Job Offer Rejection Letter (Candidate Decline)
Polite, professional rejection letter for candidates not selected.
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ACME CORPORATION May 4, 2026 Dear Alex Morgan, Thank you for your interest in the Senior Software Engineer position at Acme Corporation, and for the time you invested in our interview process — including our last conversation on May 4, 2026. After careful consideration, we have decided to move forward with another candidate. This decision in no way reflects on the quality of your candidacy. We received applications from many strong candidates, and choosing among them was genuinely difficult. We will keep your information on file and reach out should a more suitable role open up. We hope you will stay in touch as well. Thank you again for considering Acme Corporation, and for sharing your time and expertise with our team. We wish you all the best in your job search. Sincerely, Priya Patel Talent Acquisition Lead Acme Corporation
About this template
Sending a rejection letter is a small action with disproportionate impact on your employer brand. Glassdoor data consistently shows that candidates rejected with a respectful, timely letter are 3–4x more likely to leave a positive company review than those rejected silently or with template auto-emails. The best rejection letters do four things: thank the candidate for their time, deliver the no clearly without ambiguity, soften the no with a brief explanation that does not invite a back-and-forth debate, and leave the door open without making promises. Avoid two common mistakes: over-explaining the reason (creates legal exposure under EEOC discrimination claims) or being so vague that the candidate cannot read the email. The "after careful consideration we have decided to move forward with another candidate" formulation is the legally-safe gold standard.
When to use it
- Notifying a candidate they were not selected after final interviews.
- Closing out candidates after a hiring freeze.
- Rejecting candidates from a final shortlist when one was selected.
What to include
- Thank for time and interest.
- Clear no — leave no ambiguity.
- Brief, non-specific reason (or none).
- Future-roles language (positive but non-committal).
- Sincere closing.