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How to ask for a later start date

Offer the earliest date you can really start, ask whether it works, and get the agreed date in writing. Emails for a proposed date, an agreed date and a fixed induction.

Ghosted editorialPublished 11 min read

On this page

The email

Give your earliest real date, then ask

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi [Name],

Thank you again for the offer. My notice at my current job ends on [date], so I can start on [your date]. Would that work for the team, or is [their date] fixed?

Thanks, [Your name]

Filled in, for a team that hoped Alex could start on Monday 1 June, the day of a new starters’ training session:

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi Jo,

Thank you again for the offer. My notice at my current job ends on Friday 5 June, so I can start on 8 June. Would that work for the team, or is the 1 June training session fixed?

Thanks, Alex

Made-up details

Three things in three sentences: the reason, the date, and a question. The question matters most. “Or is the 1 June training session fixed?” tells them you’ve noticed their plan and lets them say so if it can’t move, instead of leaving them to work out how to refuse.

Only a date you can keep

Work the date out before you write: your notice, anything already booked, and any checks the new employer needs first. Asking twice is much harder than asking once.

Your situation

Three calendars, three different asks

How you ask depends on where the date stands. A date they’ve suggested is easy to move. A date you’ve both agreed is harder. A date tied to a training session for a whole group of new starters may not move at all. Find the calendar that looks like yours.

They’ve proposed a date
  • Mon 1 June The date they suggested
  • Fri 5 June Your last day at your current job
  • Mon 8 June The earliest you can start

Nothing is agreed yet, so this is the easiest ask. Reply with the 8th and the reason in a line, and ask whether it works.

A date is already agreed
  • Mon 1 June The start date you agreed
  • Fri 12 June Your notice now ends
  • Mon 15 June The earliest you can now start

Ask the day you know, say what changed, and offer to keep the 1st if it matters to them. The longer you wait, the more plans move with it.

The induction can’t move
  • Mon 1 June Training for all new starters
  • Mon 8 June The earliest you can start
  • Mon 29 June The next training session

Ask whether the training is fixed. If it is, ask what you’d miss by starting on the 8th, or whether you could join the next session.

Each needs its own email. The first is at the top of this page; the other two are below. All three say the same three things in different orders: the date you can do, why, and a question that leaves the decision with them.

The other two

When the date is agreed, or the training can’t move

Both are replies in the thread you already have with the person who made the offer. Replace everything in square brackets.

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi [Name],

I’m writing about my start date. We agreed [agreed date], but [what changed, in a line]. The earliest I can now start is [new date]. Would that work for the team? If [agreed date] really matters, let me know and I’ll see what I can do.

Thanks, [Your name]

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi [Name],

Thanks for the details of the induction on [induction date]. My notice ends on [date], so the earliest I can start is [your date]. Is the induction fixed? If it is, could I join the next one, or catch up on what I’d miss?

Thanks, [Your name]

Filled in, the first one reads like this:

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi Jo,

I’m writing about my start date. We agreed Monday 1 June, but my manager has asked me to work my full notice, which ends on Friday 12 June. The earliest I can now start is Monday 15 June. Would that work for the team? If 1 June really matters, let me know and I’ll see what I can do.

Thanks, Alex

Made-up details

Start here

Work out the earliest date you can actually start

Not the date you’d like, and not the date that sounds keen. The earliest date you can really be there and ready. If you ask for that and they agree, you never have to ask again.

  1. Check your notice period. It’s usually in your contract. Gov.uk’s guidance on handing in notice starts there too: check your contract for your employer’s policy. Count from the day you’ll actually resign, not from today.
  2. Ask before you assume. Your current employer may let you leave earlier, or may want you to work every day of it. Don’t promise the new team a date that depends on an answer you haven’t had.
  3. Add what you’ve already booked. A holiday, a move, a course. Say so now; it’s much easier than mentioning it in your second week.
  4. Check what the new employer needs first. References, a right-to-work check, a background check. If the offer depends on them, ask how long they usually take.
Made-up examples: what sets your earliest date, and where to find it
  • What sets the date: Your notice period

    Where to find it: Your current contract, or your offer letter from that job

  • What sets the date: Leaving earlier than your notice

    Where to find it: A conversation with your current manager

  • What sets the date: Holiday or a move already booked

    Where to find it: Your own calendar

  • What sets the date: Checks the offer depends on

    Where to find it: The offer letter, or a question to the recruiter

  • What sets the date: A fixed training session

    Where to find it: The new employer’s onboarding email, or a question to them

A break between jobs

A week off between jobs is a fine reason for a later date, and you don’t have to dress it up. “I’d like to take a week between roles” is honest, and most teams would rather that than someone arriving tired.

Line by line

The three parts of the request

  1. The reason, in a line

    “My notice at my current job ends on Friday 5 June.” A notice period explains itself. You don’t owe them more detail than that.

  2. The date

    “So I can start on 8 June.” One date, the earliest you can keep. Not “sometime in June”, which only starts another round of emails.

  3. The question

    “Would that work for the team, or is the 1 June training session fixed?” It asks rather than announces, and it shows you know what their date was for.

What it leaves out: apologies, a list of reasons, and anything that sounds like a condition. “I can only accept if I start on the 8th” turns a scheduling question into an ultimatum. If the date really would change your answer, say that in a separate, plain conversation.

Phone or email?

If you’re already talking on the phone, raise it there, then confirm by email. Otherwise email is better: they can check the team’s calendar before they answer.

Their side

What the team is weighing when you ask

Your email lands with someone who has to check a few things before they can say yes. Knowing what they are helps you write a request that’s easy to agree to.

Who covers the work until you arrive

A week later is a week more for the people already stretched. A specific date lets them plan it; an open one doesn’t.

What’s booked around your first day

A laptop, accounts, someone to show you around, a training session. Most can move. A session for a whole group of new starters usually can’t.

Whether their date was a guess

Often the first date anyone mentions is the earliest possible, not a deadline. Asking “is it fixed?” lets them say so.

How sure you sound

A clear date with a short reason reads as someone planning properly. “Maybe later in June?” can read as doubt about the job itself.

The fallback

If they can’t move the date

Sometimes the date really is fixed: a training session for a whole group, a client launch, a manager away for a month. A no to the date isn’t a no to you. Ask what’s possible instead.

Ask to leave sooner

  • Ask your current manager whether you can finish early
  • Offer a handover plan so it’s easier to say yes
  • Tell the new team when you’ll know

Join the fixed part

  • Ask whether you could attend the training and start properly later
  • Or join remotely, if it’s run that way
  • Get any arrangement in writing

Take the next one

  • Ask when the next training session is
  • Ask what starting then would mean for the role
  • Decide whether that works for you

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi [Name],

Thanks for explaining. I understand [their date] can’t move. I’ll ask my current employer whether I can finish by [earlier date], and I’ll let you know by [day].

Thanks, [Your name]

Then keep that promise. If your current employer says no, tell the new team the same day and ask about the next session. If the start date was part of why you were weighing this offer against another, put both side by side before you decide.

What if I can’t start on their date at all?

Say so plainly, give the earliest date you can, and ask whether there’s any way to make it work. If there isn’t, it’s better to know before you accept than after you’ve resigned.

Once it’s agreed

Get the agreed date in writing

A “sure, the 8th is fine” on the phone is good news. Put it in an email the same day, and ask for the offer letter to match. The start date is easy to get wrong in paperwork, because the first date anyone mentioned tends to stick.

SubjectRe: their thread

Hi [Name],

Thanks for agreeing to [new start date]. Just to confirm, I’ll start on [new start date]. Could the start date in my offer letter be updated to match?

Thanks, [Your name]

In the UK, the start date is one of the details gov.uk lists for the written statement employers give on the first day. If the letter still shows the old date, ask for it to be corrected; our template for when the offer letter says something different has the email.

What goes wrong

The mistakes people make with start dates

Agreeing on the call, then thinking

Saying yes to the 1st because it felt awkward to say no, then realising your notice ends on the 5th. Say “let me check my notice period and come back to you today.”

Resigning before the date is settled

If the new employer can’t move their date and you’ve already told your manager the 12th, you’re stuck between two fixed dates.

A vague date

“Early June” gets “we’d prefer the 1st”. A specific date gets a yes or a no.

Asking late

Moving a date the week before means they may have booked a laptop, a desk and a week of meetings. Ask the day you know.

Leaving it on the phone

A date agreed in a call and never written down is the one that shows up wrong in the contract.

Last look

A checklist before you send

Questions

Questions people ask about asking for a later start date

Will asking for a later start date make them withdraw the offer?

A clear request with a real reason, such as your notice period, is a normal part of accepting an offer. Ask for a specific date, ask whether it works, and be ready to discuss what they need.

How much later can I ask for?

As late as your real situation needs, and no later. A notice period is easy to explain. Several extra weeks on top is a bigger ask; say why, and expect them to check with the team.

Do I have to give a reason?

A short one helps: your notice period, a holiday already booked, a week between jobs. You don’t have to give details beyond that.

Should I ask before or after I accept?

Before, or in the same message as your yes. Once you’ve accepted their date, moving it is a bigger request.

Can I ask for a later start to take a break between jobs?

Yes. “I’d like to take a week between roles” is a fair reason, and you can say it as plainly as that. Give the date you’d start after the break, and ask whether it works.

What if they can’t move the date?

Ask what’s possible instead: whether your current employer will release you sooner, whether you could join a fixed training session and start properly later, or when the next one is.

What if I’ve already agreed a date and need to change it?

Ask the day you know, say what changed in a line, and give the earliest new date you can keep. Then confirm the new date in writing.

Keep the start date you agreed.

Keep the offer, the agreed start date and the email that confirmed it on the job, next to your notice dates.

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