Work From Home Request Template
Ask to work remotely, professionally and with a clear plan.
Tips for your Work From Home Request
- Give a clear reason and reassure them about productivity.
- Request specific dates.
About this Work From Home Request template
A work-from-home request is easiest to approve when it answers the one question your manager actually has: will the work still land? Use it for a specific day or a short stretch — a delivery, a repair, a school closure, an afternoon appointment, a commute that is not happening. It is the wrong tool for a permanent change: a standing remote or hybrid arrangement is a conversation, often a documented change to your terms, not an email the night before.
Give the dates, a one-line reason, your hours, how to reach you, and the deliverables that are unaffected. That is the whole email. Leave out the long justification — over-explaining reads as guilt and invites scrutiny. Send it with enough notice that a “no” is still workable, and if something in the diary only functions in person, say how you will handle it rather than leaving your manager to spot the clash.
The common mistake is treating one approval as a precedent. Policies vary by employer and often by team, and a yes for Tuesday is not a yes for every Tuesday. And if you are genuinely ill, this is not the email — send a sick leave email instead, because working through illness to dodge a sick day is how one day off becomes a week.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to give a reason?
A brief one helps for a one-off — it makes the request easy to say yes to. For regular remote work, focus less on the reason and more on how the output stays the same.
How much notice should I give?
As much as you can. A request the day before is a request; a message at 8am is really a notification, and repeated often it stops being welcome.
Can my employer just say no?
In most cases yes — where you work is generally set by your contract and your employer. Some countries do give employees a formal route to request flexible working, so check your local rules and contract.
What if my request is refused?
Ask what the concern is. It is usually specific — a meeting, coverage, a deadline — and offering a different day or a half day in the office often turns it around.
Can I use this to ask for permanent remote work?
No, and it will probably get a no. Ask for a meeting, propose a trial period with clear measures, and expect any lasting change to be written down.