Termination of an employment contract may occur at the initiative of the employer. For example, in case of liquidation of a company, reduction of staff, repeated failure by an employee to fulfill his job duties, or inconsistency between the employee and his position. In the latter case, the non-conformity must be confirmed by certification.
The reason for terminating an employment contract may also be the expiration of a fixed-term employment contract. Let us remind you that a fixed-term employment contract can be concluded for up to 5 years, and then everything depends on the wishes of the parties (Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
Fixed-term employment contract
Most often, employment contracts concluded between an employer and an employee are of an open-ended nature. This means that they indicate only the first day of work of the employee at the enterprise. Such contracts can be terminated at any time, either at the initiative of the subordinate or at the will of the employer (in the second case, with mandatory justification and full compliance with the procedure established by law).
The situation is somewhat different with fixed-term employment contracts. Usually they are concluded for the execution of a specific task or work, which must be carried out within a strictly defined period.
They have an exact start and end date, i.e. they stipulate in advance a clear period of time during which the employee is obliged to perform his functions.
After the expiration of this period, the contract either terminates or is extended (extended).
It should be noted that the parties have every right to terminate their relationship even before the employee’s last day of work in the company.
To terminate a fixed-term employment contract with a subordinate, the employer is obliged to send him a corresponding written notice.
Answers to readers' questions
Question 1: We have a pregnant employee working under a fixed-term contract in place of a maternity leaver. A permanent employee goes to work, what to do with a pregnant conscript >>> answer.
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When should the employee be notified?
To notify an employee of the termination of a fixed-term employment contract, the law gives the employer three days before its expiration. The notice must not only indicate the date from which the employment relationship is terminated, but also indicate the reason for it.
You should also be sure to obtain the employee’s signature confirming that he has read the document - in the future, this autograph will indicate that all formalities upon dismissal of this employee were completed in full.
We are terminating cooperation under an open-ended contract
The list of grounds for termination of a working relationship is contained in Art. 77 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The notice period for termination of the contract differs depending on the reason for which the employee is dismissed. For example, if the staff is being reduced or the organization is being liquidated, these circumstances must be notified no later than 2 months before the date of actual dismissal. If an employee fails the test, he is informed of the termination of the contract no later than 3 calendar days before the last working day.
If an employee refuses to sign for receipt of a document, the employer draws up a report to record such refusal. It is advisable to sign it in the presence of at least two witnesses. The act is recorded in the notice register so that in the event of litigation there is evidence of compliance with all legal requirements.
General information about the notification, features of its preparation
If you need to generate a notice of termination of a fixed-term employment contract, and you have no idea how to write it correctly, read our tips. Also look at the example document below - based on it you can easily create your own form.
Before going into detail about this particular notice, here is some general information that is common to all such documents.
First of all, keep in mind that there is currently no standard, unified form of notification. This means one thing: it can be drawn up either in free form or according to a template developed within the company (in this case, the form of the document must be approved in its accounting policy). The method of writing the notice must also be specified in the regulations of the enterprise.
The notification can be made on letterhead (if such a requirement is established by management) or on a simple plain sheet of paper (preferably A4 format). The document can be written by hand or typed on a computer (with further printing) - all these parameters do not matter.
The main thing is that the form is signed by the director or employee authorized to endorse such papers on his behalf.
There is no strict need to certify the notification with a seal - this should be done only when this norm is available in the local documents of the organization.
It is better to formulate the notification in two identical copies (if by hand, then using a carbon copy), one of which is sent to the employee, the second is left in the organization.
Also, information about the form must be entered in a special accounting journal - these should be available in every company.
We inform about the dismissal of a foreigner
When it comes to an employee who comes from another state, employers need to take into account some peculiarities. The notice of termination of an employment contract with a foreigner, prepared for the employee’s review, is no different from the samples given above. But the employment service must also be informed about the upcoming dismissal if the employee is simultaneously studying at a state university, and also the Ministry of Internal Affairs authorities that deal with migration registration.
Submitted in a special form approved by Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia No. 536 dated July 30, 2020.
This form is suitable for notifying migration authorities about the dismissal of refugees and all foreigners, regardless of the permits on which they entered into fixed-term employment agreements.
Sample notice of termination of a fixed-term employment contract
At the beginning of the document you should write:
- his name;
- number (in accordance with internal document flow);
- date(current);
- place (settlement) of compilation.
Then the following is entered into the main block:
- the actual notification that the employment relationship with the employee is being terminated;
- name of the company, position and full name of its director, as well as information about the employee;
- link to the article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation justifying the employer’s actions;
- number and date of a fixed-term employment contract previously concluded with the employee;
- the date from which it ceases to be valid;
- the last day of work, as well as an offer to come to the personnel department for a work book and other documents.
In conclusion, it would not be amiss to remind the employee that before the employment contract terminates, he must continue his work in full.
At the end, the document is signed by the employer's representative.
How long is a notification stored?
The completed notification form should be recorded in a journal, which will confirm the fact that this information paper has been prepared for the employee. The notification itself with the employee’s introductory signature should be filed in a folder specially designed for this purpose.
It is necessary to ensure the safety of the document in proper form so that if questions arise regarding the legality of the dismissal procedure and the employer’s compliance with the rules established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the notice can be presented as a supporting document.
The notice must be stored for 75 years, which is required by Article 654 of the List of Standard Archival Documents.
When is it necessary to notify an employee?
The employee must be notified of the upcoming dismissal in advance and in writing. The document must contain information not only about the employee, but also the date and grounds for termination of the agreement.
It is important to clarify that the legislation does not strictly regulate when a worker needs to be notified of the upcoming termination of employment, and when this procedure can be omitted. But the need to draw up such a paper is recorded in separate articles of the Labor Code.
There are also situations in which the notification is only advisory and not mandatory. As a rule, in such cases, the paper is drawn up to comply with moral standards and the rules of mutual respect between members of the enterprise.
Let's consider both cases.
The employee must be notified of the termination of the employment relationship:
- Part 2 Art. 180 Labor Code: dismissal due to reduction or liquidation of an organization;
- Part 1. Art. 79 Labor Code: if dismissal occurs due to the expiration of the agreement;
- Part 1. Art. 71 Labor Code: if the new employee failed to cope with the test set before him and necessary for further work in the organization;
- Art. 288 Labor Code: if the employee worked part-time during the absence of the main employee who returned and is ready to start working;
- Part 2 Art. 296 Labor Code: if a seasonal employee is dismissed due to layoffs.
In some cases, written notice of termination of employment is advisory in nature. All of these cases, given below, relate to Article 81 of the Labor Code: dismissal occurs at the initiative of the employer:
- An employee is subject to dismissal due to misconduct: theft of company funds, appearing under the influence of alcohol or drugs, absenteeism, loss of confidence, refusal to perform official duties or violation of internal labor regulations;
- If the manager and chief accountant resign due to a change in the owner of the enterprise;
- If the dismissal is due to the fact that management made a decision that resulted in harm to the company.
Who in the company should deal with this issue?
Any representative of the company who is a specialist and has all the necessary knowledge in the field of Civil and Labor Law to complete the task can be authorized to draw up a document.
As a rule, the paper is drawn up by a HR specialist, lawyer or secretary. In a small enterprise, the director himself can draw up the document.
Termination of contracts with foreign employees
Labor and migration legislation requires the employer to comply with a number of rules when dismissing a foreign worker. The nuances were reviewed by our leading legal consultant Galia Tekareva.
The ConsultantPlus reference and legal system will help you monitor labor and migration legislation and formalize everything correctly.
The dismissal of a foreign employee occurs on grounds that can be conditionally divided into two groups: general grounds that are not related to the employee’s citizenship, provided for in Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and special (special) grounds. The latter are typical only for foreign workers who are listed in Part 1 of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The application of these grounds depends on the status of the foreigner.
Special grounds for termination of employment contracts
Let's start with the most privileged categories of foreign workers, which include foreign citizens permanently residing in the territory of the Russian Federation (with a residence permit in the Russian Federation), temporarily residing in the territory of the Russian Federation (with a temporary residence permit) and citizens arriving from foreign countries - members of the EAEU (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan).
Permanently residing foreigners can be dismissed (unless otherwise provided by law or an international treaty of the Russian Federation) in connection with the cancellation or expiration of a residence permit in the Russian Federation[1].
Temporarily residing foreigners can be fired (unless otherwise provided by law or an international treaty of the Russian Federation) in connection with the cancellation or expiration of a temporary residence permit in the Russian Federation[2].
Dismissal of citizens of Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan is not provided for on special grounds, for example due to the expiration of a patent or work permit, and other grounds listed in Part 1 of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, taking into account the provisions of international treaties of the Russian Federation. But the question remains open about the dismissal of citizens of the EAEU states (except for citizens of Belarus, since they do not need a VHI policy) under clause 8 of part 1 of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, that is, in connection with the expiration of the VHI agreement (policy) or the termination of the agreement with medical organization on the provision of medical services to foreigners. The Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation has not yet given official explanations, so there may be risks for the employer when dismissing foreign citizens of EAEU countries on this basis.
It should also be noted that foreign citizens of the so-called privileged categories listed above cannot be dismissed in connection with bringing the number of foreign workers in accordance with the permissible share[3], since they are not subject to the restriction on the permissible share of foreign workers. These conclusions can be drawn from paragraph 9 of part 1 of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, paragraph 1 of Article 2, paragraph 2 of Article 13.2, paragraph 5 of Article 18.1 of the Federal Law of July 25, 2002 No. 115-FZ “On the legal status of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation” (hereinafter ‒ Law on Foreigners), provisions of international treaties of the Russian Federation.
The largest number of special grounds for termination of an employment contract are provided for by law for contracts concluded with foreign citizens temporarily residing on the territory of the Russian Federation.
When dismissing temporarily staying foreigners working under a patent or work permit, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides for the following special grounds:
- expiration of a patent or work permit[4];
- revocation of a patent or work permit[5];
- expiration of the validity period of a VHI agreement (policy) on the territory of the Russian Federation or termination of an agreement between an employer and a medical organization on the provision of medical services to a foreigner[6];
This basis cannot be the reason for the dismissal of highly qualified specialists (HQS), since the employer must provide them with guarantees of receiving medical care throughout the entire term of the employment contract[7].
- bringing the number of foreign workers into line with the permissible share of such workers for your type of economic activity[8].
Labor legislation provides a foreign employee with a period to eliminate special reasons for dismissal. Suspension is possible for up to one month. This period is specified in Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and it is given for the renewal of new documents. The removal must be formalized by order.
If, after a month, the foreign worker does not receive new permits, the employer has the right to terminate the employment contract on the basis of the relevant paragraph of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
When terminating an employment contract with a foreign employee, an order is drawn up, with which the employee must be familiarized with a personal signature. On the day of termination of the employment contract, the organization is obliged to issue the employee a work book and make payments to him. Also, upon a written application from an employee, the employer must provide him with duly certified copies of work-related documents[9].
Notice of dismissal of a foreigner
The most important point when terminating employment contracts with foreign employees is the employer’s obligation to notify the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the subject of the Russian Federation where the dismissed employee worked about this fact. This follows from the norms of paragraph 1 of paragraph 8 of Article 13 of the Law on Foreigners, paragraph 2 of the Procedure for notification of the conclusion and termination of employment contracts with foreigners[10].
If a foreigner who is studying full-time in the Russian Federation at a professional educational organization (educational organization of higher education) in a basic professional educational program that has state accreditation is dismissed, then it is necessary to notify the regional employment service authority. Notifying the tax office when dismissing a foreign employee is not necessary (this obligation was abolished back in 2015). The tax authority will receive this information from the migration office as part of interdepartmental interaction.
On a note! A notice of termination of an employment contract with a foreign citizen is sent by the employer, regardless of the grounds for termination of the employment relationship.
It is necessary to notify the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia about the dismissal of any foreign employee, since in paragraph 1 of paragraph 8 of Article 13 of the Law on Foreigners there are no exceptions for any categories of foreigners.
So, more about the notification procedure. The territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia in the constituent entity of the Russian Federation where the dismissed person worked must be notified of the dismissal of a foreigner. To do this, a notice in the prescribed form is sent no later than three working days from the date of dismissal of the employee[11]. The notification form and submission procedure are approved by Order No. 11 of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia dated January 10, 2018. Information about dismissal must be submitted for each dismissed foreign employee. The notification must be filled out by hand or on a computer, in Russian, legibly, without abbreviations, strikethroughs or corrections. All fields in the notification form must be filled out.
To send a notification to the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, the legislator offers several ways:
- submit on paper directly to the migration department of this authority;
- send the document by mail with a list of attachments and notification of delivery;
- submit a notification in electronic form, including using the website www.gosuslugi.ru.
Important! Depending on the method in which the notice was sent, it is necessary to obtain confirmation of the sending of such notice within the period prescribed by law. This may be a certificate of receipt of the notification (if it was submitted directly to the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs), a second copy of the inventory certified by a postal employee (if the notification was sent by mail) and an electronic message about the receipt of the notification, which must be sent no later than the business day following the day the notification is received (if the notification is sent electronically).
It is advisable to keep the confirmation for at least a year, since the statute of limitations for bringing to administrative responsibility for violating the notification procedure is one year[12].
For failure to notify or violation of the established procedure and (or) form of notification to the territorial body of the federal executive body exercising federal state control (supervision) in the field of migration, about the conclusion or termination (termination) of an agreement with a foreign citizen within the prescribed period, administrative liability is provided in accordance with parts 3 , 4 articles 18.15 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.
Removal from migration registration
The employer of a foreign worker also needs to know about the removal of a retired foreigner from the migration register if he was registered at the place of residence at the address of the employing organization. This rule has recently been applied to the host employer and was established by Federal Law No. 257-FZ dated July 29, 2018 (came into force on August 10, 2018).
More recently, the employer did not have the opportunity to remove a former foreign employee from the migration register on his own. And if the dismissed employee did not leave the territory of the Russian Federation or was not registered by another receiving party, then he was listed as registered at his previous address. As a result, the former employer could be fined for the fact that the foreigner does not live at the place of registration.
Now the fact of a foreign citizen’s departure from the place of stay, with the exception of cases provided for in paragraphs 1 - 4 of Part 1 of Article 23 of Law No. 109-FZ, is an independent basis for deregistering him from the register at the place of stay[13].
So, deregistration of a foreigner at the place of stay is carried out in the following cases:
— his registration at the new place of residence;
— his departure from the Russian Federation;
— the death of a foreign citizen in the Russian Federation or the entry into force of a court decision declaring a foreign citizen who was in the Russian Federation missing or declaring him dead;
— establishing, in the manner determined by the federal executive body in the field of internal affairs, the fact of fictitious registration at the place of residence;
— departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay, with the exception of the above cases.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia removes registration at the place of residence after receiving notification of the departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay in accordance with paragraph 5 of part 2 of Article 23 of Law No. 109-FZ.
The deadlines for sending a notice of the departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay are currently established only for foreigners who carried out labor activities under conditions of work on a rotational basis (notification must be sent no later than seven working days from the date of their departure from the organization). Such deadlines are not established for other categories of foreigners.
Notice of departure at the initiative of the employer
The employer can send a notice of their departure on its own initiative (clause 45(1) of the Rules for the implementation of migration registration of foreign citizens and stateless persons in the Russian Federation, clauses 1, 3 of the Procedure for sending to the migration registration authority a notice of the departure of a foreign citizen from place of stay) in order to relieve oneself of migration obligations in relation to former foreign workers.
The form of the notification, the list of information contained in it and the requirements for its execution were approved by Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia dated March 18, 2019 No. 142. The same order approved the Procedure for sending to the migration registration authority a notification of the departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay. This order came into force on July 28, 2019.
Notification of departure is sent to the migration department of the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia at the regional or district level at the place of registration at the place of residence of the foreign citizen.
This can be done in several ways (Part 2.2 of Article 23 of the Law on Migration Registration, paragraphs 1, 4 of the Procedure for sending a notice of departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay to the migration registration authority): in person, through the MFC or by post.
Violation of notification requirements, for example, for failure to provide notice of the departure of a foreign shift worker registered at the place of residence at the organization's address (if these actions do not contain signs of a criminal offense), is subject to a fine (Part 4 of Article 18.9 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation) :
- from 40,000 to 50,000 rub. - for officials of the organization;
- from 400,000 to 500,000 rubles. - for the organization.
Thus, when terminating an employment contract with a foreign worker, the employer must take into account all the norms and restrictions of migration legislation and promptly monitor changes in regulatory legal acts.
[1] Clause 4, 7 part 1 art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[2] Clause 3, 6 part 1 art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[3] Clause 9, part 1, art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[4] Clause 5, part 1, art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[5] Clause 2, part 1, art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[6] Clause 8, part 1, art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[7] Clause 14 art. 13.2 of the Law “On the legal status of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation”.
[8] Clause 9, part 1, art. 327.6 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[9] Art. 84.1 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
[10] Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia dated January 10, 2018 No. 11 “On the forms and procedure for notifying the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation or its territorial body about the implementation of labor activities by foreign citizens (stateless persons) on the territory of the Russian Federation.”
[11] Para. 1 clause 8 art. 13 of the Law on Foreigners.
[12] Part 1 art. 4.5 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.
[13] Clause 5, part 1, art. 23 of Law No. 109-FZ.
Procedure for familiarizing yourself with the document
The procedure for delivering notice to a dismissed employee is not fixed in legislative acts, so this procedure is not clearly regulated. It should be carried out in accordance with the regulations approved by the enterprise (for this, the necessary provisions must be recorded in any existing act or a new one must be drawn up). However, in practice, this kind of paperwork is only necessary for large companies. Other organizations can do without drawing up or adjusting local regulations.
Note! Under the main part of the document there must be a signature verifying it. The head of the organization or his deputy who has the necessary authority can sign. The fact of possessing these powers must be recorded on a separate paper (for example, by an order to transfer specific functions from one employee to another). The possibility of transferring powers is also better recorded in the company’s internal document, the charter.
Also, do not forget that the document is drawn up for the employee’s familiarization with it, which means that the signature of the person being dismissed must also be on the paper. However, if this is recorded in the company’s local act, the employee can sign in a special journal, and not directly on the notification form.
What data is inside such a log?
- Name of the document and its details: number, date, etc.;
- Last name, first name, patronymic and position of the employee. And also the name of the structural unit to which it belongs in accordance with the staffing table;
- A mark confirming that the dismissed person has read the contents of the notice;
- Date of familiarization of the worker with the document;
- Signature of the employee and transcript of the signature.
Virtually any employee can hand over the notification form: the secretary, the manager, and the immediate supervisor. If we are talking about a medium or small organization, then the paper is often handed over by its head himself. If the enterprise has a personnel department, then, as a rule, the paper is handed over to the employee through a specialist from this service.