Employer picks the assessor? In the US they pay all costs

The EEOC has said since 17 October 2002 that a US employer which requires you to see a health professional of its choice must pay all costs of the visit. In the UK, Acas says you do not need a diagnosis to be treated as disabled under the Equality Act 2010. Yet "we'll need a report" still stops many requests before they start.

The myth: no report, no adjustments

The myth says your employer can hold back every adjustment until you hand over a formal diagnostic report, at your own expense. Acas disagrees for the UK. Its neurodiversity page (updated 30 January 2025) says a worker does not need a diagnosis to be considered disabled under the Equality Act 2010.

Acas adds that an employer might ask for proof, such as an NHS letter, but the worker is not legally required to provide it. The British Dyslexia Association (BDA) says the same thing plainly: you do not need a diagnostic assessment for reasonable adjustments to be put in place.

The US starts from a similar place. The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) says documentation should only be necessary when the disability or the need for accommodation is not known or obvious. If your manager already sees you struggle with a task and you have said dyslexia is the reason, the case for a report gets thin.

When someone asks for a report, treat it as a question: ask what the report is for and what changes once you hand it over.

UK: employer-funded assessment is a request, not a right

The BDA calls it best practice for employers to offer a diagnostic assessment to any staff member who may be dyslexic. It does not say employers must. It also notes that smaller organisations may not be able to fund the whole cost and might contribute instead.

I found no UK source that makes an employer pay for a diagnostic assessment. Acas notes that a diagnosis can be expensive if you go private because of NHS waiting times, and it does not say who covers occupational health or GP input. So the honest UK answer is that nobody has to pay, and your employer might agree to anyway.

The legal duty sits elsewhere. Under the Equality Act 2010 an employer that knows, or should reasonably know, about your disability must consider reasonable adjustments. That duty does not wait for a report.

Ask for an employer-funded assessment as a request, and send your adjustment request separately on the same day so neither waits on the other.

US: pick the assessor, pay the bill

The EEOC's guidance on reasonable accommodation (17 October 2002, question 7) is blunt. If an employer requires an employee to see a health professional of the employer's choice, the employer must pay all costs associated with the visit. That is the rule to quote when HR sends you to its own clinician.

Question 8 of the same guidance covers the opposite case. An employer cannot ask for documentation when both the disability and the need for the accommodation are obvious, or when you have already given enough information to show both. The guidance predates the ADA Amendments Act, which took effect on 1 January 2009 and broadened the definition of disability, so read the current EEOC pages before you rely on a detail.

JAN adds a limit on scope. Employers generally cannot require your complete medical records, because those include unrelated information. A short letter that says what the condition affects at work is the usual fit.

A worked example

A manager says, "Get evaluated by our approved clinician." Under the 2002 guidance the invoice goes to the employer, so ask for that in writing before you go. If the manager says instead, "Bring a letter from your own doctor," the guidance I read does not say who pays, so ask in writing whether the company will cover it.

In the US, the person who chooses the clinician is the person who pays, so find out which of you is choosing before any appointment is made.

What to send when HR asks for proof

Reply the same day and keep it to four sentences. Say what the task is, what dyslexia does to it, and the one change you want. Then ask what evidence they need, why they need it, and who pays for it.

Here is a version you can adapt: "I'm dyslexic, and it slows me down when I proofread long documents on screen. I'm asking for text-to-speech software and a second reader on documents over ten pages. Please tell me what evidence you need, why you need it, and whether the company will cover any cost. I'd like to agree a start date by Friday."

Keep a dated copy of whatever you send and whatever comes back. Dates are the thing a tribunal or the EEOC will look at first. The tools on this site, including the disclosure guide, can help you draft the request.

A written four-sentence reply moves the conversation from "prove it" to "what do you need", and it gives you a dated record if the answer is no.

The time limits if it goes wrong

In the UK, the time limit for most employment tribunal claims rose from three months to six for acts on or after 1 October 2026 (Lewis Silkin, 24 September 2026). Early conciliation through Acas comes first. In the US, an EEOC charge is generally due within 180 days, extended to 300 days in states with their own enforcement agency (EEOC).

Neither clock starts when you first feel uneasy. They run from the act, such as a refusal or a delay, so write down the date of each one. If you are in the UK and a refusal came before 1 October 2026, check which limit applies with Acas.

Put the date of every refusal or delay in your own notes today, because the deadline runs from that date.

What this means for you

If you already have a diagnosis, send a short letter and skip the argument about who pays. If you do not, send your adjustment request anyway, in writing, and ask the evidence question at the end. Do not book a private assessment because someone in HR said "we'll need a report"; wait until you have their answer in writing.

If you want an assessment for your own reasons, such as support through Access to Work, treat that as a separate decision. The dyslexia assessment cost guide covers UK and US prices, the Access to Work calculator shows what support you might claim, and our earlier piece on when an assessment pays back covers the money side. More answers sit in the article library.

Send the adjustment request first, ask the evidence question in the same message, and pay for nothing until someone has said in writing why it is needed.