Vacation Request Email

Contrary to popular belief, vacations are not a luxury but a necessity for a mental and physical balance. It is easy to abandon the memories of the great summer holidays as a kid and be thrown into the constant hassle of trying constantly to meet up with responsibilities as an adult – and Americans are generally terrible at considering anything otherwise, because it also translates to financial and physical planning that most people aren’t quite up for.

Sometimes, not taking a vacation does more harm than good; and it is only a matter of time until you burn out from stress.

If you are thinking about taking a vacation however, good for you! – here are a few tips to get those vacation days approved so that you can be out and lounging away peacefully in no distant time.

What is a Vacation Request Email?

A vacation request is a written appeal from an employee to his/her employer or company management for time of work for personal reasons or for relaxation.

A vacation request email demonstrates employee professionalism and includes vital information relevant to the request. The tone of the email is also expected to be formal and courteous as it would determine whether the request for the time off work would be responded to positively; the email also serves to document when the request was made and what dates the request will include.

Components of the Vacation Request Email

A vacation leave is also known as an annual leave, most companies have policies that give their workers a specified number of days of work every year for vacation. In many cases, you would have already discussed the vacation request with your employer – but even so, a formal email is necessary – and a reference to the verbal request in the email if desired;

The email should contain the following details;

• The Purpose of the Email:

It is often advised that the email should be opened with the reason why you are writing in the first place – it is important to note that the recipient of the email is preoccupied with a number of other activities and not getting right to the point might further agitate them.

The purpose for writing should be stated clearly and concisely after all salutations have been done.

• The Reason For The Request:

While it is sufficient to state that a vacation leave is part of your entitlements for a specific number of days per year, it helps to state why it is important for the leave to be taken at that exact time of the request. This would help your employer make his/her decision about approving or rejecting it. A good place to begin could be with stating the physical and psychological impact rest would have on you, and how it may also help to boost productivity.

• The Dates Spanning the Period of The Requested Leave:

State the exact dates that you plan to be away – it is important not to be vague about the amount of time that you need to be away and being specific about dates will help your employer and colleagues plan ahead about how they will handle your work in your absence. Therefore, if at all possible, try to be as specific as you can in your letter about the dates that you plan to spend away from work.

• A Proposed Way To Handle Your Work In Your Absence:

The email should also state that you are aware of your responsibilities and that you fully understand that before you leave, they may like to discuss how your work would be taken care of in your absence. Include in your letter, details about how you think your work will be taken care of (e.g. by leaving detailed notes for your team members on current projects that will be due during your absence and leaving contact information so that team members can reach you in an emergency)

A Few Additional Tips That Would Make Your Boss Say Yes To a Vacation Request  Email–

• Work out your manager’s perspective first to set the stage for a positive conversation It is likely that your vacation request is one piece of a larger puzzle that has to fit together – consider all that they might be dealing with in that time before making the request, taking their perspective into account helps to plan a request that is easier to grant.

• Ask your manager well in advance – this isn’t to say that the timing of the request might be precisely accurate, but it would resonate with your boss that you are trying to be accommodating and thoughtful.

• Speak pro-actively about how your usual responsibilities will be handled in your absence and if it works for the people with whom you might be going on said vacation, consider an alternative plan, which you could present to the management while requesting the leave, so that they would decide what works best for them.

• If you work where people don’t take their vacations, requesting one may raise an eyebrow but If it’s part of your compensation and you want to take it, be ready to speak positively about it and research throughly on the company’s policy on it before making requests.

Sample Vacation Request Email

Here are some sample vacation request emails that could serve as a template for your request, you may choose to attach additional documentation to aid its approval –

To: Manager_Name@business_name.com

From: Employee@business_name.com

Subject: Medical Leave of Absence Request

Dear Manager’s Name,

Dear (Managers name),

I am writing to inform you of my intention to commence my annual leave, for a 10 day long vacation that would run from November 24 2020 to December 1 2020.  My family and I would like to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with our extended family back east and we need to start making arrangements now in order to make the trip as comfortable as well.

In anticipation of my vacation, I have already started to put together all of the necessary templates I will need to fill in for my current project. I have also discussed my vacation with my colleagues and have several people who are more than willing to attend to my usually assigned tasks while I am gone.  However, I am willing to take the time to take on any other additional tasks before I leave, if nessesary.

Your response to this issue would be greatly appreciated so that I can begin to make the necessary arrangements.

Thanks in anticipation of your favourable response

Sincerely,

John Doe

Marketing.

Sample Vacation Request Letter

You may be required to write a formal letter for the purpose of documentation – here is a sample that you could use as a template – the letter should be sent by certified mail so as to provide evidence of the time and date that the letter was sent and received.

               Employee’s Name
Employee’s Address
City, State, Zip Code
            DATE

Supervisor or HR person’s Name
Title
Company’s Name
Company’s Address
City, State, Zip Code

Request for Annual Vacation Leave

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am wrting to formally request to commence my annual leave, which I am hoping would span from (date – date). My family and I are planning a vacation for the first time in five years, and we are thoroughly looking forward to it.

All the projects that I am working on currently will be duly completed before the leaving date. I have asked other members of my team to make sure that all of my responsibilities are covered while I’m away, and they have agreed. My team leader has agreed with my vacation request. I have enclosed a letter from her.

Thank you for considering my request. Please let me know if my vacation request has been approved at your earliest convenience.

Thanks in anticipation of your favorable response.

Sincerely,
Employee’s Signature