Military Leave Request Letter (+ Template & Example)

Just as with any other professional or career undertaking, the military servicemen will often have to take some breaks and breathers from their active duties. Before this permission may be advanced, a letter to that effect has to be drafted. This is called the “Military Leave Request Letter.”

The letter, as well as the entire leave on its own, is governed by the Uniformed Services Employment Re-employment Rights Act (USERRA). This is the legal framework that safeguards those who depart their jobs to serve in the military. Such an absence typically lasts 5 years, give or take.

There are some steps involved in questing this military leave. Below are some of the steps taken or which ought to be taken to realize this sacred end:

• The employee concerned has to notify the company he works for, of his intention of leaving for some time to pursue a career in the military. A written notice to that effect is highly preferred though not a must.
• Next, the employee concerned has to fill the ‘Request for Leave of Absence Form’ that is provided for by the Human Resource Department.
• Upon clearing the military duties, the employee has to re-apply for employment with the same company before re-admission.
• The returning employee has to issue a notice of service to the company that he intends to be re-absorbed into. This notice basically spells out the details of the services like the time-frame, location of deployment and capacity.
• After the notice has been issued, the details have to be verified. Verification here entails looking into those details and finding out whether they match the ones claimed or vouched for.
• As per the prevailing laws, the workers are entitled to some paid leaves for around 30 days. It is at this time that the claims are to be processed and issued out to the returning serviceman.
• When all is said and done, the worker has to be fully reinstated to work and allowed to continue with his job thereafter.

To be able to draft quality and award-winning letters of this kind, you have to adhere to certain hot tips. We devote this segment of our discussion to those tips and how they are likely to provide the needed help:

• State the purpose of the letter precisely and to the point. This should ideally occupy the first two paragraphs of the leave request letter.
• Mention the exact reason why you are requesting this leave. Every reason you state has to be valid and well within the bounds that are provided for by the governing legal regimes.
• Explain your duration for leaving, the exact dates and times that are affected by your departure and of course, when you intend to come back and resume your military duties.
• Just in case you want to forfeit your pay in the affected timeframe, this is yet another opportunity to do the same. Mention it and the person or institution whom you want to receive the payment on your behalf.
• Any other matters which may be of help or concern to the affected persons. These issues have to line up with the ethos of the organizations involved and the military codes.

You now know the best way to go about the business of drafting a military request letter. The steps and procedures we have looked into have indeed proved great and effective in their own ways. They are hence sure to provide the much-needed insight.

As with any other piece of write-up, practice makes perfect. To be able to draft a quality letter, you need to carry out mock practices every now and then. That way, you will also enrich your own diction and writing capabilities as you move along.