Candidate Rejection Letter
Tells an applicant they were not selected, without wasting their time.
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Dear [candidate name],
Thank you for your interest in the [role] position at [organisation].
After careful consideration we have decided to move forward with another candidate. This was a difficult decision and it is not a reflection of the quality of your application.
Thank you again for considering us, and we wish you well with your search.
What is a Candidate Rejection Letter?
A candidate rejection letter tells an applicant they have not been selected, clearly and without leaving them waiting. It matters because silence is the default and it is expensive: candidates left hanging hold other offers open, tell people about the experience, and do not apply again. A short, dated rejection closes the loop, and it also creates the record an employer needs if the decision is ever questioned.
Recruiters and hiring managers send it at every stage: after screening, after a first interview, after a final round where two strong candidates were separated by almost nothing. Small employers writing one by hand for the first time need the structure most, because they are the most likely to say too much. It is also used internally, for employees who applied for a promotion or a transfer and did not get it — a harder letter, because that person stays and reads it again.
Rejection wording sits close to discrimination law, and the rules differ. UK and EU equality legislation, US federal and state anti-discrimination law, India's constitutional and statutory protections and Australia's anti-discrimination acts all prohibit decisions taken on protected grounds, and all treat written reasons as evidence. Some jurisdictions and some public sector employers require feedback or a stated reason on request; most do not. Data protection rules also govern how long you may keep an unsuccessful applicant's file — check the retention period that applies to you.
The letter closes an application; it does not close a relationship, and it should not pretend to. Saying you will keep someone on file means nothing unless you actually will and have a lawful basis to hold their data. It is not a feedback document — detailed critique invites argument and, if clumsily worded, creates evidence. It is not the place to negotiate: if you might still want this candidate for another role, that is a separate conversation, not a paragraph tacked onto a rejection.
What to put in a Candidate Rejection Letter
These are the details this template asks for. Anything left blank is marked in red on the preview so you can see what is still missing.
| Field | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Issuing organisation | For example: Maple Grove Homeowners Association |
| Organisation address | For example: 1420 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212 |
| Role applied for | For example: Customer Success Associate |
| How far they got | For example: First interview |
| Keep them on file? | Free text |
| Signatory name optional | For example: K. Srinivasa Rao |
| Signatory designation optional | For example: Honorary Secretary |
| Issued to (full name) | For example: James Whitfield |
| Their address | For example: 588 Kinnear Road, Columbus, OH 43212 |
How to write a Candidate Rejection Letter
Send it quickly and to the right person
Send within a few days of the decision, using the candidate's name and the exact role title they applied for. People apply for several jobs at one organisation; ‘the position you applied for’ leaves them guessing which one. Check the spelling against their application rather than your notes, and never send a rejection as a blind copy to a list of addresses.
Say the decision in the first two lines
Do not bury it under a paragraph of thanks. ‘Thank you for interviewing for the Logistics Coordinator role on 14 May. We have decided to appoint another candidate.’ Then the courtesy. A candidate reading a warm opening paragraph before the answer has to scan ahead to find out what the letter actually says, which is a small cruelty.
Give a reason that is true and general
‘We appointed a candidate with more direct experience of warehouse management systems’ is honest, brief and unarguable. Avoid comparative judgements about the person, anything touching a protected characteristic, and anything you would not want quoted back to you. If you cannot say something both true and safe, say the decision was close and stop there rather than inventing a reason.
Decide about feedback before offering it
Offering feedback and then not providing it is worse than not offering. If you will give it, say who to contact and by when, and brief that person on what may be said. Keep it about the requirements of the role and the evidence presented, not about the individual's manner or personality, and give the same depth to every candidate at that stage.
Close cleanly and handle their data properly
Say plainly what happens next: whether the application is closed, whether you will keep their details and for how long, and how they can ask for removal. Only say you will keep them on file if you have a basis to and a system that will actually surface them again. Then sign off with a real name and title, not a no-reply address.
Common mistakes
- Sending a rejection with the wrong role or the wrong name merged in, which tells the candidate exactly how little attention their application received.
- Explaining the decision in terms of the person rather than the requirements of the role, which risks creating written evidence of a discriminatory reason.
- Promising to keep the candidate on file with no system that will ever retrieve them, which is both untrue and a data retention problem.
- Leaving the decision until the third paragraph, so the candidate reads a warm opening and then has to hunt for the answer.
- Rejecting an internal applicant with the same template as an external one, when they need a conversation before any letter arrives.
Frequently asked questions
Should I give a reason in a rejection letter?
A short, role-based reason is usually better than none — it stops the candidate inventing a worse explanation. Keep it about what the role needed and what the successful candidate brought. Avoid anything comparative about the person and anything near a protected characteristic. If the decision genuinely came down to a narrow margin between strong candidates, saying so is both true and kind.
How soon should you send a rejection after an interview?
Within a few days of the decision. If the decision is delayed because a preferred candidate has not yet accepted, tell the others that a decision is expected by a stated date rather than holding them in silence. Candidates who are kept informed generally accept a rejection well; candidates who hear nothing for three weeks and then receive a template do not.
Is it better to reject by email or by phone?
Email for early stages, where volume is high and a call would be intrusive. A call for final-round candidates and for internal applicants, followed by a written note confirming it. The call lets you say the things that read badly in writing, and it lets the candidate ask questions. Never leave a rejection as a voicemail with no follow-up in writing.
Can a rejected candidate ask why they were not selected?
They can ask, and in some jurisdictions and public sector processes you may be required to respond. Data protection law in the UK and EU also gives candidates rights over personal data held about them, which can extend to interview notes. Assume anything you write down may be read by the candidate, and write your notes accordingly at the time rather than tidying them later.
How do you reject an internal candidate without losing them?
Tell them in person before any letter goes out, and before the appointment is announced. Explain what the successful candidate demonstrated and what would need to be different next time, in terms of evidence rather than personality. Then agree a concrete step — a project, a secondment, a development conversation with a date. Rejection with no next step is where internal candidates start job-hunting.
This page explains general practice and is not legal advice. Requirements differ between countries and, in some cases, between states — check what applies where the document will be used.