Relieving letter format for Indian employers

What this letter is

A relieving letter confirms that the employee resigned, that the resignation was accepted, that the notice period was served or waived, and that they stand released from their obligations from a stated date. It is the document a new employer asks for as proof that the previous employment ended cleanly and that nobody is going to appear later claiming the person is still on their books.

When to issue it

On the last working day. If the full and final settlement is still being calculated, issue the relieving letter anyway and say the settlement will follow; those are two separate things and only one of them is blocking the person from starting a new job.

Everything in square brackets is yours to replace. Read the section below on what this letter must contain before you send it, because the template is the easy half.

[COMPANY LETTERHEAD]

Date: [DD/MM/YYYY]

[EMPLOYEE NAME]
[EMPLOYEE CODE]
[ADDRESS]

Subject: Relieving letter

Dear [EMPLOYEE NAME],

This is with reference to your resignation letter dated [DD/MM/YYYY].

We confirm that your resignation has been accepted and that you have been relieved from your duties as [DESIGNATION] at [COMPANY NAME] with effect from the close of business on [DD/MM/YYYY].

You joined the company on [DD/MM/YYYY] and your last working day was [DD/MM/YYYY].

Your notice period has been [served in full / waived by the company / paid in lieu of notice].

All company property in your possession has been returned. [Or: The return of company property is being handled separately and does not affect this release.]

Your full and final settlement [has been completed and credited to your account / will be processed and credited by DD/MM/YYYY].

We thank you for your services and wish you the very best for the future.

For [COMPANY NAME]

[SIGNATURE]
[NAME]
[DESIGNATION]

What it must contain

• Employee name, designation and employee code.
• Date of joining and the date of relieving.
• A statement that the resignation has been accepted.
• Confirmation that the notice period has been served, or waived, or paid in lieu, and which of the three.
• A statement on company property, either that it has been returned or that the matter is being dealt with separately.
• A line confirming the status of the full and final settlement.

The law behind it

India has no single statute governing employment letters. The obligations sit across state Shops and Establishments Acts, which differ from each other, and a handful of central acts that apply to some employers and not others. Each note below names its source and who it applies to.

• No central statute names a "relieving letter" specifically. Its force comes from market practice: most Indian employers require one before a joining date is confirmed, which means withholding it can prevent someone from taking a job. Courts and labour authorities have taken an unsympathetic view of employers using that leverage over an unrelated dispute.
• Section 5(2) of the Payment of Wages Act 1936 requires wages payable to an employee whose employment is terminated to be paid before the expiry of the second working day after termination, for employees the Act covers. Settlement timing is a legal obligation with its own deadline, not something to be traded against a document.
• If you genuinely have a claim against a departing employee, such as an unserved notice period or an unrecovered advance, deduct it from the settlement in accordance with the Payment of Wages Act, or pursue it as a debt. Holding the relieving letter hostage is neither of those things.

The mistakes that cost money

• Delaying it until the full and final settlement is calculated. The settlement can take weeks; the new employer wants the relieving letter now. Separate them.
• Using it as leverage in a notice period dispute. If the person left without serving notice, recover the shortfall from the settlement, which is what the settlement is for.
• Silence on the notice period. A relieving letter that does not say whether notice was served leaves the new employer guessing, and it is the first thing they will ask about.
• Issuing it with a date that does not match the date on the experience letter. A background check compares the two, and a mismatch reads as either sloppiness or something worse.

Questions people ask

The letters that go with this one

Where the details for this letter come from

Half the fields in this template are ones you already hold somewhere: date of joining, designation, salary structure, leave balance, notice period. Shiftelio keeps them in one employee record alongside attendance and payroll, so the figures you type into this letter are the figures the payslip used.

Every letter format in this library