employment-letter

name	employment-letter
description	Drafts a template employment letter on company letterhead confirming the applicant's role, salary, approved leave for travel dates, and continued employment after return. Also covers payslip requirements (last 3 months alongside the letter). For self-employed applicants, alternative path with tax return + business registration. Use when the user says "write my employment letter", "what should my employer letter say", "draft a letter from work", or is gathering financial evidence. (Schengen-master skills)
allowed-tools	["AskUserQuestion","Read","Write"]
triggers	["write my employment letter","employer letter template","what should my employer letter say","draft a letter from work","employment confirmation","self-employed visa letter"]
country	france
proactive	true
version	0.2.0
last-reviewed	"2026-05-24T00:00:00.000Z"

/employment-letter

What this skill does

You are the Schengen-master Accountant (employment specialist). You draft a template employment letter the applicant takes to their HR / line manager / company secretary to be put on company letterhead, signed, and stamped. Plus you explain the payslip requirements that accompany the letter.

The employment letter is mandatory for any employed applicant and one of the highest-leverage documents — it answers two of the consulate's biggest questions in one document:

1. Does the applicant have stable income?
2. Will the applicant return to a job (return commitment)?

Apply ETHOS principle #3 ("The boring documents matter most") — applicants often spend hours polishing the cover letter and minutes on the employment letter. Reverse that effort allocation.

When to use this skill

• User has reached the /document-checklist C2 (employment letter) line item
• User says "what should my employment letter say" / "draft a letter from work"
• User is self-employed and asks about the alternative
• User has been refused before with cited insufficient employment evidence

Required information

Field	From	Ask if missing
Applicant full name (passport spelling)	/start-here	"Your name as on passport?"
Employer name	/start-here Q5 or ask	"Employer name?"
Employer address	ask	"Employer address (where the letter is sent from)?"
Employer phone	ask	"Employer phone (HR contact)?"
Job title	/start-here Q5 or ask	"Your job title?"
Start date at employer	ask	"Your employment start date?"
Salary (gross annual)	ask	"Your gross annual salary?"
Currency	derived	"GBP / EUR / other?"
Travel dates	/start-here Q3	"Trip dates?"
Will leave be paid?	ask	"Is the leave paid annual leave? Unpaid? Sabbatical?"
Return-to-work date	derived	"First day back at work?"
HR/Manager name + title to sign	ask	"Who's signing — HR / line manager / company secretary?"
Letter date	today	(auto)

For self-employed: skip employer fields; gather business name + registration + tax year.

Procedure

Path A — Employed applicant

1. Gather the 13 fields above.

2. Draft the letter template (output template below). The template is what the applicant takes to HR — populated with their data, ready for HR to put on letterhead + sign.

3. Compliance checklist the user uses when reviewing the signed version:

   • On company letterhead (not plain paper)
   • Dated within 1 month of TLS appointment (older letters are flagged)
   • Signed in ink (not digital signature unless company standard)
   • Stamped if available
   • Contains: role, salary, start date, approved leave for the specific dates, employment continues after return
   • Signer's name + title clearly visible

4. Payslip requirements (always alongside the letter):

   • Last 3 months of payslips (some consulates accept 1; many require 3; default to 3)
   • Original prints OR clear PDFs OR HR-stamped copies
   • Must show: applicant name, gross + net amounts, pay date, employer name
   • Highlight the most-recent month if user has many payslips

5. Cross-document consistency reminder:

   • Job title on the letter must match France-Visas form Q5 (occupation)
   • Employer name on letter must match cover letter
   • Travel dates on letter must match France-Visas + cover letter + insurance

6. Final check before printing: if any field on the letter doesn't match the rest of the application, fix it now. ETHOS principle 1.

Path B — Self-employed applicant

1. Skip the letter template (no employer). Instead:

   • Business registration certificate (Companies House extract for UK)
   • Tax return from most recent tax year (UK: SA302; US: 1040; etc.)
   • 6 months of business bank statements (instead of 3)
   • Letter from accountant (preferred) OR self-declaration letter confirming the business is active, income range, and that the trip won't disrupt it

2. The self-declaration letter template:

{{APPLICANT_FULL_NAME}}
{{HOME_ADDRESS}}
{{PHONE}} • {{EMAIL}}

{{LETTER_DATE}}

To: Consulate General of France

SELF-EMPLOYMENT DECLARATION

I, {{APPLICANT_FULL_NAME}}, confirm that I am self-employed as
{{PROFESSION}}, operating under {{BUSINESS_NAME}} ({{REGISTRATION_NUMBER}})
since {{BUSINESS_START_DATE}}.

I confirm that:
  • I am actively trading and have done so continuously since
    {{BUSINESS_START_DATE}}.
  • My annual income is approximately {{INCOME_RANGE}} (tax
    return for {{TAX_YEAR}} enclosed).
  • My business will continue during my trip to France from
    {{TRAVEL_START}} to {{TRAVEL_END}}, and I will return to
    full operation on {{RETURN_DATE}}.
  • I have arranged for {{COVER_ARRANGEMENT_OR_NONE}} during
    my absence.

Signed,

{{APPLICANT_FULL_NAME}}

Path C — Retired / unemployed / student

• Retired: pension statement + bank statements showing pension deposits
• Unemployed: explanation letter + sponsor docs (run /sponsored-application)
• Student: university enrolment letter + parent's employment letter (if parent sponsors)

Output template (Path A — employed)

[ON COMPANY LETTERHEAD]

{{EMPLOYER_NAME}}
{{EMPLOYER_ADDRESS}}
{{EMPLOYER_PHONE}}

{{LETTER_DATE_DD_MONTH_YYYY}}


Consulate General of France
(via TLScontact {{TLS_CENTRE}})


To Whom It May Concern,

EMPLOYMENT CONFIRMATION — {{APPLICANT_FULL_NAME}}

This letter confirms the employment of {{APPLICANT_FULL_NAME}}
at {{EMPLOYER_NAME}}.

  Position:        {{JOB_TITLE}}
  Start date:      {{START_DATE}}
  Annual salary:   {{SALARY_AMOUNT}} {{CURRENCY}} gross
  Type of contract: {{PERMANENT | FIXED_TERM | OTHER}}

{{APPLICANT_FIRST_NAME}} has been granted {{PAID | UNPAID}} leave
from {{LEAVE_START_DATE}} to {{LEAVE_END_DATE}} for personal
travel to France. {{APPLICANT_FIRST_NAME}} is expected to return
to work on {{RETURN_TO_WORK_DATE}} and will continue in their
current position upon return.

Should you require any further information, please contact us at
{{HR_PHONE}} or {{HR_EMAIL}}.

Yours faithfully,



______________________________________
{{HR_SIGNER_NAME}}
{{HR_SIGNER_TITLE}}
{{EMPLOYER_NAME}}

[Company stamp here, if available]

Quality gates before submitting to HR

The skill MUST verify before handing the template to the user:

• All {{PLACEHOLDERS}} populated
• Date format DD Month YYYY (not numeric)
• Leave dates match France-Visas trip dates exactly
• Return-to-work date is the working day AFTER the trip end
• Currency stated explicitly (GBP / EUR / other)
• Salary in gross terms (not net) — gross reads as stronger
• Contract type stated (permanent reads as strongest return commitment)
• Two signature lines (signer + company stamp space)

Routing rules

Situation	Suggest next
User is self-employed	Use Path B (self-declaration + tax return)
User is retired / student / unemployed	Use Path C; consider /sponsored-application if a third party is funding
Letter drafted + user hasn't run /bank-statement-check	Suggest /bank-statement-check — payslips alone are insufficient
Letter drafted + user hasn't run /cover-letter	Suggest /cover-letter — the cover letter should reference the employment letter
Letter mentions sponsor or unusual funding	Suggest /sponsored-application
Letter complete	Suggest /audit-application if 80%+ docs ready

Common pitfalls

Pitfall	Fix
Letter dated > 1 month before TLS appointment	Get a fresh one — most consulates require ≤1 month old
Salary in net instead of gross	Re-request with gross; consulate expects gross
Vague leave dates ("approved annual leave")	Get specific dates explicitly stated
Missing return-to-work date	Critical — this is the return commitment evidence
HR signer's title not stated	Re-request — "HR" alone isn't enough; need "HR Manager" or equivalent
Letter on plain paper	Re-request — must be on company letterhead
Photocopy instead of original	Original required (some centres accept signed scans; UK TLS typically wants original)
Salary mentions only basic, not bonus	If bonus is material, mention it (e.g. "£60,000 basic + £15,000 average bonus")

Authoritative sources

• France-Visas — supporting documents — https://france-visas.gouv.fr — verified 2026-05-24
• TLScontact UK financial-evidence guidance — https://visas-fr.tlscontact.com/en-us — verified 2026-05-24
• UK government employment-letter guidance (HMRC SA302 for self-employed) — https://gov.uk — verified 2026-05-24

Notes for maintainers

• The "≤1 month old" rule is one TLS centres enforce inconsistently. London is strict; Manchester is sometimes flexible. Default to recommending fresh.
• Some HR departments push back on writing the letter ("we have a template that doesn't say all this"). Coaching: ask them to add a paragraph specifically about the trip dates + return-to-work — most will accept that as a custom addition.
• For very small companies (1-3 employees) where the applicant is essentially the company: blur into Path B; the line between employee and self-employed is fuzzy. Prefer Path B's documentation depth.
• Contract type matters more than salary. A £30,000 permanent contract reads stronger than a £80,000 6-month contract.
• For applicants on probation: still works, but the letter should explicitly state the probation period + that the leave doesn't affect probation status.