Do I need a form, or is an email enough?

Either works if your manager agrees. The form suits teams that keep signed records. The email is quicker and has the same details. If your manager uses Time Off Keeper, send the email, because it reads the email’s text, not attachments.

How much notice should I give?

Follow your company’s policy or handbook. If it doesn’t say, ask as soon as you know your dates, and earlier for long breaks or busy weeks, so your manager has time to arrange cover. For a sick day, tell your manager as soon as you can.

What’s the difference between PTO, vacation and leave?

PTO, or paid time off, is often one pool of paid days for vacation, personal days and sometimes sick days. Vacation is time off you plan. Leave usually means a longer absence, such as parental or medical leave, which often has its own rules and forms, so ask HR. On this form, vacation goes under Holiday, sick days under Sick and anything else under Other.

Does it work in Word and Google Docs?

Yes. The Word file opens in Word. For Google Docs, upload it to Google Drive and open it there. The form tables and highlighted placeholders come across.

What happens after I send it?

Your manager approves or declines it, tells you, and records it in their time off tracker. If they use Time Off Keeper, it logs your email in their PTO tracker as New and flags any days when too many people are off. It never approves anything. Your manager still decides and replies.

Time Off Request Form Template for Word, Google Docs and Email

This free time off request form has what a manager needs to decide on a request, from the type of time off and the dates to who covers the work, with a section for the decision. Download it for Word or Google Docs, or copy the email version into a new email.

Time off request form

Fill in every section above the manager’s decision. Give the form to your manager at least [the notice your team asks for] before your first day off.

Employee details

Name
Email
Team
Manager

Time off requested

Type of time off is Holiday for vacation, Sick, or Other for anything else. For one day off, write the same date as the first and last day. For a half day, write 0.5 days, or the hours, and say morning or afternoon.

Type of time off
First day off
Last day off
Days or hours
Reason (optional)

Cover arrangements

Covered by
Handoff notes

Employee signature

Signature
Date

Manager’s decision

For the manager. Check who else is off on these days, then decide. Tell the employee, and set the request’s Status in your time off tracker, such as the free PTO tracker template.

Approved or declined
Note
Signature
Date

Email version

To ask by email instead, copy this into a new email to your manager. Keep the five detail lines as they are, so the request is quick to log.

Time off request email

Subject: Time off request: [dates]

Hi [Manager’s name],

I’d like to request time off:

Type: [Holiday, Sick or Other]
From: [First day off, YYYY-MM-DD]
To: [Last day off, YYYY-MM-DD]
Days: [Working days off, or 0.5 for a half day]
Note: [Morning or afternoon for a half day, and who covers my work]

Please let me know if that works.

Thanks,
[Your name]

The whole template. Replace the words in [brackets] with your own. Updated 14 Nov 2026.

What goes in each section

Employee details	Your name and work email, written the same way every time, so all your requests add up in one place. Then your team and the manager who approves your time off.
Time off requested	Holiday, Sick or Other, then the first and last day off as YYYY-MM-DD. Count working days only, with 0.5 for a half day, or write the hours if your team counts hours. The reason is optional.
Cover arrangements	Who covers your work while you’re out, and what you’ll finish or hand off before you go. Ask them before you name them.
Employee signature	Sign and date it the day you hand it in. On paper, sign by hand. In Word or Google Docs, type your name.
Manager’s decision	For the manager: approved or declined, a short note on what you checked or why you said no, then your signature and the date.
Email version	The same request as an email. Replace the words in brackets and keep the Type, From, To, Days and Note lines, so it can be logged as it is.

Example: Time off request form, filled in

A fictional example, filled in. The names and details are made up.

Time off request form

Fill in every section above the manager’s decision. Give the form to your manager at least one week before your first day off.

Employee details

Name: Ana Silva
Email: ana@greenleafstudio.example
Team: Design
Manager: Priya Nair

Time off requested

Type of time off: Holiday
First day off: 2026-11-05
Last day off: 2026-11-06
Days or hours: 2 days
Reason (optional): Family wedding

Cover arrangements

Covered by: Dara Kelly, for client emails
Handoff notes: Acme banners finished and sent before I go

Employee signature

Signature: Ana Silva
Date: 2026-10-26

Manager’s decision

For the manager. Check who else is off on these days, then decide. Tell the employee, and set the request’s Status in your time off tracker, such as the free PTO tracker template.

Approved or declined: Approved
Note: Ben Okafor cancelled his time off on the same days, so only one person is off.
Signature: Priya Nair
Date: 2026-10-29

Email version

To ask by email instead, copy this into a new email to your manager. Keep the five detail lines as they are, so the request is quick to log.

Time off request email

Subject: Time off request: 5–6 November

Hi Priya,

I’d like to request time off:

Type: Holiday
From: 2026-11-05
To: 2026-11-06
Days: 2
Note: Acme banners done first. Dara Kelly covers client emails.

Please let me know if that works.

Thanks,
Ana Silva

Tips

Ask before you book travel or anything else you can’t cancel.
For one day off, write the same date as the first and last day. For a half day, write 0.5 days and say morning or afternoon.
Name who covers your work, and ask them first. A request with cover arranged is quicker to approve.
Keep health details off the form. For the tracker, the type Sick is enough.
If your manager uses Time Off Keeper, send the email version, or paste the filled form into the email itself. It reads the email’s text and doesn’t open attachments.

Time off request form questions

Do I need a form, or is an email enough?: Either works if your manager agrees. The form suits teams that keep signed records. The email is quicker and has the same details. If your manager uses Time Off Keeper, send the email, because it reads the email’s text, not attachments.
How much notice should I give?: Follow your company’s policy or handbook. If it doesn’t say, ask as soon as you know your dates, and earlier for long breaks or busy weeks, so your manager has time to arrange cover. For a sick day, tell your manager as soon as you can.
What’s the difference between PTO, vacation and leave?: PTO, or paid time off, is often one pool of paid days for vacation, personal days and sometimes sick days. Vacation is time off you plan. Leave usually means a longer absence, such as parental or medical leave, which often has its own rules and forms, so ask HR. On this form, vacation goes under Holiday, sick days under Sick and anything else under Other.
Does it work in Word and Google Docs?: Yes. The Word file opens in Word. For Google Docs, upload it to Google Drive and open it there. The form tables and highlighted placeholders come across.
What happens after I send it?: Your manager approves or declines it, tells you, and records it in their time off tracker. If they use Time Off Keeper, it logs your email in their PTO tracker as New and flags any days when too many people are off. It never approves anything. Your manager still decides and replies.