Notice Periods Explained

Notice is the warning each side gives before a job ends. The length is not a matter of habit or goodwill. It comes from two places, the law and the contract, and it differs between countries. What follows describes how notice usually works, but the version that applies to you is the one in your contract and your local law.

The two sources of notice

Most employment relationships have a statutory minimum set by law, and a contractual term written into the offer letter or the staff handbook. Statutory minimums are often short at the start and grow with service. A common pattern is one week after a month of employment, rising by a week for each year worked up to a ceiling, but the pattern varies widely and some countries allow notice to be paid rather than worked.

A contract can improve on the statutory minimum but usually cannot undercut it. If the contract says four weeks and the statutory minimum for your length of service is two, four applies. If the contract says one week and the law says four, the law wins and the four-week figure applies. Where the two disagree, the longer one applies.

Notice runs both ways

The same period usually applies whether you resign or the employer ends the contract, unless the contract says otherwise or the dismissal is for gross misconduct, where some jurisdictions allow summary dismissal with no notice.

Notice is also the reason employers use probation. Many contracts allow a shorter notice period during the first three or six months, often a week on either side, which makes a quick exit possible for both parties.

Some contracts let the employer pay you for the notice period instead of letting you work it. You are then released immediately, and the payment is taxed as ordinary wages, which matters if any benefit or allowance depends on your income for that month.

Working notice, pay in lieu, garden leave

Whichever arrangement applies, your final pay should include outstanding wages, untaken holiday and anything else the contract owes, such as commission already earned. Ask for a written breakdown and check it against your own records.

• Working notice - You stay in the job for the notice period and are paid as normal. Most resignations work this way.
• Pay in lieu of notice - The employer ends the contract immediately and pays what you would have earned during the notice period. Check the contract, because not every employer has the right to do this.
• Garden leave - You stay employed and paid but are told to stay away from work, often to keep you off client contacts. You are still bound by confidentiality and cannot usually start elsewhere without agreement.
• Leaving early by agreement - A mutual decision that you go before the notice ends, with the employer's written consent. Get it in writing before you stop attending.

Resigning properly

Resign in writing and keep a copy. State your last day, calculated from the date you hand the notice in, and follow whatever the contract requires about who to tell. Notice usually runs from the day after you give it, so read the wording on the start date rather than assuming it.

You are generally not obliged to tell your employer where you are going, and you should not take client lists, templates or files with you. Doing that can breach confidentiality and, in some countries, the law. Hand back equipment, settle expenses on your last day, and ask for a reference in writing while people still remember your work.

If your notice period is long, agree a handover plan in writing during the first week. A named successor, a list of live tasks with an owner for each, and a date for every handover remove most of the reasons an employer refuses to release you early.

Notice and your next job

Most new employers ask when you can start and expect you to work your notice. Trying to leave early without agreement puts your reference at risk. If the start date is tight, tell the new employer the real notice period at offer stage, and if you need to, ask the current one whether they would release you early. Get any early release in writing.

Check whether a notice period sits alongside a restriction in your contract, such as a non-compete clause or a ban on approaching clients. Enforceability varies between countries and between contracts, so take advice before signing anything you are unsure about.

Keep a copy of your resignation letter and of the employer's written acceptance. A disputed last day, a missing final payment or an argument about untaken holiday is far easier to settle with the paperwork in hand than from memory six weeks later.