Free Leave Request Form Template (Word & PDF)

What Is an Employee Leave Form?

A leave request form is a document employees use to formally request time away from work. It gives employees a consistent way to communicate their leave request and gives the manager or HR team the information needed to review it.

The same document may also be called an employee leave request form, absence request form, or leave application form.

Although the terminology differs, the purpose is similar: record who is requesting time off, when they will be away, what type of leave applies, and whether the request was approved. A standardized leave application form also creates a clearer record than an informal conversation or message.

What Should a Leave Form Include?

1. Employee Information

Record the information needed to identify the employee and route the request to the correct manager.

Common fields include:

• Employee name
• Employee ID
• Department or team
• Manager or supervisor
• Date of request

2. Leave Type

Let employees identify the applicable category.

Examples include:

• Vacation or PTO
• Sick leave
• Personal leave
• Bereavement leave
• Parental leave
• Unpaid leave
• Other company-approved leave

Use the same terminology that appears in your organization's leave policy.

3. Requested Leave Dates

Record:

• First day of leave
• Last day of leave
• Expected return date
• Total working days or hours requested

For shorter absences, provide full-day and half-day options.

4. Reason or Notes

A general notes field can provide useful context when appropriate.

Avoid requiring employees to disclose unnecessary personal or medical information. The information your organization may request can depend on the type of leave, your policy, and applicable employment law.

5. Work Coverage

For planned absences, ask employees to identify any important handover information.

That can include:

• Backup or coverage person
• Important responsibilities
• Upcoming deadlines
• Client or project notes

6. Manager Approval

The leave application form should clearly record the final decision.

Include:

• Approved
• Denied
• Changes required
• Approved duration
• Approver name or signature

How to Use the Leave Request Form

1. Download the Template

Choose the editable Word file or printable PDF.

If needed, customize the Word version with your company name, branding, leave categories, or policy requirements.

2. Complete the Employee Details

Add the employee's name, department, ID, and manager.

3. Select the Leave Type

Choose vacation, PTO, sick leave, personal leave, unpaid leave, or another category used by your organization.

4. Enter the Requested Dates

Add the start date, end date, expected return date, and total days or hours requested. For partial-day leave, select the appropriate half-day option.

5. Add a Handover Plan When Needed

For planned absences, record who will cover important work and any tasks or deadlines that need attention.

6. Submit the Form for Approval

Send the completed form to the manager, HR team, or other person responsible for reviewing leave.

7. Record the Decision

The approver marks the request as approved, denied, or requiring changes and records the final dates and duration. For occasional requests, this manual process can work well. When requests become frequent, however, checking balances, finding old forms, updating attendance, and tracking approvals manually can become the harder part.

Employee Leave Request Form Best Practices

Keep the Form Short

Only request information your organization actually needs to process leave. A longer form does not automatically create a better approval process.

Match the Form to Your Leave Policy

The leave categories, notice requirements, approval process, and available allowances on the form should match your company's policy.

Make the Approval Status Clear

Employees should be able to distinguish between:

• A request being submitted
• A manager seeing the request
• A request being approved

Submitting a leave form should not automatically imply approval unless your policy says otherwise.

Keep Approved Requests

Store the final version according to your organization's HR and recordkeeping practices. This creates a record of the dates and duration that were actually approved.

Respect Employee Privacy

Do not use a general leave request form to collect unnecessary medical or highly sensitive personal information. For protected or legally regulated leave, additional processes or official documentation may be required.

Plan Work Coverage

For planned time off, encourage employees to identify responsibilities that need coverage before the leave begins.

Common Leave Request Form Mistakes to Avoid

• Relying on Verbal Approval: A verbal “yes” may be easy to forget or misunderstand. Record the final decision on the form.
• Using Different Forms for Every Manager: If managers collect different information, employees may receive inconsistent treatment. Use one standard form and process whenever possible.
• Forgetting Half-Day Leave: Not every absence lasts a full day. Include partial-day options when your company allows them.
• Mixing Approved Leave with Unexplained Absence: Approved time off and unplanned absence should be recorded clearly and consistently.
• Asking for Too Much Personal Information: Only request information that is relevant to the leave process and permitted under your policies and applicable law.
• Forgetting to Update Leave Balances: With a manual form, someone may still need to deduct approved leave from the employee's available balance. This becomes increasingly difficult as your team grows.

Leave Request Form vs. Apploye