How to resign in New Zealand: notice periods and a resignation letter that works
To resign in New Zealand, check the notice period in your employment agreement, tell your manager in person first, then confirm it in a short letter or email with your last day. If your agreement has no notice period, you must give reasonable notice, which Employment New Zealand says is generally 2 to 4 weeks. Your final pay must include any holiday pay owed.
Notice periods: what the agreement says, and what happens if you leave early
Your employment agreement usually sets the notice period, such as four weeks, and that is the notice you must give. If it does not say, you must give reasonable notice, which Employment New Zealand describes as generally 2 to 4 weeks.
You can leave sooner only if your employer agrees. If you both want a shorter period, agree it and put it in writing. If your employer does not agree, you are expected to work the notice in your agreement.
If you do not work your notice, your employer only has to pay you for the days you actually worked and any leave they approved. They can deduct money from your final pay for notice you did not work only if it reflects their actual loss and you agreed in writing, or your agreement has a valid deduction clause. An employer can also pay you in lieu of notice, ending your job straight away and paying out the notice period, but that needs some form of agreement too. Our guide to job offers and employment agreements explains how to read the clauses that matter.
The four-line letter
A resignation letter does not need a reason or an explanation. It needs to be clear, polite and dated:
Keep a copy, and note the date you gave it. Your notice runs from when you give it, and the last day in the letter should match the notice period in your agreement.
Leave out complaints and grievances. If there is something that genuinely needs raising, raise it separately and in the right way; a resignation letter may stay on your file and be read by people you have never met.
Telling your manager first
Tell your manager in person, or by video if you work remotely, before you send the letter. Hearing it from you first is a courtesy that people remember, and New Zealand is a small place for references.
Keep the conversation short: that you are leaving, your last day, and that you will help with the handover. You do not have to say where you are going or why. If you are offered a counter-offer, it is fine to say you will think about it, but decide what you would accept before the conversation rather than during it.
Then agree how and when the team will be told, and start the handover list straight away. A clear handover protects your reputation and makes the last few weeks easier for everyone.
Final pay, leave and KiwiSaver
Your final pay must include your final wages, all the holiday pay you are owed and any other payments owing. Employment New Zealand sets out how it works:
- Annual holidays you are entitled to but have not taken are paid out as if you took them at the end of your employment, at the higher of your ordinary weekly pay or your average weekly earnings.
- The part year since your last anniversary is paid at 8% of your gross earnings in that time, less any holidays you took in advance or were paid as you go.
- Public holidays that would have fallen in your untaken leave are paid, if they are days you would usually have worked.
- Unused sick leave is not paid out by law, unless your agreement says it is.
The final holiday payment must be paid on or before the pay day for your final pay period. If you are in KiwiSaver, your contributions are deducted from your final pay as they are from any other pay. Our guide to leave in New Zealand explains how annual holidays build up. Leave law is changing in August 2028, when the Employment Leave Act 2026 replaces the Holidays Act; until then the current rules apply.
Marking the offer accepted and starting the new record
Resigning usually follows an accepted offer. Before you resign, make sure the new offer is in writing and signed, with the start date, pay and conditions you agreed. Resigning on a verbal offer leaves you exposed if it changes.
Once it is signed, record it: the offer letter, the start date, the pay and anything you negotiated. The demo opens with no account and shows what happens when a job is marked accepted: Your Career starts a record of the new job with its dates and pay, ready for your first review.
Start the new job's record on day one
On the Move keeps the offer, your start date and the job you are leaving in one place, and when you mark the new job accepted, Your Career starts its record from the offer; create an account and choose On the Move, and the first 7 days are free, with nothing charged if you cancel before then. If you would rather look around first, the demo opens a full job hunt with no account.
Create your accountA card is needed to start the trial, and there is one free trial per person and per card.