Relieving letter request format: fill in and copy

A relieving letter is the employer's written confirmation that you have left the company on a given date and have no pending duties. New employers ask for it during background verification, and without it some will delay or withdraw an offer. If it has not arrived, a short, polite request email usually solves the problem.

When to send it

Ask on or just before your last working day, when you complete clearance. If nothing arrives, send a follow-up after about a week. Many companies commonly issue relieving and experience letters within a week to a month of the last working day, often together with the full and final settlement. Follow up every seven to ten days, each time replying on the same email thread so the history is visible.

What to include

• Your full name, designation and employee ID in the subject line and the body.
• Your last working day and a line stating you completed notice, handover and clearance.
• A clear ask: relieving letter and experience certificate, signed, on letterhead.
• Why you need it and by when, without sounding demanding.
• A line asking about your final settlement, if it is also pending.

If HR does not respond

Escalate one step at a time: your former manager, then the HR head, then a senior leader, each with the earlier emails attached. Keep every message factual and polite. Do not post complaints on social media while you are still asking; it rarely helps and can be used against you. If you did not serve the full notice, be ready to discuss the buyout amount, because that is usually the reason for the hold.

Common mistakes

• Asking only on chat or by phone with no written record.
• Sending the request from an email address the company cannot link to you. Use your personal email that HR has on file, and include your employee ID.
• Threatening legal action in the first email.
• Not keeping copies of your resignation email and the acceptance of resignation, which you may need as proof.