Email template · Leave and attendance
Leave approval email
In short
A leave approval email confirms that an employee's time-off request is approved and records the details: exact dates, leave type, hours or days deducted, remaining balance, any coverage plan and who to contact if plans change. Below are templates for standard PTO, a short reply, partial approval and hourly or shift-based teams.
When to send it: Reply within two business days of the request, or sooner if the leave starts within a week. For shift-based teams, approve before the schedule for that period is published.
Leave approval email: 4 versions
Standard PTO approval
SubjectApproved: your time off, [Start Date] to [End Date]
Hi [First Name], Your request for [Leave Type] from [Start Date] to [End Date] is approved. Details for your records: - Days off: [Number of Days] ([Hours Deducted] hours) - Return date: [Return Date] - Balance after this leave: [Remaining Balance] Before you go, please [hand over open items to Coverage Name / set your out-of-office / update the team calendar]. If your plans change, let me know as soon as you can so we can adjust the schedule. Enjoy the time off. [Manager Name] [Title], [Company]
Short reply
SubjectRe: Time off request [Start Date] to [End Date]
Hi [First Name], Approved. You're off [Start Date] to [End Date] and back on [Return Date]. I've updated the team calendar. Have a good break. [Manager Name]
Partial approval
SubjectYour leave request: approved for [Approved Dates]
Hi [First Name], Thanks for sending your request early. I can approve [Approved Dates], but not [Declined Dates]. [Brief reason, e.g. we're already at the maximum number of people off that week for the quarter-end close.] A couple of options: - Take [Approved Dates] as approved, or - Move the remaining days to [Alternative Dates], which I can approve today. Let me know which works best and I'll confirm in the system. Happy to talk it through if neither option works. [Manager Name] [Title], [Company]
Hourly / shift-based team
SubjectTime off approved: [Start Date] to [End Date]
Hi [First Name], Your time off is approved. Off: [Start Date] to [End Date] Next scheduled shift: [Return Date], [Shift Time] PTO hours used: [Hours Deducted] PTO balance after: [Remaining Balance] Your shifts in that period have been removed from the schedule. If you want to pick up extra shifts before or after, talk to [Scheduler Name]. [Manager Name] [Site Name] Operations
Subject line ideas
- Approved: your time off, [Start Date] to [End Date]
- Your leave request is approved
- PTO approved for [Start Date] to [End Date]
- Vacation request approved
- Re: Time off request, approved
- Leave confirmed: back on [Return Date]
SMS and WhatsApp version
Hi [First Name], your time off [Start Date] to [End Date] is approved. Your next shift is [Return Date] at [Shift Time]. PTO left after this: [Remaining Balance] hrs. - [Manager Name]
Placeholders to replace: [First Name], [Leave Type], [Start Date], [End Date], [Return Date], [Number of Days], [Hours Deducted], [Remaining Balance], [Approved Dates], [Declined Dates], [Alternative Dates], [Shift Time], [Scheduler Name], [Site Name], [Manager Name], [Title], [Company]
Why put an approval in writing at all
A thumbs-up on a chat message feels like enough until payroll deducts the wrong number of hours, or two supervisors both think they approved the same week off for four agents. A written approval with dates, leave type and hours is the record HR falls back on when a balance is disputed, when someone is marked absent by mistake, or when an employee says "my manager said it was fine."
In most organizations the leave system of record is an HRIS or a workforce management tool, and the email mirrors what is entered there. If your approvals live in a workflow with approval steps, the email can be generated from the approved request so the two never disagree. Where approvals still happen by email, HR should be copied or the manager should enter the leave the same day.
What the approval should confirm
Keep it short, but make it complete enough to settle any later question:
- Exact dates, first day off and the return date. "Next week" causes problems.
- Leave type: PTO, vacation, sick, personal, unpaid, floating holiday. Payroll treats them differently.
- Hours or days deducted, especially for part-time and shift workers whose days vary in length.
- Remaining balance after the leave, if your system shows it. It heads off the "I thought I had more" conversation.
- Coverage or handover, in one line.
- Who to tell if plans change.
Do not ask why someone wants vacation. For sick leave, and in states and cities with paid sick leave laws, employers are often limited in what documentation they can require for short absences. Rules vary by state and locality, so check before asking for notes.
Response time and fairness
Two business days is a sensible standard. Employees booking flights or childcare cannot wait two weeks for an answer, and a slow approval often turns into a resentful one. For contact centers and other scheduled operations, the real deadline is schedule publication: approve or decline before the schedule for that period goes out.
Apply the same rules to everyone. Many operations cap how many people can be off per shift or per team, approve in order of submission, and black out peak periods such as open enrollment season, holiday retail or quarter-end close. Write those rules down and refer to them. When two employees ask for the same week, the one who asked first and was approved first should not lose the time because a more senior colleague asked later, unless your written policy says seniority wins.
Partial approvals and declines
A partial approval should name exactly which days are approved, which are not, and why, then offer an alternative. That turns a no into a scheduling conversation. When the answer is a full no, use the leave rejection email instead, which covers reasons, alternatives and how to keep the conversation respectful.
Be careful with requests that may be protected leave. If an employee mentions their own serious health condition, a family member's, a new child or military family needs, the request may fall under the Family and Medical Leave Act (for eligible employees of covered employers) or state family leave laws. Those requests should go to HR, not be approved or declined as ordinary PTO by a manager.
Tracking and the return
Approved leave should show up wherever absences are tracked, so the employee is not flagged as a no-show on day one of their vacation. If your attendance tracking is separate from your leave records, someone has to reconcile them before the leave starts. That reconciliation is where most wrongly recorded absences come from.
For longer leaves, plan the welcome back in advance. A return to work email sent a few days before the return date covers schedule, any changes while they were away and who to see first.
Mistakes to avoid
- Approving verbally and never recording it. The disagreement surfaces months later at payroll.
- Approving more time than the employee has accrued without saying the excess will be unpaid.
- Inconsistent caps between supervisors on the same floor.
- Asking intrusive questions about the reason for personal or sick time.
- Forgetting to update the schedule, so the employee is called in on a day they were approved off.
Frequently asked questions
How do I reply to a leave request email to approve it?
Say clearly that it is approved, restate the exact dates and return date, note the leave type and hours deducted, and mention any handover. Two or three lines is often enough, as long as the dates are explicit.
What is a good PTO approval email?
One that confirms dates, leave type, hours used and remaining balance, and tells the employee who to contact if plans change. It should match exactly what is entered in the leave or payroll system.
How quickly should a manager approve a vacation request?
Within two business days in most teams, and always before the schedule covering those dates is published. Faster is better when the leave is close or involves travel bookings.
Can a manager approve only part of a leave request?
Yes. Name the approved and declined dates, give the business reason and offer alternative dates. Apply the same rules you use for everyone so the decision is consistent and defensible.
Should HR be copied on leave approval emails?
If leave is not recorded in an HRIS or workforce tool automatically, yes. Otherwise HR usually only needs to be involved for extended, unpaid or possibly protected leave such as FMLA.