If you are laid off: the first two weeks

What to do in the meeting, what to check before signing, what you are owed, the basic rules in common countries, visa deadlines and documents.

What: The short meeting, often with HR, where you are told your job is ending.
Why: You will not change the decision there. Stay calm, take notes and ask for every detail in writing.
Example: Ask for: last day, notice, severance, final pay, unused leave, equity, benefits and the deadline to sign.

Also called severance pay, severance package, redundancy pay

What: Money an employer pays when it ends your job, often in exchange for signing an agreement.
Why: It can be partly set by law and partly offered. Knowing which part is which tells you what you are really trading.

Watch out

Signing on the spot without reading every clause.

Also called release, waiver

What: A clause in a severance agreement where you give up the right to bring legal claims against the employer.
Why: It is usually what the extra money pays for. In the US, workers aged 40 or over get 21 days to consider it, or 45 in a group layoff, plus 7 to revoke.

Also called non-compete, non-solicit, non-disparagement

What: Terms that limit working for competitors, approaching clients or colleagues, or criticising the company after you leave.
Why: They can restrict your next job or bridge work, so check them before signing and ask a lawyer if they are broad.

Also called full and final settlement, final pay, F&F

What: Everything owed when you leave apart from severance: salary to the last day, notice pay, unused leave where paid out, earned bonus and expenses.
Why: Mistakes are common in large layoffs and easier to fix in the first weeks.

Also called post-termination exercise period, vesting, equity

What: The time you have after leaving to buy vested stock options, often 90 days.
Why: Miss it and the options are usually lost, so check your grant documents in the first week.

Also called gratuity, provident fund, EPF, PF

What: In Pakistan and India, a lump sum based on years of service, and a retirement fund built from employee and employer contributions.
Why: Both can be large and have their own claim process and eligibility rules, so confirm them separately from your final pay.

Also called WARN notice, mass layoff notice

What: A US law requiring employers with 100 or more employees to give 60 days' written notice of a plant closing or mass layoff.
Why: If notice was not given, affected workers may be owed up to 60 days of back pay.

Also called redundancy consultation, collective redundancy

What: In the UK and EU, a required period of consultation with employee representatives before large redundancies.
Why: In the UK, 20 to 99 redundancies at one site need at least 30 days and 100 or more need at least 45 days of consultation first.

Also called Standing Orders Ordinance 1968, Sindh Terms of Employment Act

What: Pakistan's main employment rules for covered workers: written termination, one month's notice or pay instead for permanent staff, gratuity, and last in, first out within a category.
Why: Many software employees rely mainly on their contract, so check whether you are covered before relying on them.

Also called grace period, H-1B grace period, curtailment

What: The limited time a work visa holder has after a job ends to find a new sponsor, change status or leave.
Why: In the US it has been up to 60 days for H-1B holders, with a September 2026 proposal to remove it; in the UK leave is usually cut to 60 days. Check the current rule on day one.

Also called experience letter, relieving letter, service certificate

What: Letters common in Pakistan and India confirming your dates, title and that you have been released from your duties.
Why: Many employers in South Asia ask for them before an offer or joining, and they are slow to obtain later.

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