Notice & Demand: templates and forms

A resignation letter for an employee in Austria (Selbstkündigung): notice ending your employment with the notice period, or during the probation month, on the date you choose or else on the next possible date, asking for confirmation, a written reference (Dienstzeugnis), the final pay and pay in lieu of untaken leave. Austrian law prescribes no form, but many collective agreements (Kollektivverträge) require writing: print, sign and hand it over against a receipt. For white- and blue-collar workers; not for apprentices. In German.

A German resignation letter (Eigenkündigung): ordinary notice ending your employment on the date you choose, or else on the next possible date, asking for confirmation of receipt, a full employment reference (qualifiziertes Arbeitszeugnis) and for remaining leave to be granted or paid out. Under § 623 of the German Civil Code (BGB), notice ending employment is valid only on paper signed by hand — e-mail, fax, scans and every other electronic form are void. In German, to print, sign and hand over with proof of delivery.

The declaration by which an employee in Austria ends the employment with immediate effect for good cause — the vorzeitiger Austritt under § 26 AngG and § 1162 ABGB: pay withheld after a final deadline passed unused, breach of essential contract terms, danger to health, lack of protection, or violence and serious insults. It records the facts and claims notice-period compensation (Kündigungsentschädigung), pay in lieu of leave and the final settlement. An unjustified Austritt costs claims; the Chamber of Labour advises its members beforehand. In German.

The declaration by which a managing director of an Austrian GmbH or FlexCo resigns under § 16a of the Austrian Limited Liability Companies Act (GmbHG) — at once for good cause, otherwise after 14 days or on a later date. The same letter goes to every shareholder; the other managing directors and any supervisory board chair receive a copy. With the request to file the end of the director's authority with the company register (Firmenbuch, § 17 GmbHG) and an acknowledgement of receipt, since receipt has to be proved. In German.

The notice to the regional chamber of the Austrian Economic Chamber (WKO) that you are suspending your trade or resuming it after a suspension — due within three weeks under § 93 Abs 1 of Austria's Trade Act (GewO 1994). With the licence holder, the trade, its location, the GISA number and the effective date: what the chamber needs for an informal notice. The chamber also offers its own form and eServices free of charge; the notice needs no set form, and a letter of your own by e-mail or post is enough. In German.

The written notice of parental part-time work (Elternteilzeit) to an Austrian employer under § 15j of the Maternity Protection Act (MSchG) or § 8b of the Fathers' Leave Act (VKG): start, length, hours and their pattern, the child, and since when you have been employed. You choose whether you claim the statutory right (more than 20 employees, three years' employment) or ask for an agreement. The notice must be in writing, so signed — a plain e-mail is not enough — and must arrive at least three months before the start. In German.

The written notice surrendering a trade licence (Gewerbeberechtigung) to the trade authority — the Bezirkshauptmannschaft or Magistrat where the business is located — under § 86 of the Austrian Trade Regulation Act (GewO 1994): with the GISA number, the wording of the trade, the location and the day it is to take effect. It takes effect when it arrives, unless a later day is named, and cannot be withdrawn from then on. It can also be done online through GISA with ID Austria, and some district authorities offer their own form; this letter is the informal route by post, in person or by e-mail. In German.

The written notice an employee in Austria gives the employer on going on sick leave (Krankenstand): when the incapacity began, how long it is expected to last and its cause — illness, accident, work accident or occupational disease — but never a diagnosis. Under the Austrian Salaried Employees Act (§ 8 Abs 8 AngG) and Continued Remuneration Act (§ 4 Abs 1 EFZG) the absence is reported without delay, and the confirmation of incapacity (Arbeitsunfähigkeitsbestätigung) shown when the employer asks. No form is prescribed: the letter is your proof. In German, ready to print and sign.

The notice telling an employer in Austria that you are taking care leave (Pflegefreistellung) under § 16 UrlG, the Austrian Holiday Act: to nurse a sick close relative or a sick member of your household, to look after your child when the person who normally cares for it is unavailable, or to stay with a child under ten in hospital. You choose whether this is the first week, the second week for a child under twelve who falls ill again or, once both are used, holiday taken without agreement (§ 16 Abs 3 UrlG). The employer keeps paying. No diagnosis. In German.

The notice telling an Austrian employer when your parental leave (Karenz) starts and how long it lasts, under the Maternity Protection Act (§ 15 MSchG) or the Fathers' Leave Act (§ 2 VKG): child and date of birth, leave from–to, the other parent's parts. For children born from 1 November 2023, Karenz runs to the end of the 22nd month, or the 24th if shared — the document prints the rule for your child. With a receipt block. Childcare benefit (Kinderbetreuungsgeld) is claimed separately from the health insurer, usually the ÖGK. In German.

When your child is ill and you have to stay at home in Germany: the letter telling the employer and asking to be released from work under § 45(3) of Book V of the Social Code (SGB V). It asks for paid leave where § 616 of the German Civil Code (BGB) or the employment contract gives it, and otherwise announces the claim for child sickness benefit (Kinderkrankengeld) from the health insurer. For parents with statutory insurance and children under twelve; in German, with no diagnosis.

The written notice of sickness an employee in Germany gives the employer under § 5 of the Continued Remuneration Act (EntgFG): that they are unfit for work and for how long, with no diagnosis. For people with statutory health insurance it reflects the electronic sick note (eAU) — the employer fetches the certificate from the health insurer, but the employee must still report the absence at once. Those insured privately announce a paper certificate. In German, with a box for an address abroad.

A letter claiming unpaid wages, salary or overtime pay from an employer in Germany, sent in time to beat the exclusion period (Ausschlussfrist) in the employment contract or collective agreement, which is often only three months from the due date. It lists month, type of claim and gross amount, sets a payment deadline, claims default interest under § 288(1) of the German Civil Code (BGB), backs overtime with the employee's own records and can announce that work will be withheld. In German, to print, sign by hand and deliver with proof of receipt, and to e-mail as well.

The landlord's formal reminder to a tenant in Austria who is behind with the rent: the amounts owed for each month, the total, a deadline and the account. Under the Austrian Tenancy Act (MRG) a court notice to quit for arrears (§ 30 Abs 2 Z 1 MRG), like ending the lease under § 1118 of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB), requires a reminder after the rent fell due that states the arrears specifically. You choose which step follows if the tenant does not pay. The court notice itself is not a letter but is filed at the district court — this is the reminder that must come first. In German.

A letter to a German bank or savings bank (Sparkasse) closing your current account (Girokonto), whether you are leaving altogether or switching to a new bank. It gives the IBAN, the account holder and date of birth, the closing date you want and the account for the remaining balance, ends the linked cards, overdraft and online banking, and asks for written confirmation. Under § 675h of the German Civil Code (BGB) you may close the account at any time without notice, unless a notice period of at most one month was agreed, and closing is free. A choice covers switching through the statutory switching service (§§ 20 ff. ZKG). In German.

An employee in Austria who falls ill on holiday does not lose the days: if the illness lasts more than three calendar days, the days of incapacity are not counted against the holiday entitlement (§ 5 UrlG, the Austrian Holiday Act). The employer must be told without delay after three days, and a doctor's confirmation shown on returning to work. This letter records both, with the holiday dates and the start and expected length of the incapacity, without a diagnosis — and a choice for illness abroad, where an official confirmation or a hospital's confirmation is needed. In German.

The letter to an Austrian employer for the Papamonat, a father's month off at the birth under § 1a of the Fathers' Leave Act (VKG), in three versions: the advance notice at least three months before the due date, the notice of the start after the birth (within a week of it), and the notice after a premature birth that left no time for advance notice. With due date, start and end of the leave and a receipt block. The Papamonat is unpaid; the family time bonus (Familienzeitbonus) is claimed separately from the health insurer, usually the ÖGK. In German.

A letter by which an employee in Austria gives the employer a concrete final deadline (Nachfrist) for pay withheld, announcing that the employee will leave early if it is not paid (§ 26 Z 2 AngG; for blue-collar workers § 82a lit d GewO 1859). Leaving over unpaid wages without such a deadline has been held unjustified, so this letter is the first step. It also meets the forfeiture deadlines of the collective agreement. With a receipt for hand delivery. In German.

A letter by which an employee in Austria claims unpaid amounts from the employment in writing: wage or salary, overtime with its premium, special payments (13th and 14th salary) and other claims, with a total, a deadline and a bank account. It meets the forfeiture deadlines of the collective agreement (Verfallsfristen), which are often far shorter than the three-year limitation period (§ 1486 Z 5 ABGB), and refers to interest under § 49a ASGG. In German, to print, sign and deliver with proof of receipt.

The written request a club, nursery, school, youth-welfare provider or other organisation in Germany gives an employee or volunteer so that they can apply for an extended certificate of good conduct (erweitertes Führungszeugnis): under § 30a(2) of the Federal Central Criminal Register Act (BZRG), it is issued only to someone who presents such a request, in which the organisation confirms that the conditions of § 30a(1) are met. It names the organisation, the person and the activity, gives the statutory ground as a choice and says whether the work is voluntary, for a fee waiver. In German.

The letter a freelancer in Germany — a translator, architect, consultant, teacher or journalist, for example — sends to the tax office (Finanzamt) on giving up their self-employed profession. Section 138 of the German Fiscal Code (AO) requires the notice within one month, and there is no official form for it. It gives the tax number, the kind of work and its last day, says whether the practice is closed or sold, deals with the VAT pre-returns and asks for the advance payments to be adjusted. In German, to post or to send through ELSTER.

The letter to Austria's tax office, the Finanzamt Österreich, revoking a waiver of the VAT exemption for small businesses under § 6 Abs 3 of the Austrian VAT Act (UStG 1994) — for a landlord or self-employed person whose turnover is back under €55,000, for example. The waiver binds for at least five calendar years; it can be revoked only from the start of a calendar year, by 31 January of that year at the latest. With the tax number, the years and the turnover. Send it by post, fax or through FinanzOnline: an e-mail is no submission at all (§§ 85, 86a BAO). In German.