, bee or wasp sting anaphylaxis risk
- Fragrance, chemical, and occupational allergen sensitivity
What an Allergy Medical Certificate Includes
An allergy certificate or letter from a doctor, based on your records and the evidence available, will typically set out:
- Your full name and date of birth
- The specific allergy or allergies recorded, and where documented, who diagnosed them and when
- The severity of previous reactions as recorded in your history, including any documented episode of anaphylaxis
- Any prescribed treatment, such as an adrenaline auto-injector or antihistamines
- Any specific requirements or exclusions the organisation should be aware of
- The doctor’s name, registration details and signature
The letter can be addressed to a specific organisation, such as a school, employer, airline, or educational institution, and written at the appropriate level of clinical detail for the audience.
If you are at risk of anaphylaxis
A certificate is documentation, not treatment. The NHS describes anaphylaxis as a life-threatening allergic reaction that happens very quickly. Its advice is to use an adrenaline auto-injector, such as an EpiPen or Jext, if one is available, to call 999 and say you think it is an anaphylactic reaction, and to lie the person down and raise their legs, raising their shoulders or sitting them up slowly instead if they are struggling to breathe. The NHS advises not to stand or walk at any time, even if the person feels better, and to use a second auto-injector if symptoms have not improved after 5 minutes.
How to Get an Allergy Medical Certificate
Confirm what the requesting organisation needs
Check whether the school, employer, or other organisation requires a specific form or particular information in the letter. If so, obtain the form or specification before you ask for a letter.
Ask a doctor who holds your allergy record
Your GP practice, or the allergy clinic or specialist who diagnosed you, holds your allergy history and is usually the first place to ask. A private GP can also write a letter, based on your records and the evidence you provide.
Gather your evidence
Have details of your allergy ready, with the reactions you have had, your current management plan and any treatment prescribed. Supporting evidence includes allergy test results, a specialist or GP letter, or the prescription record for your adrenaline auto-injector.
Check the letter covers what was asked for
A doctor can only set out what your record shows. Where the evidence is not sufficient, a doctor will not certify an allergy that has not been established, so a missing test result or diagnosis may need to come first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need proof of allergy testing for a certificate?
Usually yes, in some form. An allergy is diagnosed by skin prick testing, by blood tests that measure allergen-specific IgE, or by a supervised challenge, and the NHS refers people to a specialist for those tests. None of them can be carried out through an online form, so a certificate documents an allergy that has already been diagnosed rather than establishing a new one. Test results, a specialist or GP letter, or the prescription record for an adrenaline auto-injector are the usual kinds of evidence. Where a clear diagnosis is already recorded in your medical history, the doctor writing the letter may rely on that.
Can an allergy certificate be used to get a school to accommodate a food allergy?
It supports the request, it does not decide it. In England, section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 requires the appropriate authority for a maintained school, academy, alternative provision academy or pupil referral unit to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions, and to have regard to guidance issued by the Secretary of State. That is a duty to make arrangements, not a duty to agree to any particular measure a parent asks for. A doctor’s letter setting out the allergy and the reactions on record is the evidence a school needs in order to draw up an individual healthcare plan and set its own allergen arrangements.
Can I get a certificate for a drug or medication allergy?
Yes, where the allergy is already documented. A certificate recording a drug allergy, for example to penicillin or to NSAIDs, is useful for hospital admissions and for medical alert records. The doctor writing it will need evidence, such as an existing entry in your medical record or a clear account of the reaction and when it happened. The certificate records what is already known. It cannot on its own confirm or rule out a drug allergy, which needs specialist allergy assessment.
Can I get a vaccine exemption due to an allergy?
Sometimes, and only where a genuine contraindication is documented. A confirmed allergy to a vaccine component can be a contraindication to that particular vaccine, and that is an assessment against the current guidance for that vaccine rather than a general exemption from vaccination. See our medical exemption certificate page for more on medical exemptions.
Does an allergy count as a disability under the Equality Act 2010?
Sometimes, and it is decided case by case. Section 6 of the Equality Act 2010 defines disability as a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Some severe allergies meet that test and some do not, and it turns on the effect on the individual rather than on the label attached to the condition. A doctor’s certificate supplies the medical evidence about your allergy and its effects. Whether that amounts to a disability, and what adjustment would be reasonable, is a legal question for the employer, a tribunal or a solicitor, not one the certificate answers.
Does the certificate oblige an airline or a restaurant to accommodate my allergy?
No. An airline’s allergy policy belongs to the carrier, and policies differ widely on cabin announcements, buffer zones, special meals and carrying adrenaline auto-injectors on board, so read your airline’s published policy and tell them when you book. Food businesses have obligations about giving accurate allergen information, but that is not the same as a duty to prepare a dish to your specification. The certificate makes your allergy clear and documented. It does not create an obligation on anyone to accommodate it.
