Employment reference must include termination date and not date of issue

The date with which an employment reference is provided must indicate the date of the legal termination of the employment relationship. However, it does not have to indicate the date on which the reference was actually issued (see e.g. Cologne Regional Labour Court, decision of 27 March 2020, 7 Ta 200/19).

It is customary to include the date of the legal termination of the employment relationship as the reference date. This has also been approved by the Federal Labour Court. On the one hand, this creates legal certainty. On the other hand, it prevents speculation as to whether a dispute has arisen between the parties to the employment contract regarding the issue and content of the reference. Such a dispute could arise if a longer period of time has elapsed between the legal end of the employment relationship and the time when the reference is actually issued. Therefore, in contrast to the interim reference, the termination date and not the date of issue should be included in the final reference.

Errors are very common when preparing references. If you have any questions about the issuing of references or would like to have a reference checked, we will be happy to advise you at our offices in Osnabrück, Bremen, Sulingen or as part of a Online counselling.