Application for resignation by mail can be sent by any employee who wishes to terminate the employment relationship with the employer at his own request. Let's consider how to send an application by post to avoid any possible problems.
Preparing a resignation letter for the purpose of sending it to the employer by mail
The right to dismissal on his own initiative is given to the employee by virtue of Art. 80 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Dismissal is made by the employee submitting an application addressed to the employer.
The form of the application and its content are not defined by law; accordingly, the employee is given a certain freedom when filling out the document. It can be filled out either by hand or on a computer. The main condition is that the application be certified by the signature of the person leaving, which confirms the fact that it was written by him. Otherwise, the application is anonymous and cannot serve as a basis for dismissal.
The reader can learn how to fill out an application, which is devoted to the issue of voluntary dismissal. The publication also contains a link to download a sample application.
The only peculiarity of filling out the application, which is sent by mail, will be an indication of a different procedure for calculating the period for warning the organization’s management about the dismissal of an employee. This is due to the fact that the application is not sent to the employer immediately; the period from the moment the letter is sent to the date it is received by the addressee takes a certain time.
Important! Sometimes the employer’s notice period for dismissal is mistakenly called the “work period.” The Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not contain such a concept, therefore “working period” is not a legal term. It is correct to say: “term of notice of dismissal.”
It is recommended to indicate the date of dismissal in the application as follows: “I ask you to dismiss me of my own free will after 14 days from the date of receipt of the application by mail.” Let us remind you that the notice period begins to run from the next day after delivery of the application to the employer.
The second option is to indicate the date of dismissal “with a reserve”, for example, a specific date that will occur one month after the letter is sent.
How to send an application by mail. Does it need to be sent by registered mail?
The law does not contain requirements for the procedure for transmitting a letter of resignation to the management of the company. Thus, both personal delivery of the document to the employer and sending it by post are not prohibited.
If you decide to send the application by mail, then this must be done by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt and a list of the contents. The choice of this particular order of sending the document is due to the fact that the employee must receive confirmation of receipt of the application by management. The role of the supporting document is performed by the notification of delivery. The inventory of the attachment, in turn, makes it possible to prove that the letter contained precisely a letter of resignation.
Important! Before the expiration of the period for warning the employer, the worker has no right to stop working.
By virtue of clause “b” clause 10 of the Rules approved by Order of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of Russia dated July 31, 2014 No. 234, the letter is registered and a receipt is sent to its sender. After receiving the letter, the recipient signs for it. The signed notice is returned to the sender (employee). Thus, the employee receives notification that the employer has received the application, and the notice period for dismissal begins to run from the next day. The letter can also be sent during sick leave or vacation - the law does not contain any prohibitions in this part.
When can I stop working by sending an application by mail?
You can stop working after the employer's notice of dismissal has expired. As already mentioned, this period begins to run from the next day from the moment the addressee receives the letter.
By general rule, you can stop working and receive a payment after 2 weeks from the date of receipt of the letter of application by the employer. On the same day, you can pick up work-related documents, in particular, your work book.
Thus, the procedure for sending a resignation letter by mail is quite simple. In this case, you must send the item by registered mail, wait for it to be received by the employer, add a warning period to the date of receipt (as a general rule, 14 days), and receive a payment. Sending a letter by mail will allow the employer to avoid evading acceptance of the employee’s resignation letter.
Advice from lawyers:
1. How do I write a resignation letter by email?
1.1. There is no point in doing this. This will not be considered legal notice. Send it by mail.
Sincerely.
Did the answer help you? Not really
1.2. Just like on paper. But it is better to send by Russian Post.
Did the answer help you? Not really
1.3. No, there is no such thing and no one will accept such a statement. Write in accordance with Art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, submit this application in person or by registered mail.
An employee has the right to terminate an employment contract by notifying the employer in writing no later than 2 weeks in advance, unless a different period is established by this Code or other federal law. The specified period begins the next day after the employer receives the employee’s resignation letter.
Did the answer help you? Not really
2. I have the right to write a letter of resignation electronically by mail.
2.1. Not in electronic form, your signature is required. You have the right to send by registered mail with notification.
Did the answer help you? Not really
19. Officially, I am on maternity leave until March 28, 2020. On January 13, I wrote a letter of resignation of my own free will. The HR specialist asked me to write the dismissal date as January 17th. When will I receive a payment? The work paper was sent to me by Russian Post.
19.1. Upon termination of the employment contract, payment of all amounts due to the employee from the employer is made on the day the employee is dismissed. If the employee did not work on the day of dismissal, then the corresponding amounts must be paid no later than the next day after the dismissed employee submits a request for payment.
Did the answer help you? Not really
20. I am a police officer. I am resigning of my own free will, I submitted one report to HR, it was signed by the boss dated 12/18/2019
The second one was sent by registered mail. Now they say that the dismissal date is January 23, 2020, because a letter arrived and the office registered it on December 23, 2019.
Is this legal? What about the date on the report: 01/18/2020
20.1. An employee of the internal affairs bodies has the right to terminate the contract and resign from service in the internal affairs bodies on his own initiative before the expiration of the contract, submitting a report on this in the prescribed manner one month before the date of dismissal.
You have the right to withdraw one report, otherwise, if after the expiration of the notice period for termination of the contract and dismissal from service in the internal affairs bodies, the contract is not terminated and the employee of the internal affairs bodies does not insist on dismissal, the contract continues on the same terms. (Federal Law dated November 30, 2011 N 342-FZ (as amended on December 16, 2019) “On service in internal affairs bodies Russian Federation and amendments to certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation" (as amended and supplemented, entered into force on 01/01/2020) Article 84)
Did the answer help you? Not really
21. I wrote a statement of my own free will on December 25, 2019, on January 4, 2020, I received a work book by mail, which indicated an entry that I was dismissed of my own free will on January 9, 2020, i.e., they made an entry in the work book in advance and sent it to mail from Moscow, should I work days until the 9th? I did not sign the dismissal order, I only wrote a statement.
21.1. No, you don't have to. You've already been noted. Did you get the calculation?
Did the answer help you? Not really
21.2. No, you no longer have to work out anything.
Did the answer help you? Not really
22. I quit on my own. The employer did not accept the application. Pulled. I was deceiving. I have sent it by mail now. The notice has arrived. Now I find out that there will be an audit, and the next day I will be fired. The employer reports that until we compensate for the shortfall, he will not pay wages to all employees on time. Will delay. Is this legal?
22.1. How can an employer talk about a shortage if there has not been an audit yet? For failure to pay wages on time, the employer bears material (Article 236 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), administrative (Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation), and in some cases, criminal (Article 145.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Therefore, this statement by the employer is obviously illegal.
Did the answer help you? Not really
23. The question is the following: I worked in the organization until now, so to speak. That is, they were fired without warning. Even without a call, sending me notifications from Russian Post. Explaining this by saying that I was laid off. Can I sue them if this is justified by simple dismissal, but according to them, layoff?
23.1. Yes, you have the right to appeal the employer’s actions in court. For a more complete consultation, you need to familiarize yourself with the notice that was sent to your address, the dismissal order, and the entry in the work book.
According to Article 392 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee has the right to go to court for resolution of an individual labor dispute within three months from the day he learned or should have learned about a violation of his right, and in disputes about dismissal - within one month from the date of delivery him copies of the dismissal order or from the date of issue of the work book.
Did the answer help you? Not really
24. What to do if you have lost a registered letter, a claim has been written, and has now been sent to the federal postal search. If it doesn't exist, what should I do? The letter was sent from Moscow to St. Petersburg in mid-September, there was a labor situation there, and there was a question about my dismissal. I'm at a loss, what should I do?
24.1. Olesya. A lost work book can be restored. By issuing a duplicate. To do this, you need to contact your employer at your last place of work. Information about your work is in Pension Fund, where employers transfer contributions, to the tax office - there they pay income tax. You can also request information about your work from previous employers. Your employer must assist you in restoring your work record. For a poorly provided postal service, you can demand compensation from the Russian Post for material and moral damage under the law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”.
Dismissal by mail is a procedure for terminating an employment contract, which is resorted to by an employee who is unable to submit an application in person. Perhaps he is on vacation or on sick leave. In this case, it is important to correctly determine the date of dismissal.
Application methods
According to Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee who decides to quit must notify the employer in writing of his intention at least two weeks in advance. There are several ways to do this:
- Take the relevant request personally to the manager or the HR department.
- Send your resignation letter by mail to your employer. In this case, it must be sent to the organization by registered mail with notification. It is advisable that the applicant fill out an inventory of the attachment in order to avoid disagreements regarding the contents of the letter. The procedure for receiving, processing and delivering registered letters is determined by order of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation dated July 31, 2014 No. 234.
- Send a telegram. In accordance with the order of the Ministry of Information and Communications of the Russian Federation dated September 11, 2007 No. 108, to compile it you will need:
- passport or other document proving the identity of the sender and a sample of his signature;
- application form, the content of which must fully correspond to the text of the telegram.
- Write to email address, making sure to verify the email digital signature. In accordance with the content of Federal Law dated 04/06/2011 No. 63, electronic document, properly executed, has the same legal force as its paper equivalent.
Sample application
The fact that an employee has the right to resign remotely is evidenced not only by the absence of a direct prohibition in labor legislation, but also by the content of the letter of Rostrud dated 09/05/2006 No. 1551-6 and judicial practice: Appeal ruling of the Moscow City Court dated 10/18/2016 No. 33-41424/ 2016 and Rostov Regional Court dated July 1, 2014 No. 33-8091/2014).
When to fire
In the case of remote notification of resignation to the employer, what matters is the date the letter was received by the organization, and not the date it was sent, so when answering the employee’s question of how to send a resignation letter by mail, draw his attention to this circumstance. So, the two-week “working” begins on the next calendar day after the employer receives the application. If the letter was sent on December 1, but arrived at the company only on the 15th, then the countdown of the two-week period will begin on December 16, and the date of dismissal will be December 29.
Labor legislation also provides for situations where an employee has the right to resign at a time convenient for him. In particular, such cases include admission to a higher educational institution, retirement, detection of violations of the law by the employer, etc.
Let's consider specific cases of determining the date of dismissal.
| Content of the letter | date of dismissal |
| The applicant did not indicate the date of dismissal |
14th calendar day after receipt of the application. You cannot fire an employee before the two-week period has passed, even if the letter was sent a month ago. In this way, the state protects the interests of workers, including their right to reconsider their decision. |
| The applicant indicated the date of dismissal |
If the letter arrived at the organization earlier than 2 weeks before the specified date, then the dismissal must occur on the day chosen by the employee. During all this time, he may change his mind about quitting, and the law is on his side (paragraph 4 of Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). If the letter arrived at the organization later than 2 weeks before the specified date, then it is possible to terminate the contract both on the date that he chose and after the expiration of the 14 days established by law - it all depends on the decision of the management. If you choose the first option and issue an order to dismiss the employee on the date indicated in his letter, then you will thereby agree with his request to terminate the contract before the expiration of the two-week notice of dismissal. From a legal point of view, this looks like a written agreement between the employee and the employer. The employee will be able to withdraw his application only until the day he indicated in his application. If you follow the path of maintaining a two-week “work” and do not agree to terminate the contract before the expiration of 14 days, then the employee will retain his right to change his mind during this entire time. If the letter arrives later than the date specified in it, then the employee must be dismissed after the two-week period established by law has passed after its receipt. It is unacceptable to issue an order retroactively. Also, you do not have the right to formalize your dismissal on the day you receive the paper, since in this case the date of termination of the contract is not considered agreed upon between the employee and the employer. |
What to do with the calculation and work book
If the employee was unable to attend in person and sent his resignation letter by mail, then it is possible that he will also not be able to come to collect his work. In this case, you must send a notification to his address, which should indicate:
- information about termination of the employment contract: reason and details;
- an offer to send a work book by mail;
- please provide written consent for shipment and postal address;
- information about the operating hours of the personnel service, if the dismissed employee still wants to pick up the work book in person.
Also, on the last day of work, the company must make a settlement with the employee, paying him:
- wages for days worked;
- compensation for unused vacation;
- bonuses, severance pay and other payments provided for by a collective or employment agreement, or other internal regulations of the company.
If you paid wages in cash, then in the above notice add a clause stating that the employee must come during working hours and receive the money from the cash register.
However, it is often impossible for an employee to be present at the time of dismissal due to objective reasons. In this case, the Labor Code also implies other formats for notifying management of the desire to terminate cooperation. In particular, a resignation letter submitted by mail.
It is important to remember that such documents should only be sent if no other method is available.
Is it possible to send an application by mail?
The algorithm for communicating to management the decision to terminate the employment relationship is prescribed in Part 1 of Article 80 of the Labor Code. The conditions that must be met are:
- written expression of the employee’s will;
- The deadline for submitting an application is no later than two weeks before the date of dismissal.
At the same time, the structure and content of a written document are in no way regulated by the norms of the code and other by-laws. A correctly executed document must contain the following mandatory details:
- data of the official and the organization to which the resigning person applies;
- FULL NAME. and the position of the employee;
- Title of the document;
- notification text;
- date of paper formation;
- personal signature of the employee.
The paper's text can be handwritten or printed. In a printed document, the space for the signature and its decoding is filled in manually.
How to send an application by mail? The simplest and affordable way- by letter, but not by regular letter, but by registered letter with obligatory notification of delivery and handing over to the addressee. The sender is given a receipt confirming the fact of sending, as well as the date and time of acceptance of the letter at the post office. You should also use the “attachment inventory” option.
When does the countdown begin?
The mandatory two weeks before the day of dismissal are counted not from the moment the application is written, but from the date the letter is received by the addressee.
In the case of personal delivery of an application to the company administration, the employee can know the date of its acceptance, but when sending a document by mail, it is almost impossible to predict the delivery time, as well as the likelihood and duration of the delay (you can try to calculate it from the delivery date on the notice that is returned to the sender). To avoid problems in this case, it is worth sending the notification in advance or, instead of the date, indicate “after 2 weeks from the date of receipt.” Thus, dismissal by mail will occur within the time limits established by law. The two-week norm can be ignored if the employee cannot continue to perform work duties for reasons beyond his control.
What to do if the letter is returned
The letter of resignation may not reach the employer by mail. Often the letter is returned back to the addressee. What to do in this case? This situation may arise in the following cases:
- return of the envelope upon shipment;
- error by the recipient's post office operators;
- intentional avoidance of the employer from receiving the letter.
The first thing you need to do is check with the employer and postal workers about the reasons for returning the envelope and try to resolve the issue with the manager in your favor. If the former boss refuses to accept the situation, send your application by telegram or again by letter with a mark of receipt. If the employer refuses to put a visa on receipt of the notice, then the post office itself will put a mark when it delivered the telegram. But the countdown of your minimum 14 days during which you are required to be at work does not start from the date of delivery of the notice, but from the next day.
If after 14 days the employer does not return your work book and cash payment, you can sue him in the magistrate’s court, no longer in the workplace, since procedurally you are no longer an employee of this organization.
According to current legislation, a resignation letter from an employee can be sent by mail to the employer. This procedure is provided for situations where the parties terminate the employment relationship due to a strong conflict, or when the employee cannot independently arrive to complete all the necessary papers. It is possible to resign by mail, but a strictly defined procedure must be followed so that the process of terminating the employment relationship does not violate legal norms.
Application form
As stated in the norms of the Labor Code, two main requirements are put forward for applications for dismissal from an employee. This:
- written form of the application (preferably by hand, but printed text on a computer is also acceptable);
- submission of the document at least 14 calendar days (including weekends and holidays) before the desired date of termination of the employment relationship.
As for the content of the document, the legislator does not propose specific wording. Instead of the application being accepted by the company’s management, you need to display a number of mandatory details:
- Name legal entity with the exact address of the location to which the application is sent;
- personal data of a company employee;
- name of the petition (application for dismissal);
- text (as short and clear as possible, without ambiguous phrases);
- personal signature and date of filling out the paper.
It must be remembered that, on a general basis, an employee will be dismissed only two weeks after the application is received by the administration of the enterprise. When a document is transferred personally through the office of the company, the recipient leaves a mark on the copy of the application with the date the application was sent to the employer.
Important! In cases where an application for dismissal is sent by mail, in the wording of the petition it is necessary to avoid indicating the specific day of termination of the agreement, since it is necessary to ensure the efficiency of work postal services impossible. It must be stated that the request to terminate the contract is 15 days from the date of receipt of the paper.
Referral procedure
- in a regular envelope;
- by registered mail;
- valuable notice;
- by telegram;
- By e-mail.
It is not advisable to send a resignation letter in an ordinary envelope. This is due to the fact that the sending of a regular envelope is not recorded anywhere, and it is impossible to prove that the employer received it. In addition, the contents of a regular envelope are known only to the sender, so the management of the enterprise, if they do not want to terminate the employment contract, can deny not only the fact that they received the document, but also that there was a statement in the envelope.
A registered letter is a more reliable option for transmitting your application to the company administration. Registered mail means that when the letter is sent, the sender will be given a receipt for payment for postal services. And upon receipt from the employer, they will require a signature on the paper receipt form. But, again, how to prove that inside the envelope there was precisely an appeal requesting termination of the contract? To do this, you need to pay for the “inventory preparation” function with the shipment. This option implies that the envelope is handed over to the postal employee open and the employee records what papers are in the letter. Thus, the employer will not be able to deny that it was the employee’s resignation letter that was sent to him.
To be sure that the letter has reached the addressee, send a valuable parcel, upon receipt of which the employer will mark the date of receipt of the documents. A report on the receipt of documents will be sent to the sender's address.
Telegram is one of the most common ways to send job applications. When composing a telegram, the sender presents his passport, thereby recording that the document is sent personally. Also, the text of the application is open, so the employer will not be able to deny the fact that the application was received.
The question often arises: is it possible to send documents by email? This possibility is not limited by law, but if legal action is necessary, it will be difficult for the employee to prove that it was the head of the enterprise who was familiar with the text of the petition and when this happened.
Legal consequences
After the employee has sent a letter of resignation to the management of the company, a mechanism is launched that precedes the termination of the employment relationship. At the same time, the termination of the contract occurs on a general basis, that is, based on what date the manager puts on the documents on receipt of the postal request, a two-week period will be counted.
The employee has the opportunity during this time until the end of 15 days to withdraw his application. This can be done either in person or by sending a postal telegram. But if the dismissal order has already been issued, the employee will not be returned to work.
Legal terms
Having received an application by mail from an employee with a request to terminate the employment contract, the employer must check with the employee whether the letter was actually sent to him personally. This can be done with a simple phone call. When the fact of personal submission of the application is confirmed, the dismissal procedure can begin.
According to the Labor Code, the procedure for terminating employment relations implies that after a period of two weeks, the employee must be issued all documents, as well as cash benefits paid in full. But how to calculate this very control day? It all depends on the date of receipt of the letter, which the employer will put on the receipt postal item. And legal deadlines can be divided into two groups:
- if a specific date is already indicated by the employee in the application;
- when the date of termination of the contract is not directly stated in the application.
When the petition does not specify a strict termination date, the employer must count 15 calendar days without taking into account the date of receipt of the letter. And only after the expiration of the specified period issue a dismissal order. Specifying the date in the document suggests the following procedure for calculating the date of dismissal:
- when there are more than two weeks between the specified day and the date of receipt of the letter, the date indicated by the employee should be adhered to, since before the expiration of the period measured by him, the person can withdraw his application;
- when there are less than two weeks between two dates, then the employee’s request must be granted, despite the two-week work requirements;
- if the day of receipt is later than the specified date, then the contract is terminated after a couple of days, and the basis for termination of the employment relationship will be the consent of the parties.
Actual termination
According to the norms of the Labor Code, on the day of termination of employment relations, the employer must issue an order to dismiss the person, as well as hand over his documents and the full amount of monetary compensation to the dismissed person. When dismissal occurs by mail, the procedure is somewhat different. So, the algorithm of actions of the head of the company involves the following steps:
- issuing a dismissal order in two copies, one of which is intended for the dismissed person;
- preparation of a work book and certificate of employment for an employee;
- sending an official notification to the dismissed person of the need to come to the institution to familiarize himself with the order and receive all documents;
- if the employee arrived on time, then, against signature, hand him a work book and a copy of the order (if the person did not appear, but sent an application requesting to send all the papers postal service, then a valuable letter with an inventory is prepared and handed over to the dismissed employee);
- in a copy of the order that remains at the enterprise, a note is made that the dismissed person did not arrive on time;
- transfer of cash benefits and payments to the employee’s bank account.
The most questions when terminating contracts, when the application is submitted by mail, arise with the identification of the sender of the application. In order to avoid lengthy legal disputes, the employer needs to make sure that the letter was sent by the specified employee, and that the employee wishes to terminate the employment relationship.