Find what your contract says you get if the job ends
Severance terms decide what an employer pays when it ends employment, and they are often conditional: payable only if you are let go without cause, sometimes only after signing a release, and sometimes reduced by notice pay. Many contracts have no severance clause at all. Ask Search+ whether your contract provides severance, how it is calculated and what you must do to receive it, and read each cited passage.
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Last updated October 2026
How to check severance terms with Search+
- Upload the contract and any severance plan
Some employers set severance in a separate plan or policy. Upload it with the contract so answers can draw on both.
- Ask whether severance exists and when it applies
Ask "Does this contract provide severance, and in which kinds of termination?" The answer cites the clause, or the sections it checked if none is found.
- Ask how it is calculated and what conditions apply
Ask how the amount is worked out, when it is paid, and whether a release or other conditions are required. Open each citation.
Questions about severance
Does my contract or the company's severance plan provide any payment if I am let go?
Does severance apply only to termination without cause, and how does the contract define cause?
How is the severance amount calculated, for example by length of service?
Do I have to sign a release of claims to receive severance?
Is severance paid in addition to notice pay or instead of it?
What to look for in severance terms
Severance usually applies to termination without cause, and sometimes to resignation for good reason. Definitions of cause and good reason decide who qualifies.
Payment often depends on signing a release of claims, returning property and complying with restrictive covenants.
Some contracts reduce severance by notice pay or other amounts. Check whether payments stack or replace each other.
In some places the law sets minimum termination pay regardless of the contract; elsewhere severance is purely contractual. Ask a lawyer where you work.
Search+ cites each condition it reports, so you can read the triggers and requirements in the contract's own words.
Severance wording and what to ask
| Wording you may see | What it usually signals | A follow-up question |
|---|---|---|
| "terminated without Cause" | The main trigger for severance | How does the contract define Cause? |
| "resign for Good Reason" | A resignation that still qualifies | What counts as Good Reason, and is notice required? |
| "subject to execution of a release" | A release condition | Is there a deadline to sign? |
| "in lieu of notice" | Payment instead of notice | Is this separate from severance? |
| "in accordance with the Severance Plan" | Terms sit in a plan | Is the plan in this workspace, and can it be changed? |
What is severance in an employment contract?
Severance is a payment, or package of payments and benefits, that an employer provides when employment ends in circumstances the contract or a plan defines, often in exchange for conditions such as a release of claims.
Questions about severance
Can Search+ tell me if my contract includes severance?
Will it show the conditions attached to severance?
Can it read a separate severance plan?
Can it compare severance in two offers?
Is this advice about what I am owed?
Know your exit terms before you need them
Start a workspace, upload the contract, and ask what it says about severance.
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