This article will tell you all the ins and outs of writing subject lines for resignation emails. We’ve gathered the must-know tips, as well as the best examples of resignation email subject lines, to inspire you.
According to statistics, just recently, in November 2024, around 3.1 million people resigned from their jobs in the US. All of these people used resignation emails in one way or another. Even when quitting a job, it is important to leave the right impression. It’s time to talk about subject lines for such emails, tips for writing them better, and examples that can help you create your own subject line that will be noticed by HR or your team lead in their inboxes.
What is a resignation email?
Let’s start with the basics. A resignation email is a formal email in which you express your intention to end your employment with an organization. This email begins the process of your voluntary resignation from your job. Besides this, though, why is it important?
Helps the company prepare for your leaving
This email provides the necessary notice to your employer that you are leaving and gives the company some wiggle room for tweaking their work processes accordingly. For example, your work may need to be distributed among other employees while the company is searching for your replacement. All of this takes time to prepare and implement, and this email gives your employer that time.
One of the main rules for writing such an email is to warn your employer about your leaving sufficiently in advance. Your resignation should not be abrupt and should not disrupt all processes. This is part of corporate ethics, which allows you to maintain your good reputation and ensure that the company would not lose productivity. The window of time between the email and your departure gives the company the time it needs to adjust its work processes.
Perhaps you will be asked to complete all ongoing projects or transfer them to other colleagues or interns, with the requisite training. Besides that, the team will have time to implement your offboarding process, such as to conduct interviews and joint unit events. All of this will allow the company to make your departure as smooth as possible.
Alina Okhremenko,
Serves as a record
A resignation email can also serve as a record of your last working day. The fact that both you and your employer will have the email can help settle future issues, if any, such as regarding your payment for your last working period.
Leaves your contact information for post-departure questions
If your company uses internal communication tools and messengers that you won’t have access to after resigning, your resignation email can be a great bridge between you and the company after your departure. It’s a good move to leave your contact information in case the company needs to contact you after you leave.
Your contact information in your resignation email can be useful for settling post-resignation issues. For example, if you are leaving to move to another country and have with you some equipment rented from the company, your contact information will help the company discuss with you whether you should return the equipment or they would sell it to you. In addition, the person who replaced you may have questions about some aspects of your past work.
Of course, we must not forget payment concerns. If you will leave before the standard payday, the company will need to contact you to arrange for you to be paid for the days you worked before your official resignation date.
Alina Okhremenko,
A resignation email has clear functions. A correctly composed resignation email helps you leave your previous job on good terms with your employer and colleagues and, in general, leave a positive impression with the resignation intent made in this form. In addition, you make a resignation announcement that warns the company sufficiently in advance and significantly helps it prepare for needed adjustments in its workflow.
Sample resignation email subject lines to inspire you
A resignation email, like any other email, must have a good subject line. Besides immediately indicating what the email body is about, this subject line allows the HR manager to find the email quickly in a pile. We've prepared the following examples of resignation email subject lines to give you a better idea of what yours should look like, depending on the type of resignation email you want to send.
Resignation email subject lines
The following are standard resignation email subject lines that should fit the standard resignation letter you want to send:
- Resignation notice – [Your name]
- Resignation email – Effective [Date of the last working day]
- Resignation notification – [Your name]
- My resignation from [Company name]
- Notice: Resignation effective immediately
- Resignation announcement – [Your name], [Position]
- Stepping down from my role at [Company name]
- Formal resignation request [Date of your last working day]
- Ending my journey with [Company name]
Resignation email subject lines for booking a meeting
The following subject lines will do better for resignation emails requesting a meeting to answer all questions about your departure.
- Request for a resignation meeting on [Meeting date]
- Meeting request: Planning my resignation from [Company name]
- Discussion request: Future resignation
- Scheduling a resignation conversation
- Resignation meeting: Let’s discuss the details
- Do you have time to discuss the resignation plan?
- Request to discuss my resignation steps
- Let’s schedule a meeting regarding my resignation
- Request for a resignation conversation on [Meeting date]
- Scheduling a meeting to plan my resignation
To make your resignation email with a meeting request even more impactful, check out our dedicated guide to its design and content here:
Resignation follow-up email subject lines
If your resignation email is left unanswered, these follow-up email subject lines should do the trick.
- Follow-up on my resignation notice
- Checking in on my resignation request
- Follow-up: Resignation on [Date of your last working day]
- Next steps following my resignation
- Resignation follow-up: Confirmation needed
- Following up: [Your name] resignation plan
- Follow-up: Resignation details on [Date of the last working day]
- Resignation notification follow-up
- Clarifying the resignation request sent earlier
- Follow-up: Coordination for my resignation
Tips for writing proper resignation email subject lines
You have a new wave of inspiration, so now, it’s time to strengthen it with some tips for writing your resignation announcement email subject lines by the book.
Include your name
One good move is to add your name. This approach clearly indicates who is resigning. It also makes the email look professional, showing that you are taking the initiative and are officially communicating your decision. In addition, it can reduce the likelihood that your email will be ignored.
It is also worth considering that team leads and HR managers receive a lot of emails. Thus, putting your name in the subject line helps quickly differentiate your email in their inboxes.
Mention your resignation date
Another good touch is to add your planned resignation date to the subject line. This way, you make it clear when your last day will be and help the company prepare for it properly (i.e., start searching for a new candidate for the position, allocate the workload to other employees, etc.).
This is a good gesture of your care for the company even if you are leaving it.
It is quite important to indicate your resignation date. However, you must also consider how you present this date. A categorical tone can create a negative impression of you as an employee, as if you decided everything for everyone.
The most correct and professional solution would be to write the date of your desired last working day. Then, settle with your employer all issues that may come up regarding this date, if any.
In addition, when choosing a resignation date, you must consider both the terms of your contract with the company (if any) and the local legislation regarding employee resignations.
Alina Okhremenko,
Keep a professional tone
Whatever your reasons for leaving may be, your subject line for a formal resignation email should always maintain a professional tone. Such a tone will put you in the best light. It will reflect your honesty and respect for both the person reading the email and the company as a whole, and show that you are handling the situation maturely even if your personal reason for leaving is negative.
If you are leaving the company on good terms and have a long history in it, you can also sprinkle a bit of a positive tone in your resignation email. It’s always a welcome move.
Avoid a casual tone or humor
Using humor and informal language in the workplace is always like walking on thin ice. Such an approach is highly likely to give you a not-so-good reputation.
By the same token, including humor in the subject line of a resignation message can be considered unprofessional and disrespectful to your former colleagues, as it may seem that you do not take your resignation and its consequences seriously.
Casual communication with humor should only be considered if the company’s corporate ethics allow it and you are leaving on good terms (for example, due to retirement).
Wrapping up
Even in such a simple case as resignation, it is worth creating a subject line responsibly because it directly affects your reputation. Regardless of the reasons for your departure, the subject line should be formal and clear, demonstrating your serious attitude toward the situation, as well as your respect for the company and the time you devoted to it.
