Termination letter – A brief & how to write Notice of termination Format with sample template 

If an employer needs to terminate an employee because of layoffs, poor performance or some other reason a termination letter is issued to the employee stating the reasons of termination. 

Meaning of termination letter 

A termination letter is an official written apprising breaking the professional relationship on ground of misconduct, unsatisfied services or breaking the agreement protocols leading to the negative business impact on all involved parties. It can be referred as the formal mode to convey the dissatisfaction against another involved party over an action.

How to Use Termination letter?

Termination letter is given to employee by employer on breach of contract, non performance or bad conduct. Notice of termination can be provided to employee with immediate effect or after serving the notice period depending on the severity of the issue and the employee’s state.

Key points to be keep in mind while writing Termination Letter ?

• Termination letters are legally approved and while writing, one should be aware about it.
• The letter should have a humble approach.
•  Personal issues should not be mentioned. 

Being a important document, for the termination process, it is expected to furnish all major required details such as reasons – violation of Terms & Conditions or non-performance, recipient details, any additional action (if decided, along with the termination) very clearly, makes it termination letter for cause.

As it will be inspected by the target party, if required, the letter or email will be parsed by the lawyers and jurors during their discussions to evaluate its validity in the sense whether the reasons are proved explained in it, based upon the fact – it will conclude the decision.

For the party, initiating the termination process, it is necessary to execute notice of termination very carefully, by keeping in mind the company policies and the local laws, any improper or careless actions may lead to illegal termination lawsuit costing the precious time and money. It might be concluded with large fines and cancellation of termination.

The letter of termination can be sent over the email also, which is preferred all around and ensures the message delivered at the right place.

How to write a termination letter ?

While writing the termination letter over an email, one must keep in mind the following pointed difference in termination letter format, which has been discussed below

1. It is preferred to write the Sender’s details such as: Name, Designation, relation with the target party (whether Vendor or Customer etc.), to get recognized in the context. But in case of sending the letter via an email, it is not needed at all. Sender’s email and Sender’s designation (at the Signature) is sufficient to get recognized.

2. Similarly, while sending the termination letter through email, it is not required to mention Date, as email sending date is considered the letter date, but it is required to write termination date separately, which will be written in letter body.

3. No need to specify the subject separately in the email body as the subject or context of the email will be specified in the subject attribute of the email. However, while sending the letter in hard copy, it is recommended to write the subject, in the letter body.

4. It is also not recommended to mention about the recipient details like address, phone number in the email as these details are preferred to be mentioned in the hard copy of the letter. As today in the era of advanced technology, most of us has e-mail (considered as an e-Address), which is unique and mail sent to an email id is considered safe with assured delivery at the correct destination. 

Today, for all kinds of business (B2B or B2C), for the termination process, serving the termination notice through either of the medium (Hard Copy or Soft Copy) is mandatory and getting used widely. Please refer the termination letter samples for various contexts:

Termination letter for student :

In the field of education, an educational institution, can issue a termination letter, on the ground of poor academic performance or involvement in any unlawful activity etc. It is very essential; the institution must mention the reason on ground of which the decision of termination has been taken along with the effective date, institution name, full name and designation of the issuing authority. The letter must be addressed to the parents / guardian of the concerned student, because the students are subject to depression or temperamental trouble, so it must be ensured to get it conveyed to them in a convincing way, which parents can do. Please refer the sample letter given below.

Service Termination Letter :

As the name suggests, this nature of termination letter is used for Business to Business type of dealing, where all the participating parties under a common agreement, terminate a service agreement due to the various issues faced. The reasons may be late payments, excessive work etc. by the client. The letter must be addressed to the company head with the exact date of termination and proper reason. It is necessary, the letter must reflect the politeness as well as respect. Refer the sample template given below.

Termination of Employment Contract Letter :

Before terminating an employee’s employment because of unsatisfactory performance and/or conduct, a formal notice of termination of employment must be issued addressing the employee, with all required information – such as reason of termination, any additional action (if any) etc. Reter to the samle letter for better understanding.

Following points must be kept in mind, before drafting a:

• As per requirement by the geographical law.

• The employee is believed to be ineligible for the employment / job.

• Termination to be informed to the employee.

• If employer want to pass along information about owed compensation and benefits.

• To have a record of the termination in case of a lawsuit.

Vendor Contract Termination Letter :

This kind of letter is addressed to a vendor, offering services, by supplying goods, for terminating any contract with them due to any kind of disagreement or issues in the supply of the goods such as irregular supply, quality issues etc. To settle due payments and have the process in record the letter must contain the effective date, from which the termination of the services is effective along with a clear description of the reason for termination.  Sample letter format given below for your reference.

Insurance Termination Letter :

An Insurance Termination Letter is generally issued by the insurance provider to the client on non-receipt of any mandatory information or wrong information supplied, to cancel any kind of policy. Exact reason along with the termination date is mentioned in the letter, to convey the client about the same. The letter must be very formal, free from any offensive or abusive words. The letter written, must show due regret and respect to the existing / prospect customer, ending with thanks and best wishes. Please refer the sample letter.

Early Lease Termination Letter :

An early lease termination letter is written, to terminate the habitation of a tenant, soliciting to leave the place within a particular time (mentioned in the letter). The authority, must mention the reason for “Early Lease Termination” clearly, in a very polite manner. It is suggested to end the letter with proper thanksgiving and possibly, a suggestion for a new location on rent. Please see the sample letter.

Rental Termination Letter :

Sometimes, to get the house back, the owner of the house, may terminate the existing lease contract by issuing a “Rental Termination Letter”. The letter must reflect humbleness and no personal issues to be mentioned. Refer the sample letter for example.

Find Notice of Termination Letter Format with Free Sample Template available in Doc & PDF for quick & easy use:

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