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UK resignation notice guide

How much notice do I need to give to leave my job?

Find the right starting point for your notice period, record the right dates and know when a contract or agreement changes the ordinary route.

For UK employees and employers•Reviewed July 2026•Based on GOV.UK and Acas guidance

Notice is an employment period, not just a date in a resignation email.

Start with status, service and the applicable written terms. Then confirm when notice begins and the likely final employment date before assuming holiday or final pay details.

Use specialist advice early

A serious contract-breach claim, a disputed resignation, unclear employment status, dismissal, redundancy, statutory leave or an already-processed departure is not an ordinary notice calculation.

Local-only route guide

Which notice route is the right starting point?

Choose the closest facts, then submit the route. This guide does not decide a legal position or calculate your final pay.

Which description fits?

The notice control

Status → Terms → Notice given → Dates → Agreed variation

Status

Check that the employee route applies.

Terms

Read the contract, written statement and policy.

Notice given

Use the required method and retain the date.

Dates

Calculate an estimate, then confirm the leaving date.

Variation

Record early release or another change separately.

Notice starting points

Use the facts to identify the rule before you calculate a date.

Notice period situations and their starting points
Situation	Starting point	Next control
Employee, under one month	No statutory employee notice if no written term requires it.	Check the written statement or contract before assuming there is no notice.
Employee, at least one month	At least one week's statutory notice is normally required.	Check whether a longer contractual notice term applies.
Contract says more	The contractual term is the practical starting point for resignation.	Give notice by the route required and confirm the final date.
Probation or fixed-term employment	The contract or written statement still needs checking.	Do not assume probation or a fixed term removes notice requirements.
Early exit or dispute	The ordinary calculation is not enough on its own.	Use an agreed alternative arrangement or specialist advice.

Employee, under one month

Starting point: No statutory employee notice if no written term requires it.

Next control: Check the written statement or contract before assuming there is no notice.

Employee, at least one month

Starting point: At least one week's statutory notice is normally required.

Next control: Check whether a longer contractual notice term applies.

Contract says more

Starting point: The contractual term is the practical starting point for resignation.

Next control: Give notice by the route required and confirm the final date.

Probation or fixed-term employment

Starting point: The contract or written statement still needs checking.

Next control: Do not assume probation or a fixed term removes notice requirements.

Early exit or dispute

Starting point: The ordinary calculation is not enough on its own.

Next control: Use an agreed alternative arrangement or specialist advice.

Date sequence

Do not let one date stand in for every part of a resignation.

Notice received

The employer receives the resignation or required notice.

Notice starts

Usually the day after notice is handed in, unless the terms say otherwise.

Employment leaving date

The agreed date employment ends after the applicable notice route.

Payroll handoff

Holiday, final pay, reporting and P45 controls use the confirmed employment facts.

Estimate notice dates with the calculator

For employees

Make the resignation clear without guessing at the outcome.

State that you are resigning and give the date.
State the notice you believe applies and your expected last day.
Use the contract's required written route, if it has one.
Ask the employer to confirm the received date and leaving arrangements.

For employers

Acknowledge and confirm; do not treat resignation as something to approve.

Record the resignation and obtain written confirmation where appropriate.
Tell the employee the applicable notice term and proposed last day.
Confirm whether the employee will work all or part of notice.
Handoff the confirmed facts to holiday and final-pay controls.

Changes need agreement

Holiday, early release, garden leave and PILON do not automatically replace the notice route.

Keep the original notice position, any request and any confirmed change together. Use the dedicated guides for holiday during notice and leaving without working notice before finalising payroll.

+Browse all notice routes

Check whether the statutory minimum is the starting point

You have described an employee with no longer confirmed notice term. Statutory notice depends on whether the employee has worked for at least one month.

Start with: Check the contract, written statement and staff policy once more for a notice term.

Confirm the contractual notice term before calculating dates

The contract, written statement or relevant staff policy appears to specify a longer notice period than the statutory minimum.

Start with: Read the notice, probation and resignation clauses, including any writing requirement.

Confirm the notice route and dates before treating it as ordinary

The employee's status, service or contractual notice term is not clear enough to confidently identify the minimum notice period.

Start with: Ask for the current written statement, contract and any applicable notice policy.

Treat an early exit or changed arrangement as a separate agreement

The employee wants to leave early or the ordinary notice arrangement is changing. A revised last day should not be assumed from a request alone.

Start with: Ask whether the employer agrees to shorten or change the arrangement, and keep the answer in writing.

Pause the ordinary notice route and seek specialist review

The facts involve an employment-status question, a disputed resignation, a possible serious breach of contract or another issue that changes the ordinary notice analysis.

Start with: Preserve the relevant correspondence and explain the issue clearly when asking for advice.

Start with the applicable notice rule

The answer is usually found in the employee’s contract, written statement of employment particulars or relevant staff policy. If the employee is legally classed as an employee and has worked for at least one month, the statutory minimum when resigning is normally one week. A longer contractual notice term can apply instead.

If someone has worked for less than one month and their written statement does not set a notice period, they do not usually have to give statutory notice. These are starting points, not a substitute for checking the terms that actually apply. GOV.UK's notice guidance and Acas guidance for resigning employees explain the current position.

Use the notice period calculator once the applicable notice term is known. It estimates the notice start and final employment dates; it does not determine employment status, interpret a disputed contract or confirm an agreement.

Check the contract before sending notice

Look for clauses and policies covering:

the length of notice the employee must give;
whether notice must be given in writing and to whom;
whether probation has a different notice term;
garden leave or payment in lieu of notice (PILON);
holiday during notice;
deductions, confidentiality and restrictive covenants; and
any fixed-term or collective-agreement provisions that apply.

An employee's written statement should say how much notice they need to give. If the employee is unsure which version of the terms applies, they should ask HR or their manager before presenting an estimated leaving date as settled.

Give notice clearly

An employee does not always have to resign in writing, unless the contract requires it. A written email or letter is nevertheless helpful because it records the resignation date, notice period and expected last day. Acas's resignation guidance includes a current template and explains the benefit of a written record.

A clear resignation normally says:

that the employee is resigning;
the date notice is given;
the notice period the employee believes applies;
the expected last day, expressed as an expectation pending confirmation; and
any request to discuss an earlier leaving date, holiday or handover.

For employers, the correct response is to acknowledge and confirm the facts. An employer cannot refuse a resignation. GOV.UK's employer guidance says employers should obtain written confirmation, tell the employee their notice period, agree the last working day and confirm whether they should work all or part of notice.

Keep the dates separate

Notice usually runs from the start of the day after it is given, unless the contract says otherwise. That creates an estimated final employment date. But the last day ordinary work is performed, approved holiday dates, the employment leaving date and the final payroll payment date can all differ.

Do not use the final payday to decide the leaving date, or use holiday as an automatic way to shorten notice. Once the employment leaving date is agreed, pass the confirmed record to the holiday and final-pay processes rather than recreating it in payroll.

If the ordinary route changes

An employee may ask to leave early, but the employer does not have to agree. If both parties reach another arrangement, keep it in writing and record the new employment leaving date. An agreed earlier end, garden leave and PILON are different arrangements; do not use those labels interchangeably or assume one follows from the other.

Use Can I leave without working my notice period? for an early-exit discussion. Use Holiday during notice to decide whether leave sits inside the notice period or belongs in final-pay review.

The employer payroll handoff

Notice confirmation is not final payroll approval. Before the final payroll run, employers should reconcile the confirmed employment leaving date with approved hours, holiday, expenses, deductions, pension or benefits treatment and the intended final payment date. The final-pay guide explains those payment components, while the employer leaver checklist controls the complete departure handover.

Where dismissal, redundancy, disputed resignation, serious breach of contract, statutory leave or a previously processed payment/report are involved, leave the ordinary route. The page does not determine those cases. Use Acas or suitable professional advice, then use Lesson 11: changes, leavers and corrections for the advanced payroll-reporting boundary.

Sources and review

Reviewed by the Workmax payroll team in July 2026. This guide provides general UK employment and payroll information, not legal advice. Employment status, contractual terms, collective agreements, probation arrangements, a serious breach of contract, dismissal, redundancy and disputed facts can change the right route.

Next controlled work

Notice is the first decision, not the last task in the departure.

Once the notice and leaving date are clear, holiday needs a separate balance review, final pay needs approved inputs, and the employer leaver checklist controls the wider handover.

Check holiday during notice Check final pay Use the leaver checklist

Workmax payroll

Start leaver payroll from confirmed employment records and approved inputs.

Workmax supports connected employee records, approved hours, payroll review and payslips so the notice-to-final-pay handoff can use the same controlled evidence.

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