1. Check the decision before trying another delivery channel
Identify the actual employing entity, the authorized issuer, the employee and the specific grounds and intended effective date. A headquarters approval, draft settlement proposal or instruction to attend a meeting is not necessarily a final dismissal notice. Use a clear written document and consistent Chinese and English versions where needed. A signature acknowledging receipt should not be bundled with a statement accepting dismissal or waiving claims.
Delivery cannot cure an unsupported ground. Labor Contract Law Articles 39 and 40 have different requirements; Article 40 requires a qualifying ground plus 30 days’ advance written notice to the employee or an additional month’s wages. It does not permit dismissal for any reason on payment of that amount. Check Article 42 protections and the applicable Article 43 trade-union procedure before implementation. A returned envelope does not restart the review with a new invented ground.
2. Distinguish dispatch, arrival and acceptance
Civil Code Article 137 distinguishes a statement made in dialogue, effective when the recipient knows its content, from a non-dialogue statement, effective when it reaches the recipient. These general rules should be read alongside employment-law requirements and valid notice arrangements. The date printed on the letter, a courier booking or an internal HR entry does not alone establish arrival. Equally, a missing signature does not automatically establish non-delivery if other reliable evidence proves communication.
At a meeting, retain the exact notice, the time and place, who attended, what was explained, whether a copy was offered and the employee’s response. Record whether the employee refused the document itself or only refused to sign an acknowledgment. Contemporaneous notes and lawfully obtained complete recordings can support the account; a manager’s later note saying only “refused” is weaker. Do not coerce a signature or treat silence as agreement to a negotiated termination.
3. A returned courier requires an address and contents review
Before mailing, compare the employee’s confirmed delivery address, any contractual update obligation, later address changes and information already known to HR. Keep the signed address confirmation and the relevant communications. Use a traceable service; identify the enclosed document accurately on the mailing record and preserve evidence linking the final notice to that parcel. A tracking page may show a parcel’s journey without proving what it contained.
If returned, preserve the complete envelope, notice, waybill and delivery or refusal records. “Refused”, “unknown addressee”, “moved” and “unclaimed” are different facts. Check who refused, which address was used and whether the employee had a realistic opportunity to receive the notice. A contractual deemed-receipt clause requires review of its validity and the actual facts; it is not a universal rule that dispatch or every refusal ends employment. Consider a verified alternative channel promptly. Do not assume that court service-by-publication rules authorize a company to substitute a public announcement for delivery to a reachable employee.
4. Email and messaging need proof of identity and receipt
For non-dialogue data messages, Article 137 treats entry into a recipient-designated system differently from an undesignated system: in the latter case, the recipient must know or ought to know that the message entered the system. A valid agreement about the effective time of a data message also matters. Check the agreed email address or messaging account, past use and actual delivery evidence. A sent-folder screenshot, a display name or a link that the employee can no longer open does not resolve all of these questions.
Preserve the complete message and readable attachment, account-identification evidence, timestamps, delivery or failure reports and surrounding replies. Coordinate access restrictions so that the company does not rely solely on a mailbox it has already disabled. Under Articles 14, 15 and 93 of the SPC civil-evidence provisions, electronic communications are evidence whose original form, integrity and reliability matter. Keep original exports and their source; avoid cropped screenshots as the only record. These are litigation evidence rules, not a guarantee that every electronic notice satisfies the required form or delivery conditions.
5. Fix the timeline before payroll and exit administration
Prepare a chronology separating approval, issuance, each delivery attempt, established receipt, any advance-notice period and the intended last day. If receipt remains disputed, obtain a case-specific assessment before backdating the exit or treating absence after an access shutdown as new misconduct. Article 44 of the SPC Labor Dispute Interpretation (I) places the burden on the employer for disputes arising from its dismissal decision. Preserve failed attempts as well as successful ones; changing the notice after a failed attempt can create inconsistent evidence.
For review, assemble the contract and address provisions, final notice and authority record, evidence for the dismissal ground, any union materials, meeting record, courier originals, electronic messages and proposed payroll timeline. Coordinate the separate exit-certificate and handover obligations once the legal position is established. For an initial enquiry, provide a non-confidential outline of the China entity, city, proposed ground, dates and refusal or return reason. Detailed personnel records can follow through an agreed secure intake process. Lawyer consultations are in Chinese and English.
Legal sources
Official sources · Checked 2026-10-22. Translations are for reference and are not official legal texts.
- PRC Civil Code: declarations of intent (SPC publication) ↗
Articles 135–142: form, communication, arrival, data messages and interpretation.
- PRC Labor Contract Law (2012 amendment) ↗
Articles 36, 39–43 and 50: dismissal routes, notice conditions, protections and exit formalities.
- SPC Interpretation (I) on Labor Disputes, Fa Shi [2020] No. 26 ↗
Article 44: employer burden of proof for dismissal disputes; Article 47: union-procedure consequences.
- SPC Provisions on Evidence in Civil Litigation (2019 amendment), Fa Shi [2019] No. 19 ↗
Articles 14, 15 and 93–94: electronic data, originals and authenticity assessment.
General information about mainland China. The facts, applicable dates and local rules require individual review.
Partner, Beijing ChangAn Law Firm
China-qualified since 2019 · Beijing & Shenzhen
Review a refused dismissal notice
Check the notice, delivery record and proposed effective date before implementing the next HR step.
Discuss your matter ↗