Maternity Leave Out of Office Messages: Copy-and-Edit Drafts

A good maternity leave out of office message does three things and stops: it says you are away, it says roughly when you will be back, and it tells people who to contact instead. You do not owe anyone the reason, a due date, an apology or a promise to check email. Pick the tone below that matches your job, swap in your own names and dates, and set it up before your last day, not from a hospital bed.

The drafts are grouped by tone, because the right message for a client inbox is not the right one for your team.

What every version needs

Before you choose a tone, gather four things:

• Your return date, or a range. If the date is not fixed yet, a month is fine (“back in early March”).
• One redirect per kind of request. Not “contact my team”, but “for invoices, Priya; for the Henley account, Marcus”. People follow a name. They ignore a department.
• A line on whether email is forwarded. “Your message won’t be forwarded” tells people to resend it to the right person, which saves your redirects from guessing.
• The end date in your email settings. Set the auto-reply to switch off the day after you return, so the first morning back does not start with a message saying you are away.

Leave out your due date, medical details, your baby’s name and anything about checking in “occasionally”. If you do want to check in, decide that with your manager, not in a message every sender reads.

Plain and professional

The default for most offices. Short, neutral, nothing to misread.

Thank you for your email. I’m out of the office on leave from [date] and will return on [date]. Your message will not be forwarded.

For [topic], please contact [name] at [email]. For [topic], please contact [name] at [email]. For anything else, [name] at [email] can help or point you to the right person.

Warm, for your own team

Fine when most of your mail comes from people who already know, and you would like the message to sound like you.

Hi! I’m on maternity leave from [date] until [date], spending these months with our new baby. I won’t be checking email while I’m away.

[Name] is covering [project or area] and [name] has [project or area]. They know where everything lives, so please go straight to them.

See you in [month]!

Private, with no reason given

Not everyone wants their inbox to announce a baby, and you never have to. “Leave” covers it.

Thank you for your message. I’m currently away from work and will return on [date]. During this time, please contact [name] at [email] for [topic], or [name] at [email] for everything else. Your email will not be forwarded.

This version also suits a leave that started early or did not go to plan. Nobody reading it needs more than the date and the redirect.

Client-facing

For external contacts, the message is really about continuity: who is handling their work, and that nothing has been dropped.

Thank you for getting in touch. I’m on leave until [date]. While I’m away, [name] is looking after [client or account] and is fully up to date on [current project]. You can reach [them] at [email] or [phone].

I look forward to working with you again when I’m back.

If your email client lets you set a separate reply for people outside your organization, use this one there and the warm version for colleagues.

When the return date isn’t fixed

Leave plans change, and a vague date beats a wrong one.

I’m on leave and expect to be back in [month]. Until then, please contact [name] at [email], who is covering my work and will know my return date once it’s confirmed.

Your cover person becomes the source of truth for your date, and you never have to update the auto-reply from the sofa at 3 a.m.

The quick versions

Chat status or internal profile: “On leave until [date]. For [topic], message [name].”

Voicemail: “Hi, you’ve reached [name]. I’m away on leave until [date] and won’t be checking messages. For [topic], please call [name] on [number], or email [name] at [email]. Thanks.”

Email signature, for your last two weeks: “Heads up: I’ll be on leave from [date]. [Name] will be covering [area].” This gives your regular contacts a warning before the auto-reply surprises them.

Setting it up so it actually works

The club’s most common slip is a perfect message that points to the wrong person.

1. Ask your redirect contacts first. Each person you name should know they are named, and for what.
2. Write it in your last full week, alongside the rest of the maternity leave checklist. If the baby comes early, your manager can switch on a message that already exists.
3. Send yourself a test from a personal address and read the reply as a stranger would.
4. Update the voicemail too. It is the one people forget.
5. Hand a copy to your manager, so it can be edited if your cover changes while you are away.

Coming back: the first message you send

The return side is one short email to the people you work with most, sent on your first day or the Friday before. It does the work the auto-reply did, in reverse:

Hi all, I’m back from leave as of today. Thank you to [name] and [name] for covering. [Name] will hand back [area] over the next week, so please keep copying them until [date]. I’m working through my inbox; if something of yours is urgent, a fresh email is the fastest way to reach me.

Keep it to that. The baby photo can go in the team chat if you want it there. The back-to-work playbook covers the rest of the first week, and if you are reading this months early, the lessons from moms whose leave has ended are worth a look first.

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FAQ: maternity leave out of office messages

Should I say “maternity leave” in my out of office message?

Only if you want to. “On leave” is complete and professional, and it is the safer default for client inboxes. Many people use “maternity leave” with their own team and plain “leave” externally.

Should I include my return date?

Yes, or at least a month. Without one, people either wait for you or chase you, and both defeat the point of the message.

How long should a maternity leave out of office message be?

Two to four sentences: away, back when, who to contact, whether mail is forwarded. Anything longer gets skimmed.

Do I need to apologize for being away?

No. Leave is planned and entitled time off. “Thank you for your message” is all the politeness it needs.

When should I turn the out of office on?

At the end of your last working day, set to switch off the day after you return. If the baby arrives early, ask your manager or IT to switch on the version you already wrote.