How to resign in Egypt under the new labour law: 3 months' notice and the certified letter

What are the steps?

• Read your contract. Is it open-ended or fixed term? Does it set a notice longer than 3 months? Longer is allowed (Article 161).
• Write your resignation and sign it. A special agent can sign for you (Article 167).
• Get it certified by the labour authority. The law requires this. The office that covers your workplace can tell you what it needs, so ask first. We couldn't confirm the exact office or its paper list on an official page.
• Hand it to your employer and keep a dated copy, with their signature or a delivery receipt.
• Keep working. Your service ends only when your employer accepts, and you must carry on until they decide (Article 167).
• Your employer has 10 days from the day you filed it. If they say nothing, it counts as accepted (Article 167).

A sample resignation letter

Write it in Arabic if it's going to a government office. Keep it short and put no complaints in it. This is the English sense of what it should say.

Date: [day, month, year]
To: [employer's name], Human Resources

I resign from my post as [job title], under Article 167
of Labour Law 14 of 2025. My notice starts today, and
my last working day will be [date, 3 months on], unless
you release me from all or part of the notice.

Name:
National ID:
Signature:

Do I really have to work 3 months?

On an open-ended contract, plan on it. Article 156 says either side gives written notice 3 months before ending the contract, and Article 161 says you can't agree to drop or shorten it. But the same article lets your employer release you from all or part of it when you're the one leaving. So ask, in writing, and get the answer in writing.

The law has two clocks here: 10 days for your employer to decide on the resignation, and 3 months of notice. It doesn't spell out in plain words how they fit together, so ask the labour office. Don't take it from us or from a colleague's story.

Your contract stays alive during notice, and both of you keep your duties (Article 160). Notice can't start while you're on leave, and sick leave pauses it (Article 159). An employer can also tell you not to come in during notice, but it has to keep paying you (Article 163).

Can I change my mind?

Yes, for a short time. You can withdraw within 10 days of being told your employer accepted. It has to be in writing and certified, the same way as the resignation. If you do that, the law treats the resignation as if it never happened (Article 167).

What if I just stop going?

Being absent without a valid reason for more than 20 scattered days in a year, or more than 10 days in a row, counts as resigning. But your employer must first send you a registered warning letter, after 10 days or 5 days of absence (Article 166). So don't treat this as a shortcut. Under Article 164, if you're the one who leaves, the contract ends when you stop work, and you may lose the clean exit you'd want for your insurance record and your next job.

What if my employer is the reason I'm leaving?

If your employer breaks a core duty under the law or your contract, or if you or your family are assaulted by your employer or someone acting for them, you can end the contract yourself. The law then treats that as your employer ending it with no lawful reason (Article 168), and unlawful ending means at least 2 months' pay for each year of service (Article 165). This is serious, so keep evidence and talk to the labour office or a lawyer before you act.

What am I owed when I leave?

• All money you're owed, within 7 days of asking for it (Article 108).
• Pay for your unused annual leave (Article 125).
• An end-of-job certificate with your start date, end date, job and benefits. It shows your wage and the reason you left if you ask for that, and it comes within 15 days of asking. You can also ask for a free certificate of your experience (Article 175).
• Your papers and certificates back, and something showing you're cleared, as soon as you ask (Article 175).
• Form 6, so your insurance record shows the job has ended. Ask your employer for a copy. You'll need it for your next labour office certificate.

Be careful what you sign on your last day. A paper that gives up your rights is void if you sign it during the job or within 3 months after it ends (Article 6). Even so, read everything, and don't sign anything you don't understand.

• End of service pay, case by case
• Compare two job offers

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