This article is for those who have faced a situation of being requested to provide an employment verification letter but have no clue what it is. We offer a comprehensive overview of this document and provide several templates and a sample of employment verification letters to rely on when creating your own.

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What is an Employment Verification Letter?

An employment verification letter, also known as proof of income or proof of employment letter, is a document that verifies an employee’s salary, employment history, and job responsibilities. This letter is normally requested by current or former employees when they take up employment in a new company.

There are other reasons why individuals may need a verifying employment letter, such as for a rental, mortgage, or loan application. When applying for those, an individual is expected to make significant monthly payments. To ensure that the applicant will be able to do it, prospective landlords or mortgage lenders will require them to provide the employment verification letter proving their solvency.

The verifying party, a current or former employer, will typically create a professional letter indicating their company details, the employee’s name, job title, contact details, income or employment verification itself, and date.

Why Jobseekers Need Employment Verification Letters

Besides the two reasons we’ve mentioned above, an employment verification letter is typically required in a few more situations.

It’s an integral part of the application process. Prospective employers care about their reputation and want to hire individuals that are reliable, trustworthy, and make a good match with their company culture. To ensure the accuracy of a candidate’s job-related information, such as responsibilities, accomplishments, or salary, they may request an employment verification letter from their former or current employer.
Financial institutions or insurance companies: Applicants must attach proof of employment or income as part of their application to be eligible for certain government benefits. It also refers to insurance programmes, where the provider wants to ensure their client can cover the regular insurance expenses.
Legal matters: If an employee was wrongfully terminated, they will need a paper that proves it and restores their reputation in the eyes of future employers. An employment verification letter can be used as evidence to support claims related to this issue.
Visa and immigration: Individuals seeking employment in other countries may need an employment verification letter to demonstrate their work history and employment status.

Key Components of an Employment Verification Letter

Now we’ll have a closer look at what information an employment verification letter is supposed to include.

Employee Details

Here goes the key part – the information confirming employment. The verifier should provide the following:

Employee name
Employment dates (or only start date)
Employee job title and job status
Employee job description
Current salary information
If relevant – the reason for termination.

Contact Information

The verifier should also include their contact details if the requesting party still has questions after receiving the employment verification letter. It’s usually an email address, telephone number, and time frames when they are available for inquiries.

Attachments

If the verification letter is required to prove the income, there can be a supporting document (or documents) attached, for instance:

Pay slips. A pay slip outlines the details of the employee’s earnings and deductions for a specific pay period.
Bank statements. They show regular income deposits and all other financial transactions.
Benefits statements: If you receive any government benefits or support.
A tax return document. Also known as Self Assessment Tax Return, the paper provides detailed information about an individual’s income, expenses, and other financial matters to calculate their tax liability (especially if they’re self-employed or have additional sources of income).
Annual Payroll Reporting process elements. For example, the P60 Form summarises an employee’s total earnings and deductions for the tax year. The P45 Form includes details about the employee’s wages and tax contributions up to the date they left the job.

Writing an Effective Employment Verification Letter

Here is essential information for those needing an employment verification letter: you CANNOT write it yourself. You can, but it will have no legal effect. Only the third-party entity can create this letter for you, which will vouch for your employment, income, or work history.

If you got a request for an employment verification letter, ask a human resources department representative in your company to create one for you. Remember to include the reason for your employment verification letter request and the contact details of the business or third party that has requested it.

However, if you are the representative of the HR department and you’ve never created an employment letter before, you may find useful the information below.

Appropriate Size

A professional employment letter is brief and concise. Requestors are expected to include only the requested information, such as current employment status, employment history, or documents certifying income. Refrain from attaching the employee’s work performance evaluations or anything of this kind.

Appropriate Context

Try to make your verification letter as comprehensive and informative as possible. Carefully check what exactly information is requested and don’t lose any details. If your company provides low-quality business correspondence, it can easily harm your organisation’s image.

Appropriate Format

An employment verification letter is an actual document; therefore, it has to be written according to the standard business letter format. If it’s an email letter, remember to fill out the subject line with “Employment verification letter”. The sender’s contact information takes place at the top, with the date and the recipient’s contact information going afterwards. There should be a greeting and a closing part as well. Divide the text into paragraphs to ensure readability.

Employment Verification Letter Samples

It’s time to show what a well-crafted letter of verification looks like. We’ve prepared several templates and a sample that you can use as a basis for creating corporate employment verification letters for your organisation. There is also a template for those requesting an employment verification letter from their current or past employer.

A letter to request employment verification by email

Subject line: Employment verification letter request
Hi [name]/ Dear [name],

Regarding my relocation to a new apartment, I would like to request an employment and income verification letter for the rental application. The letter has to include the date of employment, my job title, and my annual salary. The rental agency also requires my pay slips for the past three months and copies of my most recent Self Assessment Tax Returns.

You can either send it to:
Company name
Company Address
City, postal code
or email the employment verification letter to [email address]. Please contact me anytime if you have further questions.

Regards,
Your name
Your job title
Company name

Employment verification letter template from a current employer

Subject line: Employment verification letter
Name of the person approving employment
Job title of the person approving employment
Company name
Address
City and postal code

Date

Name of the person who represents the requesting party (if available)
Job title of the person who represents the requesting party (if available)
Company name
Address
City and postal code

Dear [name]/ To Whom It May Concern,
This letter is to verify that [employee’s name] has been employed at [company name] as [role] since [date]. Their current annual salary is [amount].

As requested, there are also pay slips and the P60 Form enclosed as proof of income.

If there is still something you would like to clarify, please, contact me at [phone number] or [email address]. I am available every working day after noon.

Regards,
Name of the person approving employment
Job title of the person approving employment
Company name

Employment verification letter template from a former employer

Name of the person approving employment
Job title of the person approving employment
Company name
Company address
City and postal code

Date

Name of the person who represents the requesting party (if available)
Job title of the person who represents the requesting party (if available)
Company name
Company address
City, postal code

Dear [name]/ To Whom It May Concern,

This letter confirms that [employee’s name] was employed at [company name] as [role] from [date] to [date]. Their annual salary was [amount].

As requested, payslips and the P45 Form are enclosed as proof of income.

For any further information, please, get in touch with me at [phone number] or [email address]. I am available from Monday to Thursday after noon.

Regards,
Name of the person approving employment
Job title of the person approving employment
Company name

Proof of employment letter sample

Timothy Jerry
Hiring Manager
Atlant Ltd
45 Bond Street
London W7 9AR

12 August 2023

Elisabeth Moore
Hiring Manager
Mecon Group
11 Carnaby Street
London E1 7AB

Dear Elisabeth,

This letter confirms that James Jones was employed at Atlant Ltd as a Sales Advisor from 10 May 2015 to 30 June 2023. His annual salary was £45000.

As requested, there are also pay slips and the P45 Form enclosed as proof of income.

For any further information, please, contact me at 44 200 322 2233 or timjerry.atl@gmail.com. I am available every working day before noon.

Regards,
Timothy Jerry
Hiring Manager
Atlant Ltd