Free Leave of Absence Letter (LOA)

Use our Leave of Absence template to write your letter if you need to take time away from work. Our pre-prepared form is easy to use, so it is simple to make your document.

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Table of Contents:

What Is a Leave of Absence
Leave of Absence Reasons
How to Ask for a Leave of Absence
How to Write a Leave of Absence Letter
Leave of Absence Letter Sample
Related Documents
FAQs About Leave of Absence Letters

What Is a Leave of Absence

A Leave of Absence (LOA) is permission given to you when you need a long-term periodaway from studying or work.

What is a Leave of Absence from work?

If you need more days off than what your given personal days allow, you must request a LOA to miss work for that amount of time.

Normally, a Leave of Absence is given if there is a medical or family problem. However, there are other reasons you could take a LOA.

In most cases a LOA is unpaid, nevertheless, some employers pay a part, or even your entire salary during the time off.

Before you get started, though, make sure you know what is written in your employment contract regarding your company’s Leave of Absence policy.

Leave of Absence Example

Below, you can find our example template that outlines exactlywhat to include in your letter to professionally request your employer for a Leave of Absence.

[Date]

[Recipient’s Name]

[Company Name and Address]

Dear [Name]

I am writing to formally inform you that I will need to be absent from work for a period of time.

Therefore, please accept this letter as a formal request for a leave of absence.

I am requesting a leave of [length of leave]. The leave shall begin on

[start date] and end on [end date]. I plan to return to

work on [date].

The reason for my requested absence is [medical/personal/academic/family/mental health].

During my absence, I will be available to assist with any work-related questions. I can be reached at the following email: [email address] and/or phone number:

[phone number].

Please let me know if you have any questions or need further information.

Thank you very much for your consideration.

Sincerely,

[Signature]

[Your name]

[Title]

Leave of Absence Reasons

To be granted a Leave of Absence, you need a valid reason to be permitted to miss a long period of work.

The main reasons that people ask for a Leave of Absence are:

Medical
Mental health
Family
Personal

If you feel that you need to ask for a long period off from work, you must write a formal Leave of Absence Letter asking for permission, or you could face serious consequences.

LawDistrict has Leave of Absence forms, and many other legal documents to help you and ease the writing process.

While creating your Leave of Absence Letter, remember to include what specific reason or reasons you're asking for time away from work.

Medical Leave of Absence

If there is a medical reason that you should not or cannot go to work, you have to request a Medical Leave of Absence.

Some health issues that may require you to request a LOA include:

Surgery
Trauma/injury
Long-term illnesses

Providing proof such as a statement from your physician is mandatory in most if not all cases.

Mental Health Leave of Absence

Without your mental health, you cannot work properly. For that reason, you can submit a request for a LOA for your mental health.

Depression and anxiety are 2 mental health problems that may cause you to need time away from work.

Personal Leave of Absence

Apart from mental and physical issues, there might be personal issues that cause you to request time away from your job. If that’s the case, you will need to ask for a Personal Leave of Absence.

Education and military service are examples of personal situations that can require you to be away from work for an extended period of time.

Family Leave of Absence

A Leave of Absence Letter for family reasons is written when someone has to be at home with their family and cannot be at the workplace.

You can use this request if you need time off for:

Death in the family
Birth of a child
Caring for a dying family member

Intermittent Leave of Absence

Some situations allow you to work on a part-time basis, or with a reduced workload.

Doing this is a good way to keep working and receiving pay while being able to attend to your family or medical treatments.

Unpaid Leave of Absence

An Unpaid Leave of Absence is used when you need more time off work than your benefits allow.

If you have to request more days away from work than you have vacation, sick, and personal days, your needs most likely fit into this category of Leave of Absence.

How to Ask for a Leave of Absence

If you are planning to submit a request for a Leave of Absence, it is important to go over some details before handing it in.

Review your job’s Leave of Absence policy: Your company should have an explanation of what is covered and how to formally apply.
Calculate how long your LOA is going to be: If possible, give an estimate to your employer of how long your absence will be.
Schedule a meeting with your employer: Once you know how long your absence will be, talk to your boss.
Submit a written request: After going through the details and speaking with your supervisor, submit a Leave of Absence Letter.

Prepare your document with our Leave of Absence Letter template to create a well-written letter.

How to Write a Leave of Absence Letter

Ensure your LOA Letter is clear and precise. This will increase the chances of your request being approved.

In order to write a convincing document, you must know what to include in a Leave of Absence Letter from work and how to outline it.

Writing a LOA Letter with errors can lead to your request being denied.

Take advantage of LawDistrct’s Leave of Absence form and include these details in your letter:

Date: Put the date at the top of the document.
Personal information: Fill in your personal information, your address, email, and phone number.
Your supervisor/employer’s information: Fill in your supervisor’s information, e.g. the person the LOA Letter is made out to.
Why you are writing the request: Include the reason you need to be absent. Medical, personal, or otherwise.
The dates you plan to be absent from work: Write the exact dates you are going to miss work.
Your thanks and signature: Leave a message of gratitude and then sign the document.

Leave of Absence Letter Sample

Before submitting any legal document, it is a good idea to go over a sample. Review our sample Letter of a Leave of Absence from work before creating your document.

FAQs About Leave of Absence Letters

Writing a Leave of Absence Letter can be difficult to do considering all the information that’s needed.

Below, we have included the most commonly asked questions and answers regarding a LOA.

What is the Family and Medical Leave Act?

If you need a long period off from work, you may be eligible for the benefits of the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The FMLA ensures you can take up to 1 year of absence from work for motives such as the birth of a child, adoption, or serious illness.

You could be eligible if:

Your employer is covered by the FMLA
You have worked at your job for at least 1 year
You have worked at least 1,250 hours in that year
Your job employs 50 people. Or, at least 50 people in a 75-mile radius.

How Does a Leave of Absence Work?

If you take a Leave of Absence, there are 2 types of leaves that you might be eligible for. There is a Mandatory Leave of Absence and a Voluntary Leave of Absence.

Mandatory Leave of Absence: This type of leave is dictated at the federal level. This means your employer must give you the time off if you are eligible for the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Voluntary Leave of Absence: A Voluntary Leave is decided by your employer. Businesses many times offer this as a benefit, however, it doesn’t offer the same job security as the FMLA.

Do You Get Paid for a Leave of Absence?

In the United States, a Leave of Absence is unpaid in the majority of cases. For example, A Mandatory Leave is almost guaranteed to be unpaid.

However, a Voluntary Leave of Absence could potentially be paid by your employer.

Some employers are willing to pay part or all of your salary based on the circumstances, company policy, and your contract.

You can also ask for some of your paid time off to be included in your Leave of Absence

You can give yourself a better chance of a paid Leave of Absenceby using LawDistrict’s template to outline your document.

You are only a few steps away from your own Leave of Absence Letter!

Download our professional examples

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Preview of your Leave of Absence

LEAVE OF ABSENCE AGREEMENT

This Agreement (the Agreement) is made by and between the employer, _________, of _________, and the employee, _________, of _________, an individual (Employee). This agreement shall commence on _________.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises set forth herein, the parties hereto agree as follows:

Reasons for Leave A Leave of Absence may be requested by the Employee for several reasons, including, but not limited to, personal reasons, a force majeure situation, an injury or a short-term disability, and jury duty. The Employer, following consideration of the company's operational needs, and as long as there is a good cause, shall grant the Employee a leave of absence. To qualify for a Leave of Absence, the Employee may consult the guidelines and requirements in the Company's employee handbook and policies manual. The Employee submits a leave of absence request for the following reasons: _________.

Duration of Leave

The Company, following a request by the Employee, grants leave of absence from the Employee's full-time employment. This Leave of Absence shall begin on _________ and end on _________. Such Leave of Absence shall be subject to the conditions of this Agreement. The Employee shall return to work at the earliest work after the following date: _________.

Compensation During Leave of Absence

Unless this Agreement provides otherwise, the Company shall continue to consider the employee as a paid employee for the duration of the leave of absence. As such, the Company will continue to pay the employee the current base salary.

The Company shall withhold all monthly base salary payments the customary withholding for tax purposes, as required by law. This notwithstanding, the Employee shall not be entitled to any benefits, including paid time off and holiday pay. However, group medical benefits shall remain in force during the Employees leave of absence.

Protection of Rights

Any seniority rights the Employee may have shall not be affected by the Employee's sudden unavailability for work as a result of having suffered an injury or being sick and having proof of it. Further, the Employee shall not have any Pension Plan, or any other benefit to which the Employee may be entitled, modified or changed, to the extent there is a differential treatment to the Employee. The Company shall continue to administer the Employee's rights to exercise nonqualified stock options in accordance with those Plans. The Company shall guarantee the continuity of the Employee's rights as herein stated for such period as provided by such Plans upon Employee's retirement.

Prohibition

The Employee shall not accept any employment, whether directly or indirectly, or provide any services to any third party- of any nature- for the entire duration of the leave of absence. The Company shall render void any seniority rights that the Employee may have if such Employee fails to comply with this provision.

Extension of Leave of Absence

The Employee hereby acknowledges that the Employer shall not accept any requests to extend this leave of absence.

Termination

Please Take Notice that the Company may terminate the employment if the Employee does not return to work by the date herein prescribed.

Miscellaneous Provisions

1. Choice of Law: This Agreement shall be governed by and be construed under the laws of the State of Alabama.

2. Severability: If any provision of this Agreement is held invalid, that provision shall be amended or eliminated as necessary to comply with the law. Further, the remaining provisions shall not be affected by such provision and will continue to be valid and enforceable.

3. Amendments: This Agreement shall be amended by the parties only through a written amendment that shall be attached to this Agreement.

4. Attorneys' Fees: In any lawsuit brought to enforce this Agreement, the party in whose favor a judgment or decree has been rendered may recover reasonable court costs, including attorneys' fees, from the non-prevailing party.

5. Signatures: This Agreement shall be signed by _________, _________ on behalf of _________ and by _________.

EMPLOYER

By: ___________________________________
_________, its _________

Date: __________________

EMPLOYEE

By: ___________________________________
_________

Date: __________________