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Practical guide
Resigning from a permanent contract takes no formal procedure, but several things are decided before you send your letter: the notice period, untaken holiday, bonuses and unemployment benefit. This guide helps you leave at the right moment without leaving money behind.
You have found another job, you want a change of direction or you simply want to leave: resigning is how you end a permanent contract (CDI) on your own initiative. It needs neither the employer's agreement nor any procedure, but it affects what you are paid and your unemployment benefit. This guide covers what to settle before you send your letter, during the notice period and on your last day.
The law requires no particular form: a resignation can even be oral. It must, however, express a clear and unequivocal intention to leave the company (service-public.gouv.fr), and writing is what proves it. Send a letter by recorded delivery with acknowledgement of receipt, or hand it over against a dated receipt: that date sets the start of your notice. An ambiguous resignation, or one given in anger, can be requalified by a judge.
The employer cannot refuse your resignation, and you do not have to give a reason. Once given, you cannot withdraw it unless they agree. You can resign at any time, including while on sick leave. In the letter, simply state that you are resigning from your post, the date and, if you wish, a request to be released from all or part of your notice.
The law does not set the length of notice for a resignation: it comes from your collective agreement or a company agreement, failing that from your contract, otherwise from custom. It runs from the day the employer receives your letter (first delivery attempt of the recorded letter, or hand delivery), and you work and are paid as usual until the end. To leave earlier, ask for a release in writing: if the employer agrees, the days not worked are not paid; if they release you on their own initiative, they still pay you for them. If you leave before the end without their agreement, they owe you nothing for the remaining days and can claim compensation for the unworked notice before the employment tribunal. The notice period guide covers usual lengths, release from notice and what happens while you work it.
A resignation gives no right to a termination payment: neither redundancy pay nor an end-of-contract bonus. Your final settlement contains:
An example calculated by the site's code: you have earned €2,600 gross a month throughout the reference period, which therefore brought in €31,200 gross, and you have 12 working days of holiday left when you go. The one-tenth method (10% of the period's pay, pro rata for the days left) gives €1,498; salary maintenance gives €1,440. The employer owes the higher one, here one tenth, i.e. €1,498 gross, paid with your last salary and subject to the same contributions and to income tax.
For your own figures, the holiday pay tool does the sums; the paid holiday guide explains both methods and how days are counted. One timing point, finally: an annual bonus paid on a fixed date may be reserved for employees still there on that day. Read its conditions before setting your leaving date: a few more days can be worth more than their salary.
Even after a resignation, the employer must give you your certificate of employment, the final settlement receipt and the certificate for France Travail, which you will need for any later benefit claim. Check the settlement line by line before signing the receipt: the final settlement guide explains how and by when to dispute an amount.
As a rule, resigning gives no right to unemployment benefit (ARE), which is for people who lose their job involuntarily (service-public.gouv.fr). A few exceptions exist:
Outside a legitimate case, resigning also means you cannot keep your company health cover (mutuelle) once the contract ends. If you are counting on benefit, suggest a rupture conventionnelle first: it gives a right to benefit and to a payout, but needs the employer's agreement, and since 1 September 2026 benefit is paid for a shorter time after one than after a dismissal. The unemployment and salary guide explains how the benefit is worked out.
Not on your own: a clear resignation is final, unless the employer agrees to let you change your mind. Put it in writing once your decision is made, not before. If it was given in anger or under pressure, so that your intention was not clear, the employment tribunal can requalify it.
No. Resigning is your decision: it needs neither the employer's agreement nor a reason. What you discuss with them is the notice period: its length is set by your collective agreement, and releasing you from it, fully or partly, requires their agreement if you are the one asking.
Yes, unless the employer agrees otherwise. Ask for a release in writing, giving the date you want to leave, and get their agreement confirmed in writing. If they accept, the days not worked are not paid; if they release you on their own initiative, they owe you pay in lieu of notice. Tell your future employer the end date of your notice as soon as you have the job offer.
No, unless your contract or collective agreement provides one. You receive your salary up to the last day, your untaken holiday and any bonuses due under their rules. That is the main difference with a rupture conventionnelle, which guarantees at least statutory redundancy pay, with no length-of-service condition.
This guide gives you a method, not legal advice: the official rules and amounts are those of the sources above, as at their date.
The site's tools and features that go with this guide: the figures there are calculated by the code, never by the AI.