How much notice do you have to give when you leave a job?
6 minute read · 2026-09-01
The legal minimum an employee must give is one week, once you have been there a month or more. That is it. Everything longer comes from your contract.
What the law says, both ways
- You to them: one week's notice after one month of service, whatever your length of service after that.
- Them to you: one week after a month, then one week for every complete year up to a maximum of twelve. Eight years of service means eight weeks of notice from the employer.
Notice runs from the day after you give it, and it must be worked or paid unless the contract says otherwise.
What your contract can do
It can require more from you: a month is common, three months in senior roles. It cannot require less than the statutory minimum from the employer. If your contract says nothing, the statutory minimum applies.
Check the wording before you resign, because "one month" and "four weeks" are not the same thing and the difference has caught plenty of people out at the end of a month.
What if you just leave?
Leaving without working your notice is a breach of contract. In practice employers rarely sue, because the loss is hard to prove and the cost is not worth it, but two things can bite. They can withhold pay for days you did not work, and they can decline to give more than a bare reference, which is entirely lawful. It also ends the relationship badly in a trade where people move between the same handful of firms.
If you need to go sooner, ask. Many employers will release you early once a replacement is found, particularly if you offer to hand over properly.
Can they hold your final pay?
They must pay you for work you have done and for accrued untaken holiday. They can deduct for notice you did not work only if the contract clearly allows it. Deductions beyond that are usually unlawful under Part II of the Employment Rights Act 1996, and Acas advises free on 0300 123 1100.
Gardening leave and pay in lieu
Gardening leave means you stay employed, stay away, and stay paid. Pay in lieu of notice means the employment ends now and they pay the notice instead. Both are only allowed if the contract provides for them, and both still count for accruing holiday.
Before you hand it in
- Get the new offer in writing, with the start date, and check whether it is subject to references.
- Resign in writing, dated, and keep a copy. Two lines is enough.
- Book nothing you cannot move until the notice period is agreed.
- Expect a counter offer, and decide beforehand what you would do with one.
More on notice periods and references, and on handling the offer.