Market by market
Australia
The National Employment Standards set minimum written notice (or payment in lieu at the full rate) on a four-band tenure scale. The over-45 addition sits on top. Awards and agreements can require more, and they are also what obliges an employee to give notice, the NES itself does not.
- Minimum employer notice1 to 4 weeks by tenure
- Over-45 addition+1 week (over 45, 2+ years' service)
- Payment in lieuPermitted, at the full pay rate
| Length of service | Entitlement |
|---|
| 1 year or less | 1 week |
| More than 1 year, up to 3 years | 2 weeks |
| More than 3 years, up to 5 years | 3 weeks |
| More than 5 years | 4 weeks |
- Bands read 'more than X years': at exactly 5 years the entitlement is 3 weeks, not 4.
- No NES notice for casuals, genuine fixed-term contracts or serious misconduct.
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman (NES, in force since 2010). Checked July 2026.
Canada
Ontario's Employment Standards Act scales written notice (or pay in lieu) at roughly a week per year of service, capping at 8 weeks. Courts can award longer common-law reasonable notice based on the Bardal factors, which is why Canadian termination costs are hard to predict from statute alone; the ESA figure is the floor, not the estimate. Federally regulated employers follow a separate graduated scale, 2 weeks until 3 years' service and then a week per year to the same 8-week cap.
- Ontario notice1 to 8 weeks by tenure
- Qualifying period3 months
- Federal scale2 weeks, then 1 week per year from 3 years (cap 8)
- Common lawCan exceed the ESA floor; no formula
| Length of service | Entitlement |
|---|
| Under 3 months | None |
| 3 months to under 1 year | 1 week |
| 1 to under 3 years | 2 weeks |
| 3 to under 4 years | 3 weeks |
| 4 to under 5 years | 4 weeks |
| 5 to under 6 years | 5 weeks |
| 6 to under 7 years | 6 weeks |
| 7 to under 8 years | 7 weeks |
| 8 years or more | 8 weeks (cap) |
- We publish the statutory minimums only. Common-law reasonable notice is real and often larger, but courts reject per-year formulas, so no calculator or table can state it honestly.
- Provinces vary; Ontario is the reference jurisdiction here.
Source: Ontario ESA guide (ESA 2000; federal scale from 1 Feb 2024). Checked July 2026.
New Zealand
New Zealand law sets no minimum notice period. Whatever the employment agreement says applies, and where it says nothing, notice must be fair and reasonable for the role, judged on things like length of service and how long a replacement takes to find. Employment New Zealand's own guidance points to 2 to 4 weeks as the common range.
- Statutory minimumNone
- Common practice2 to 4 weeks (guidance, not law)
- 90-day trialsNotice must be given within the trial period
- A dismissal under a valid 90-day trial generally cannot be challenged as unjustified.
- From 21 Feb 2026, employees on new agreements earning NZ$200,000 or more cannot raise an unjustified dismissal grievance, though contractual notice still applies.
Source: Employment New Zealand (Employment Relations Act 2000). Checked July 2026.
Singapore
Singapore's Employment Act scale is a fallback, not a floor. If the contract sets notice, that applies (it must be equal for employer and employee). If it does not, the statutory bands run from 1 day under 26 weeks' service to 4 weeks at 5 years or more. Either side can pay salary in lieu.
- Default range1 day to 4 weeks by tenure
- Contractual noticeOverrides the default; must be equal both ways
- Payment in lieuPermitted
| Length of service | Entitlement |
|---|
| Less than 26 weeks | 1 day |
| 26 weeks to under 2 years | 1 week |
| 2 to under 5 years | 2 weeks |
| 5 years or more | 4 weeks |
- Because the scale is only a fallback, a contract can lawfully set shorter notice than the default bands.
Source: Ministry of Manpower (Employment Act ss.10-11). Checked July 2026.
United Kingdom
Statutory minimum notice from an employer is 1 week between one month and 2 years' service, then 1 week per complete year of service up to a 12-week cap at 12 years. Employees owe at least 1 week after a month. Contracts can extend either side but never go below the statutory floor.
- Employer notice1 week per year of service (2-12 years)
- Cap12 weeks
- Employee minimum1 week
| Length of service | Entitlement |
|---|
| 1 month to 2 years | 1 week |
| 2 to 12 years | 1 week per complete year |
| 12 years or more | 12 weeks (cap) |
- The Employment Rights Act 2025 changed a lot in the UK, but not statutory notice; s.86 stands.
Source: GOV.UK (Employment Rights Act 1996 s.86). Checked July 2026.
United States
No US federal law requires notice for an individual dismissal. The WARN Act requires 60 calendar days' written notice, but only for plant closings and mass layoffs at employers with 100 or more employees, and several states run stricter mini-WARN versions. Individual notice, where it exists, comes from the contract.
- Individual dismissalNo federal notice requirement
- WARN Act60 days, mass layoffs at 100+ employee firms
- State variationMini-WARN laws in several states
- Montana is the main exception to pure at-will employment.
- Failing to give WARN notice costs up to 60 days' back pay and benefits per employee.
Source: US Department of Labor (WARN Act 1988). Checked July 2026.
Plain-English definitions in the HR Glossary: notice period, reasonable notice, garden leave, termination severance ontario.
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