# Employee offboarding

> Employee offboarding is the set of steps when someone leaves: access removal, equipment return, final pay, benefits notices and knowledge handover.

Employee offboarding is the process that runs when someone leaves the company, whether they resign, are let go or retire. It covers the handover of their work, removal of access to systems and buildings, return of equipment, final pay, benefits notices and the paperwork that has to be kept afterward.

Like onboarding, it crosses teams: the manager owns the handover, IT removes access, HR handles pay and benefits, and facilities collects keys and badges.

### The legal side

- **Final pay.** Federal law does not require employers to hand over the final paycheck immediately, but some states do, and state rules vary. Check the state where the employee works.
- **COBRA.** If the company's group health plan is subject to COBRA, the employer must notify the plan within 30 days of the termination.
- **Records.** Form I-9 must be kept for three years after hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later.

### Example

Sam gives two weeks' notice, with a last day on a Friday (illustrative). The manager schedules handover sessions, IT plans to disable Sam's accounts at 5 pm on Friday, HR confirms the state's final pay deadline and notifies the COBRA administrator, and the laptop is collected on the last day.

### Common pitfalls

- **Access left active**, especially in tools outside single sign-on and in shared passwords.
- **Equipment never returned** because nobody owned the step.
- **A missed state final pay deadline.**
- **No record** of what was removed and when.

This is a general summary, not legal advice.

Sources:

- [U.S. Department of Labor, Last Paycheck](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/lastpaycheck)
- [U.S. Department of Labor, An Employer's Guide to Group Health Continuation Coverage Under COBRA](https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/about-ebsa/our-activities/resource-center/publications/an-employers-guide-to-group-health-continuation-coverage-under-cobra)
- [USCIS, Handbook for Employers M-274, Retaining Form I-9](https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-resources/handbook-for-employers-m-274/100-retaining-form-i-9)

Page: https://easy.wf/glossary/employee-offboarding