Vacation request emails are a modern, formal way of requesting the required number of days off for a specific reason. Each employee receives a certain number of annual holidays or sick days, depending on company policy.
At the same time, the organisation’s statutes may require employees always to formally notify that they will take leave for a specific reason to be approved. Leave request emails must follow certain rules, regardless of the reason for the leave. According to company rules, if you do it right, there is a much higher chance that the manager will accept your request.
In this article, we will delve into this issue and give specific effective advice so that you can properly submit your leave request and receive a positive response.
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A Leave request email is a formal message in which a subordinate asks their line manager or employer to give them time off for a specific period.
The leave request email often includes how much rest the employee needs, personal reasons, end date, and further clarifications on work-related issues (who will handle current projects, whether the employee can be asked for help while they are away, etc.).
There are certain key points that you should include in your leave request email:
If you want your leave request email to make a positive impression and be approved, keeping a professional tone and being polite is essential. Writing your leave request email this way makes it easy to read and makes it much more likely that the request will be accepted without any problems.
Most employers are meticulous about detail, so ensure you include a start date, holiday and when you will be returning to work. You should also include contacts where you can be contacted during your absence.
If your vacation will take quite a long time, you should also provide detailed information about your current work tasks, projects and clients that will be left without your supervision for this period. If you have assigned these tasks to someone specific in the office for your absence, it is worth mentioning this in your leave request email.
Initially, you should always include dear recipient’s name. You can send leave request email to your company’s employees – your line manager, your HR manager or your employer. It is worth clarifying this point in advance in the company policy.
Also, in some situations, leave request email may need to be sent to several people simultaneously so that they know of your absence and take appropriate action to re-establish workflow during this period.
The subject line is of great importance. Leave request email will only be complete with the reason for the absence. You cannot ask for leave simply because you want to take a break from work. At the same time, it is always worth ensuring that you have a legitimate reason for the leave in advance to be accepted. For example, maternity leave, paternity leave, sick leave, compulsory annual leave and so on.
The standard rules for writing an official work email apply to the leave request email. If you want to get it right and have your request approved the first time, consider the following tips from real professionals when writing.
Start your leave request email by choosing the best opening greeting. If you know your boss well, the submitted request should still be formal, as submitted requests from employees may be saved or printed for internal organisational purposes.
If you do not know which pronoun would be correct to use regarding your supervisor, or if you want to keep your request neutral, it is best to write something like “Dear” followed by the name of the recipient.
After the salutation in the first sentence of the leave request email, it is best to explain why you have decided to contact your employer briefly. By clearly stating your purpose, you help the recipient quickly identify the email and respond to your request promptly.
It would help to include your holiday’s starting date and your return to work. You can bold them in the email so that the recipient’s eye will immediately catch them. To ensure that your holiday is more likely to be approved, the following dates should be separate from important corporate events, business meetings, the end of an important project or others.
Leave request emails can be written for various reasons – health problems, paternity leave, unforeseen family circumstances, etc. It is worth mentioning these details of your absence in the email. In this way, the employer will be able to understand your situation and confirm the request.
In addition, stating the reason for the leave demonstrates that the employee is reliable and trustworthy.
Finally, you may want to share additional information when sending this letter with contacts in the “all my colleagues” folder. For example, this is necessary if you have agreed with other employees that they will replace you during your absence.
The Leave request email shouldn’t be a simple note with a few lines. It’s still a formal document that must be submitted in the correct letter format to increase the likelihood of the request being approved significantly.
It doesn’t matter if you ask for paid or unpaid leave or need a break from work for just half a day; the request still needs to follow a set format. In this situation, you can ask your manager or another competent person for a template or a sample of exactly what the leave request email should look like.
Also, a tip: send leave request email 1 or 2 days before you leave. It is never a good idea is best to do it a few weeks in advance so that your supervisor has enough free time to approve the exact dates of your absence and plan the workflow for this period. Sending a leave request email promptly increases the likelihood that management will approve your leave.
If your leave request email is riddled with grammatical and spelling errors, the likelihood of it being approved is greatly reduced. So when it’s ready, it’s worth proofreading it. Make sure that the email is properly and well-structured and easy to read. Reread the final draft, ensuring you have used a professional tone and that there is no informal language or excessive jargon.
Leave request emails can have different formats. Most companies will accept leave requests in any format, but you still need to be clear and structured in this situation. Using a universal leave request email template format will save you precious time while writing. Next, we offer you to familiarise yourself with ready-made request templates that you can use as inspiration. We have collected the most common situations where requests are sent: emergency leave, annual leave, sick leave and short leave.
Most often, every company gives employees annual leave at an appropriate time. If you have a planned trip in mind and are thinking of travelling soon or taking your long-awaited annual leave in any other way, you should leave request email to your line manager:
Subject: Annual leave 2023
Hello dear Anna,
As discussed at the work meeting a few weeks ago, I confirm that I am taking a ten-day leave in September. The exact dates of my absence from work are from 11 to 21 September 2023.
I will spend my annual leave with my family in France, where we usually go at this time of year. I look forward to this time every year.
Thank you again for considering this request. Suppose there are any work issues during my absence. In that case, you can contact me via my contact number or email me at my work email address.
Thank you for being so understanding,
Eiden
If you are away from work for a fairly short period, you must send a leave request email. You can use the following template to write it:
Subject: Vacation leave application dearChris for 1 day
Dear Chris,
I am writing this letter because I need a leave of absence for 25 August 2023, as I need to attend a presentation in our city about a new product that our competitors are launching. I like to attend these events as they contribute to my professional growth.
If I need to attend another new product launch event, I will let you know in a separate email shortly. Please do not hesitate to contact me by email or contact number if you have any questions. I have also explained to my assistant John about the current tasks that need to be done while I am at the presentation due date we approved.
Thank you for being so understanding,
With kind regards
Jake
Most employees may take leave for personal reasons; in particular, they may submit a leave request if they have a serious health problem: physiotherapy sessionsfor a speedy recovery from injury, critical back pain and other situations. The following template can be used in this case:
Subject: Sick leave application dear
Dear Amanda,
I ask you to take sick leave for 8 days from 21 to 28 August 2023.
For the past few months, I have been experiencing a serious deterioration in my health, with undiagnosed problems. My GP insists I go to the hospital for a week for some tests and analyses and need to take other medications. Once the leave is over, I can provide you with a medical certificate of the tests I have done.
I agreed to a leave of absence with Mark, who assured me that he would be able to take over the supervision of all my clients during my absence and combine this with his duties.
Given my excellent track record and commitment to my work, I hope you will accept my request.
Best regards,
David
If you have an emergency and cannot come to work on the day, sending an emergency leave request is worth sending.
Subject: One day leave application dear Mr Rogers
Dear Mr Rogers,
I need to take emergency leave from this day. I have just been contacted by my daughter’s kindergarten teacher and told that she fell while playing, and I am on my way to the hospital now. I do not yet know all the details of what happened, and I will let you know as soon as possible.
I plan to go to work in 3 days, on 17 August 2023, when my husband arrives from his business trip and can take care of our daughter if she needs it.
I appreciate your understanding,
Miranda James
A maternity or paternity leave application letter is a formal communication addressed by an employee, either male or female, requesting a leave of absence.
Subject: Maternity Leave Application Dear Mr. Craft/Paternity Leave Application Dear Mr. Craft
I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to request maternity leave, in accordance with the company’s leave policy. I am currently expecting and anticipate that I will need to take time off to care for my health and well-being, as well as to provide the best possible start for my growing family.
My estimated due date is 15 July, and I am planning to begin my maternity leave on 1 July. I intend to take 7 weeks of leave, as allowed by the company’s policy. I have made arrangements to ensure a smooth transition of my responsibilities during my absence and will do my best to ensure that my colleagues have all the necessary information to continue the projects in my absence.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
I look forward to your positive response and to returning to work with renewed energy after my maternity leave.
Sincerely,
Hana Olsen
