A relieving letter is the employer's confirmation that an employee has been released from duties on a specific date, issued once notice and handover are complete. The full format is on this page, free to copy, with filled samples and notes for Word and PDF.
The block below is selectable text. Replace the square bracket fields, set it on your letterhead, and it is ready to sign. Three paragraphs is the whole job, a relieving letter that runs longer is usually carrying content that belongs elsewhere.
Subject: Relieving Letter
Dear [Employee Name],
This is with reference to your resignation dated [Resignation Date], which was accepted by the management. We confirm that you have been relieved from your duties as [Designation] with [Company Name] at the close of business hours on [Last Working Day], on completion of your notice period and handover of responsibilities.
Your full and final settlement will be processed as per company policy and communicated to you separately.
We thank you for your contribution during your tenure and wish you the very best in your future assignments.
For [Company Name]
[Authorised Signatory Name]
[Signatory Designation]
[Company Seal]
Note what the letter does not contain: no salary figures, no conduct assessment, no settlement arithmetic. The relieving letter records one event, the release. The conduct story belongs in the experience letter and the money belongs in the settlement statement.
The letter hinges on two dates and one condition. The resignation date, the last working day, and the statement that notice was completed. Get those right and the letter verifies cleanly, since every background check reads the last working day here first and compares it with payroll and the experience letter. The notice period guide covers how notice is set and served, and the relieving letter vs experience letter guide draws the line between the two exit documents. The Labour Codes have been in effect since 21 November 2025, and the draft Central Rules issued in December 2025 are not yet final, so keep exit paperwork consistent while the final text settles.
The relieving letter promises that the full and final settlement follows, so the two move together even though they are separate documents. The settlement carries the leave encashment, recoveries and, where it applies, gratuity, computed as wages × 15 × years of service ÷ 26, with a statutory ceiling of ₹20 lakh. Fixed term employees earn gratuity after 1 year of service. Companies that run exits through full and final settlement software issue the relieving letter on the last working day and let the settlement close on its own schedule.
Word is the drafting medium. Paste the format into a blank document, add the letterhead, replace the placeholders, print and sign. Keep one master file with brackets intact and duplicate it per exit. Nothing in this letter calculates, so the only things to check are the two dates and the designation.
Share the signed letter as a PDF. Scan the signed page or export and apply the signature image, either way the employee receives a fixed layout with a visible signature and seal. That is the copy a new employer accepts. Keep the editable Word file in HR records only.
Both companies and all people below are fictional. Reuse the wording, not the names.
Subject: Relieving Letter
Dear Ankit T,
This is with reference to your resignation dated 15 June 2026, which was accepted by the management. We confirm that you have been relieved from your duties as Marketing Executive with Brightwell Media LLP at the close of business hours on 15 July 2026, on completion of your notice period and handover of responsibilities.
Your full and final settlement will be processed as per company policy and communicated to you separately.
We thank you for your contribution during your tenure and wish you the very best in your future assignments.
For Brightwell Media LLP
Shalini D
Manager, Human Resources
(Company Seal)
Subject: Relieving Letter
Dear Bhavesh J,
This is with reference to your resignation dated 1 July 2026, which was accepted by the management. We confirm that you have been relieved from your duties as Quality Inspector with Kanchan Auto Components Pvt Ltd at the close of business hours on 31 July 2026, on completion of your notice period, return of company assets and handover of pending inspection records.
Your full and final settlement will be processed as per company policy and communicated to you separately.
We thank you for your contribution during your tenure and wish you the very best in your future assignments.
For Kanchan Auto Components Pvt Ltd
Rajan M
Head, Plant HR
(Company Seal)
The second sample adds asset return and records handover to the relieving line, useful in plant and field roles where physical handover is part of a clean exit.
The format on this page is free, take it. If exits arrive faster than HR can draft, Offrd generates the finished relieving letter with your company and employee details filled in, in about 2 minutes, with the dates kept consistent across the exit paperwork. It costs ₹99 per document, you get 50 free credits on signup, and no card is needed. 4,000+ companies generate their HR documents this way, and the same separation letter software covers the rest of the exit set.
Prefer to see it first? Book a free demo or write to service@offrd.co.
This page is part of Offrd's HR software for India guide.
On company letterhead: a reference number and date, a subject line reading Relieving Letter, a line referring to the employee's resignation and its date, one paragraph confirming release from duties as the designation held on the last working day after completion of notice and handover, a line on full and final settlement, a thank you, and the authorised signatory's name, designation and signature with seal.
No. The relieving letter confirms one event, the employee's release from duties on a specific date after serving notice. The experience letter certifies the whole tenure, designation and conduct. Most companies issue both at exit, and the last working day must read identically on the two documents and in payroll.
On or immediately after the last working day, once the notice period is served and handover and asset return are complete. Holding it back for weeks while the settlement is processed leaves the employee unable to join elsewhere, since most new employers ask for the relieving letter as proof that the previous job ended cleanly.
Copy the format on this page into a blank Word document, place your letterhead in the header, and replace the square bracket fields with the employee's details. Keep one master file with the placeholders intact and duplicate it per exit. The letter is short, one page, three paragraphs, so resist the urge to add clauses that belong in the settlement statement.
Yes. Sign the printed letter, then scan or export it to PDF and share that copy. New employers and background check teams expect a PDF with a visible signature and seal, and the fixed layout cannot be edited casually. The editable Word file stays in your HR records.
One line is enough, stating that the settlement will be processed as per company policy. The detailed workings, leave encashment, gratuity where it applies, recoveries, belong in the settlement statement, not in the relieving letter. Keeping the two documents separate lets you issue the relieving letter on the last working day without waiting for the settlement to close.