Notice periods depend solely on the duration of the employment relationship. Two weeks for up to six months of service, one month from six months to two years, two months from two to five years, and three months for more than five years. During the probationary period, the notice period is five days. The same notice periods apply to both parties, both to the employer and to the employee who resigns.
This page shows how notice periods are calculated, when they are extended, when they are suspended, and what happens when they are not observed.
Read also: Ending the Employment Relationship: The Complete Guide
Article 143, paragraph 1, directly links them to the duration of the employment relationship, without distinction based on position or salary.
| Duration of the relationship | Notice period |
|---|---|
| During the trial period | five days |
| Up to 6 months | two weeks |
| Over 6 months to 2 years | one month |
| Over 2 years to 5 years | two months |
| Over 5 years | three months |
The five-day trial period is provided for in Article 142, paragraph 3, and is reiterated in Article 150, paragraph 2, for fixed-term contracts.
Read also: The probationary period and its limits
Article 143, paragraph 3, adds a provision that in practice changes the last working day. The deadline is extended, as the case may be, to the end of the week or to the end of the month.
This means that a one-month period does not end on the corresponding date of the following month, but at the end of that month. Likewise, a two-week period does not end midweek, but at the end of the week.
Example. An employee with three years of service is notified on February 10. His notice period is two months, so it would end on April 10. Since the notice period is extended to the end of the month, the employment relationship ends on April 30 and pay is paid for the entire period.
The timer does not run during certain periods. It stops and then restarts afterward without being canceled.
Article 147, paragraph 1, goes one step further. The employer may not terminate the contract at all during the period when the employee is receiving temporary disability pay, for up to one year, nor while the employee is on employer-granted leave.
Article 143, paragraph 5, grants a right that is almost always overlooked. During the notice period, when the contract is terminated by the employer, the employee is entitled to at least 20 hours of paid leave per week to look for a new job.
The duration of the leave and the manner of its use are determined in the collective or individual contract. If neither provides for it, the statutory minimum of 20 hours applies.
This leave is not deducted from annual leave and is recorded separately in the time records.
Read also: Record of vacations and leaves
Article 143(4) treats this as a separate category. When one party terminates the contract without observing the deadline, the termination is treated as having immediate effect.
| Situation | Consequence | Article |
|---|---|---|
| The employer does not respect the deadline without justified reasons. | The employee receives the salary they would have earned until the end of the term. | 155, point 1 |
| Immediate unjustified solution | Compensation of up to one year's salary, in addition to the contractual salary. | 155, point 3 |
| The employee quits work without notice. | Compensates financially, no more than one week's pay, plus additional damages. | 156, point 1 |
| Immediate and justified solution | Loss of seniority; accrued vacation pay is preserved. | 154, point 4 |
A lawsuit for the immediate resolution of an unjustified termination must be filed within 180 days from the date the relationship is terminated, or within 30 days from the discovery of the motive when it arises later.
Read also: Withdrawal procedure, steps before the notice deadline
Here the logic changes completely. A fixed-term contract ends at the end of the specified period, without prior termination and without notice, pursuant to Article 149, paragraph 1.
When it is terminated before the end of the term, the procedure of Article 144, as provided in Article 149, paragraph 3, applies. When it is tacitly renewed beyond the term, it is considered an open-ended contract.
Article 151, paragraph 2, gives the employee a special exit. When the contract has been entered into for more than three to five years, he may terminate it after three years with a two-month notice period, which runs until the end of the second month. When the contract has been entered into for more than five years, he may terminate it after five years with a three-month notice period.
Read also: Types of employment contracts and differences
This template has been prepared by AlProfit Consult for cases where the initiative comes from the employee. The deadlines are the same as those for the employer.
Resignation Notice
To: [company name], NUI
From: First name and last name, job position
Date of notificationBy this notice, I inform you of my decision to terminate the employment contract as of its contract date.
My employment relationship has lasted for years and months, so the notice period is the appropriate one, in accordance with Article 143 of the Labor Code.
The period begins on the start date and, extended through the end of the week or month as applicable, ends on the end date. This is also my last day of work.
Please confirm receipt of this notice and arrange for the payment of the period's salary and accrued but unused vacation days.
Employee's signature
I have been informed of the employer's signature and the date.
Read also: Ready-made templates and forms for employment
The last day of employment also determines the payroll period and the separation notice, so a mistake in the deadline immediately propagates to the… Payment slip and filing deadlines.
Two months, because the relationship falls within the interval of over two years to five years, according to Article 143, paragraph 1.
Yes. Article 143 deals with the parties, so the same deadline applies when the employee resigns.
From the moment the written notice of the decision is given, which is issued 48 hours to one week after the meeting under Section 144.
Yes. Article 143, paragraph 3, extends the deadline, as the case may be, until the end of the week or until the end of the month.
The solution is treated as a solution with immediate effect, pursuant to Article 143(4), and the consequences of Articles 155 or 156 then apply.
Five days, pursuant to Article 142, paragraph 3; the same deadline also applies to fixed-term contracts under Article 150, paragraph 2.
No. It ends at the end of the prescribed period, without any prior remedy, pursuant to Article 149, paragraph 1.
At least 20 paid hours per week to search for a new job when the decision is made by the employer.
