Rights and LimitsAfter an arrestPre-charge bail time limits, and released under investigation
Pre-charge bail time limits, and released under investigation
What the law says
Every claim below links to the law it comes from, with the wording quoted so you can check it yourself.
What the law provides — the power, who can use it and when, and what follows — quoted from its source.
Being released under investigation means you are released without bail under s.34(5AA) — the route the custody officer must use once the bail pre-conditions in s.34(5A) are not met.
This is a different legal status from bail, not a stricter or looser version of it. The bail-period clock described below is defined by reference to a bail start date, so it has nothing to attach to when release is without bail.
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.34(5AA)
“A person whose release is ordered under subsection (2) must be released without bail if subsection (5A) does not apply.”
Read it at legislation.gov.ukquote checked 2026-08-25
Standard pre-charge bail starts with a limit of 3 months from your bail start date.
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.47ZB(1)(b)
“in any other case , the period of 3 months beginning with the person’s bail start date”
Read it at legislation.gov.ukquote checked 2026-08-25
That period can be extended to 6 months by the “relevant officer” — defined in the Act as a police officer of at least inspector rank.
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, s.47ZD(2) and (6)
“The relevant officer may authorise the applicable bail period in relation to the person to be extended so that it ends at the end of the period of 6 months beginning with the person’s bail start date.”
Read it at legislation.gov.ukquote checked 2026-08-25
Two different ways of being released, not one
When a custody officer releases you and the investigation is not finished, the law requires them to choose between two routes, and they are not the same thing. If specific pre-conditions are met, you must be released on bail. If they are not met, you must be released without bail — this is what is generally called being “released under investigation”, or RUI.
Bail can come with conditions — reporting to a police station, not contacting a named person, surrendering your passport. Release under investigation does not: no conditions attach to it, because it is not bail.
The bail clock, since 2022
Following changes made by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, standard pre-charge bail now starts with a limit of 3 months from your bail start date. An officer of at least the rank of inspector can extend that to 6 months. Beyond that, further extension needs increasingly senior authorisation, and ultimately a magistrates’ court.
Whatever you think of a 3-month limit, it is a limit — there is a fixed point by which the police must charge you, extend the bail through the proper process, or let it lapse.
Why RUI is the one to watch
The 3-month, then 6-month, bail clock described above is defined by the Act only for people released on bail, running from a bail start date. Released under investigation is a different status — release without bail — and those bail-period provisions are not written to apply to it.
Being told you are released under investigation, rather than on bail, is not a lesser outcome in itself — no conditions is usually welcome. Keep any paperwork you are given and your solicitor’s details either way; RUI cases do get picked up again, sometimes much later, and knowing exactly what you were told and when can matter if that happens.
Related pages
- How long can police detain you without charge?England & Wales
- Your rights in police custodyEngland & Wales
- Accepting a caution: what it actually meansEngland & Wales
- Was the arrest itself lawful?England & Wales
Last reviewed 2026-09-14. Next review due 2027-02-25. No solicitor has reviewed this page — see [email protected] if you think something here is wrong.