Notice & Demand: templates and forms

For a mobile operator, an internet or a television service. Ringing the call centre does not terminate a contract — the request has to be in writing and has to leave a trace of having been made. The notice identifies the contract, the service and the termination date, and asks for written confirmation and a final bill, which is exactly what is missing in a later argument about charges.

Notice ending a personal account agreement with a Polish bank or other payment provider: the account number and contract date, termination of the linked card and service agreements too, the account for the remaining balance, and a request to confirm closure. It relies on the Payment Services Act: notice cannot exceed one month, and closing is free unless it happens within the first 6 months.

The letter by which an account holder in Greece closes the account and ends the framework agreement with the bank: the account, the closing date, the account to receive the balance, cancelling cards, standing orders and direct debits, a pro-rata refund of fees paid in advance, and written confirmation. It rests on Law 4537/2018, which transposed the EU Payment Services Directive; the letter asks for closing on the date chosen or when the notice period in the contract ends, if that is later.

The request by which an account holder in Romania closes a current account and ends the framework agreement with the bank: the account, the closing date, the cards attached, the account to receive the balance, and the cancellation of standing orders and direct debits. The agreement can be ended at any time with at most 30 days' notice, and closing is free at the latest once the account is 6 months old (Law no. 209/2019).

An out-of-court notice (εξώδικη δήλωση) in which a consumer in Greece sets out a complaint about a mobile, landline, internet or TV service and ends the contract. It relies on the rules of Law 4727/2020: an initial commitment of at most 24 months, termination after it with at most a month's notice, and termination free of charge when the provider changes the terms unilaterally. A court bailiff serves it, so the date from which the termination runs cannot be disputed. For money disputes the next step is Greece's consumer authority, not the telecoms regulator EETT.

When the other side does not perform, the contract does not fall away by itself. Rescission requires a written declaration, and before it one normally allows a further period for performance — so this document first sets out the non-performance and the period given, and only then declares the rescission. It also states what is being asked back: sums paid, items handed over, documents.

For someone in Spain who owes money to a bank, a lender, a utility or a debt collector and wants to offer a smaller lump sum (quita) or instalments (espera) to close the debt. The letter states the amount claimed and the amount offered, the schedule, and makes everything subject to written acceptance stating that, once paid, the debt is settled, with a receipt in full and removal from bad-debtor files. Nothing is paid before that acceptance. Send it by burofax or through the creditor's written channel. In Spanish.

For the holder of an account with a bank in Spain who wants to close it and not be kept waiting. The letter asks for the account to be closed and the contract ended, the balance transferred to another account, the cards cancelled, new direct debits refused and written confirmation with the final statement. It points out that the holder may close at any time, that the bank must do so within 24 hours, and that it is free if the account is open-ended or over six months old (article 32 of Spain's Royal Decree-Law 19/2018). Hand it in at the branch against a stamped copy, or send it by burofax. In Spanish.

For a business or self-employed person in Spain ending a services or supply contract with another business: a Spanish letter giving notice of termination, choosing the ground (the right to terminate or withdraw that the contract gives, or the other party's breach under art. 1124 of the Spanish Civil Code), setting the effective date and asking for materials back and the final invoice. Sent by burofax with certified content and acknowledgement of receipt. In Spanish.

For anyone in Italy who wants to end a landline, mobile, internet or pay-TV contract, even before it expires: the law lets you withdraw at any time, on no more than thirty days’ notice and without costs other than those justified by the operator’s own costs (Article 1(3) of Italian decree-law 7/2007, the «decreto Bersani»). Operators also offer free cancellation channels in the customer area or in their shops; to move to another operator and keep your number, just go to the new one. This Italian letter proves the date: send it by PEC to the operator’s certified address or by registered post with proof of receipt.

For an employer in Italy ending a job during the trial period. If the trial clause is valid, that is written before work began and naming the duties, the contract may be ended freely, without notice or compensation (art. 2096 of the Italian Civil Code). The letter states the end date and the final payments. It is not for a dismissal after the trial, which follows the rules on dismissal. Hand it over against a signed receipt, or send it by registered post with proof of receipt. In Italian.

For a family that, as a domestic employer in Italy, ends the job of its domestic helper, carer or nanny. In domestic work a dismissal needs no reason (art. 2118 of the Italian Civil Code; art. 4 of Italian Law 108/1990), but the notice of the collective agreement for domestic work must be given or paid in lieu. The letter states the dismissal, the notice, the last day and the final payments. It is not for a dismissal for just cause, nor during pregnancy or the leave that follows the birth. The end of the job is then reported to INPS, free of charge. Hand it over against a signed receipt, or send it by registered post. In Italian.

The French labour ministry's site code.travail.gouv.fr offers free model letters ending the probation period, for the employee and for the employer. This document is a letter by which the employer or the employee ends the employment contract during the probation period (période d'essai) in mainland France or an overseas department other than Mayotte: it says who is ending it, refers to the notice period of article L. 1221-25 (employer) or L. 1221-26 (employee) of the Labour Code and gives the end date. No reason has to be given. Hand it over against a signed receipt or send it by registered post with proof of receipt, before the probation period ends. In French.

The letter to the German tax office (Finanzamt) that returns a business to the small-business scheme of § 19 of the German VAT Act (UStG) after it had waived the scheme and charged VAT. The waiver binds for at least five calendar years and can then be revoked only from the start of a later calendar year. The letter names the year of the waiver and the year from which the scheme should apply again, and states that turnover stays within the €25,000 and €100,000 limits. Germany has no ‘VAT deregistration’: this is the route. In German.

An out-of-court notice (εξώδικη δήλωση) by which a consumer leaves a gym under the special rules of Greek ministerial decision Ζ1-1262/2007: withdrawal within 30 days of receiving the contract, or termination at any time. It asks for the money for the unused part of the programme back within 30 days — on termination after the first 30 days the gym may keep at most 2.5%, and only if the contract says so — and stops recurring charges. A court bailiff serves it, so the date is proven. A generic 'cancel with notice' letter would give all of this away.

The seller's letter to their motor insurer in Greece after the car's digital transfer. A Greek policy neither passes to the buyer nor needs cancelling: it lapses by law 30 days after ownership or possession of the car passes (art. 8(2) of Presidential Decree 237/1986), and the insurer must return the unearned premium for the rest of the period. The letter identifies the policy and the vehicle, gives the dates of handover and transfer with the gov.gr certificate, and asks for the refund to an IBAN and for written confirmation of when cover ended.

While an agreed probationary period is running, the party in whose favour it was agreed may end the contract with no notice and without giving a reason. The application identifies the contract, the termination date, and that the ground is Art. 71 of the Labour Code. Check your own contract for whose benefit the probationary period was agreed before filing it.

The out-of-court notice (εξώδικη δήλωση) by which a tenant in Greece terminates a residential lease. Greek law gives a tenant no right to leave early, and one who leaves without cause owes rent to the end of the term; so the notice relies on the lease's early-exit clause, on serious cause (Civil Code 585, 588), on Article 609 for an open-ended lease after three years, or on the end of the agreed term, and otherwise stands as an offer to end the lease by agreement. It sets the end and handover dates, asks for the deposit back, and is served by a court bailiff, whose report proves what was said and when.

Notice ending a Polish residential tenancy with one month's notice to the end of a calendar month, on the grounds in art. 11(2) of the tenants' protection act: arrears after a written warning, use against the agreement despite a warning, subletting without consent. The letter states the reason, because without it the notice is void. An owner wanting to move in relies on a different ground with longer periods, and this is not that document.

The letter without which a landlord in Poland cannot end a flat tenancy for arrears: it lists the unpaid periods and the amount, warns of the intention to terminate, and sets an additional deadline of at least a month to pay both arrears and current charges, as art. 11(2)(2) of the tenants' protection act requires. Notice given without this warning is defective.

Notice ending your electricity or gas contract in Germany after an announced price increase, without a notice period, on the day the new price is due to apply. Outside basic supply this rests on § 41(5) of the German Energy Industry Act (EnWG), in basic supply (Grundversorgung) on § 5(3) of the StromGVV or GasGVV; basic supply can also be ended at any time on two weeks' notice. With customer and meter numbers, supply address, date of the price notice, a fallback notice for the next possible date and a request to confirm the end date in text form. In German.

A landlord's notice in Germany when the tenant is behind with the rent: without notice under § 543(2) of the German Civil Code (BGB) and, at the same time, ordinary notice in the alternative under § 573(2) no. 1 BGB — because if the tenant pays up, only the termination without notice falls away (BGH VIII ZR 106/23). The letter states the ground and every unpaid month, sets a date to hand the flat back, objects to a tacit extension and tells the tenant about the objection in text form. In German, to print and sign by hand by every landlord.

A Cypriot subscriber's letter complaining to a mobile, landline, broadband or pay-TV provider and ending the contract: after the initial commitment period, because the provider changed the terms, because of repeated poor service, or early, with a request for a breakdown of any charge. It asks for billing to stop, arranges the return of equipment and warns of a referral to the Office of the Commissioner of Electronic Communications and Postal Regulation (OCECPR).

Notice ending a contract with a Polish phone, internet or TV operator: the customer and contract numbers, the service and number, the basis for ending it to underline — a contract rolled over after the promotional term, an open-ended one, early termination, or a change of terms by the operator — the date wanted, and the return of equipment and any overpayment. It states the one-month notice for a rolled-over contract under the Electronic Communications Law.