Maternity and Parental Leave Out of Office Message Examples
Parental leaveBACK ON ...
SubjectOut of office
I am on parental leave from . During my absence, is handling my responsibilities, reachable at . Please direct all questions there.
Professional · short · 1 of 2
Also for your time off
Where does it go?
On parental leave the most useful line in your reply is the name of the colleague who now owns your work, since nobody should wait months for you: "I am on parental leave from October 6. During my absence, Priya Nair is handling my responsibilities, reachable at priya.nair@yourcompany.com. Please direct all questions there."
It does not need the baby's name, sex or arrival date, it should give a return date only if you actually have one, and a gentle joke about tiny managers is fine if that is how you normally write to these people.
All 12 replies on this page
Type your details in the writer and every reply below fills itself in.
Professional 4
I am on parental leave from [Away from]. During my absence, [Who covers] is handling my responsibilities, reachable at [Their email]. Please direct all questions there.
Short
[Your name] is on parental leave and expects to return around [Back on]. Until then, [Who covers] ([Their email]) has taken over this role and will help with anything you need.
Short
Beginning [Away from] I am on parental leave and will not be monitoring this inbox while I am away. Thank you for your message; [Who covers] has taken over my accounts and projects for the duration and can be reached at [Their email], so please contact them directly rather than waiting for me. I look forward to reconnecting when I return.
Longer
To let you know: I am on parental leave and will be back around [Back on]. My email will not be read during this time, so for anything related to my work get in touch with [Who covers] at [Their email], who has full context on current projects. If your message is personal, I will reply when I return, but it may take a while to work through the backlog.
Longer
Warm 4
Hello! I am on parental leave from [Away from] and enjoying some very early mornings. [Who covers] is looking after my work in the meantime and would love to hear from you at [Their email].
Short
Away on parental leave until around [Back on], and this inbox is on pause. Thanks for writing; [Who covers] ([Their email]) is covering everything I usually do and will take good care of you.
Short
As of [Away from] I am on parental leave, spending my days with a new member of the family and not with my inbox. For anything work related, please contact [Who covers] at [Their email]; they are fully up to speed and have been brilliant at picking things up. I will catch up with messages once I am back, and I look forward to hearing your news then.
Longer
Hi, and thanks for getting in touch. I am currently on parental leave and expect to be back around [Back on], though the exact date may shift a little. In the meantime, [Who covers] has stepped into my role and can help with anything you would normally send my way; you can reach them at [Their email]. Personal notes are welcome and I will read them when I return, baby permitting.
Longer
Funny 4
Reporting to a new manager who is very small and very demanding: I am on parental leave from [Away from]. [Who covers] at [Their email] has my old job for now.
Short
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
Out of office for parental leave until around [Back on]. My current workload is nappies and lullabies. For the kind of work you have in mind, [Who covers] ([Their email]) is covering.
Short
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
Starting [Away from] I am on parental leave and have been reassigned to a new project that cries, eats and does not accept meeting invites. [Who covers] has kindly taken on my actual job in the meantime ([Their email]), with a response time far better than mine. I will reply to personal notes when I am back, which is when the project sleeps through the night.
Longer
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
Hello! You have reached [Your name], who is on parental leave and expects to return around [Back on], give or take a growth spurt. I am not checking email, mostly because my hands are full in the most literal sense. For anything work related, [Who covers] is covering and is reachable at [Their email]; they are excellent and well rested, which is more than I can say. Speak to you on my return.
Longer
Skip if: the sender list includes clients or strangers who do not know your voice
What to leave out
A return date you are guessing at. Leave can stretch; "around" is honest, and no date is better than a wrong one.
Baby details beyond "a new family member". Name, weight and photos belong in a personal note to people who ask.
"Please contact me in an emergency". Define what counts, or expect everyone to decide their request qualifies.
The word "maternity" or "paternity" if you would rather not be specific; "parental leave" says enough.
A second contact for personal messages; let friends find you the way they already do.
Filling it in
Enter your first day of leave and, only if you have one, an approximate return date; half the examples work without it. Name the colleague who has taken over your role. Set the reply in your mail client with no end date, and ask that colleague to remind you to switch it off when you are back.
Questions people ask
How do I write an out of office message for maternity or parental leave?
Say you are on parental leave, give the name and address of whoever has taken your work, and make clear the inbox will sit unread for months. Add a return date only when you are sure of it, and soften it with around if you are not; a missing date causes less trouble than a wrong one. Leave the baby's details out. Set the reply with no end date in your mail client and ask the covering colleague to nudge you when you are back.
What should I write in my last email before going on maternity leave?
That is a different message from the auto reply. The last email to clients and colleagues goes out a week before you leave, names the person taking over, offers a handover call, and thanks them. The auto reply, which this page writes, is what senders see after that and it carries only the facts. Keep the two consistent: same cover contact, same wording about the return date.
Should a parental leave auto reply give a return date?
Only if you genuinely have one. Leave stretches, plans change, and a date in an auto reply becomes a promise other people plan around. Half the items on this page work with the date field empty, and the sentence adjusts to on leave with the contact named. If you do have an approximate date, around in front of it is the honest form, and the warm items here use it.
To
Everyone leaving soon
From
Department of Being Elsewhere
Re
Before you go
The auto reply is one of five things. The other four take about ten minutes and prevent most of the emails you will read when you get back.