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How to write a termination letter (with a free template)

Published · Hiring and HR letters

A termination letter confirms in writing that someone's employment is ending and what happens next. It does not replace the conversation; it records it. Keep it short, factual and consistent with what was said in the meeting.

Before you write it

  • Check the contract and your own procedure. Notice periods, probation terms and any disciplinary steps you promised. If the reason is performance or conduct, there should already be a record, such as a written warning.
  • Check the law where the employee works. Minimum notice, when final pay is due, and any notices you must give. These differ between countries and between US states.
  • Tell them first. Hold a short, private meeting in person or by video, then hand over the letter or send it straight afterwards. Nobody should learn they have lost their job from an email.

What to include

  1. The date, and the employee's name and job title.
  2. That employment is ending, and the last day. One plain sentence.
  3. Notice. Whether they will work their notice, be paid instead of working it, or be on garden leave (paid, but not required to work).
  4. The reason, if you give one. One factual sentence that matches your records. See below.
  5. Final pay. The date, and what it includes: salary to the last day and, where the law or your policy requires it, accrued but unused holiday or paid time off.
  6. Severance, if any, and whether it depends on signing a separate agreement.
  7. Benefits. When they end, and that information about continuing cover will follow. In the US, health plan continuation (COBRA) notices usually come separately from the plan.
  8. Company property to return, such as a laptop, phone, keys and access cards, and by when.
  9. Obligations that continue, such as a confidentiality or non-solicitation agreement they signed.
  10. Who to contact with questions.

Should you give a reason?

In most US states employment is at will and no reason is legally required, but some states require one on request: in Minnesota and Missouri, for example, a former employee can ask for the reason in writing. Some states also require a separation notice for unemployment benefits. In the UK, an employee with two years' service can ask for written reasons for dismissal, and must be given them within 14 days; anyone dismissed while pregnant or on maternity or adoption leave gets written reasons automatically.

If you give a reason, make it the real one and keep it consistent everywhere. A reason in the letter that differs from what you said in the meeting, or from what is on file, is one of the first things a lawyer looks for in a discrimination or unfair dismissal claim.

Notice and final pay: two rules that catch employers out

  • Final pay deadlines. Some states are strict. In California, final pay is due immediately when the employer ends employment. Check your state before you set the date in the letter.
  • Minimum notice outside the US. In the UK, the legal minimum is one week after a month's service, rising to one week per full year of service after two years, up to 12 weeks. A contract can give more, but not less.

What to leave out

  • Emotional or vague language, apologies that read as admissions, and comments about the person's character.
  • New reasons that were never raised with them.
  • Anything touching on a disability, pregnancy, family or medical leave, union activity or a complaint they have made. Take advice before any termination that comes near these.
  • Promises you cannot keep. Many employers confirm only dates and job title in references, so do not promise a glowing one.

Layoffs are different

Ending several jobs at once has extra rules. In the US, the federal WARN Act requires 60 days' notice of most plant closings and mass layoffs at employers with 100 or more employees, and some states add their own versions. In the UK, redundancies need fair selection and consultation, and collective consultation when 20 or more people are affected.

Use the free template

The free termination letter template covers the list above: the last day, worked notice or pay instead of notice, optional garden leave, an optional reason, final pay, optional severance, benefits, company property and an HR contact. Answer the questions and download a Word letter; employee details stay on your computer. The other HR letters are on the free HR letter templates page.

General information, not legal advice. Employment law varies by country and state; take advice before dismissing anyone.

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