Listing Your Notice Period: What to Put and When

Notice period is one of those small details that causes disproportionate anxiety. People worry that a long notice period will get their application binned before anyone reads the rest of the CV, so they either omit it, fudge it, or agonise over the wording. Most of this worry is unnecessary — but a bit of clarity helps.

Do you need to put it on your CV at all?

Not always. If the job advert doesn't ask for it, you don't need a line on your CV stating your notice period. It's more commonly requested in the application form, at screening stage, or asked directly in a first interview. Adding it to the CV itself is optional — useful if you're actively trying to signal availability (e.g. you're already serving notice, or you're a contractor who can start quickly), unnecessary otherwise.

If you do include it, put it near your contact details or in a short line under your summary, not buried in your work history.

What if your notice period is long?

A three-month notice period is standard for many senior or specialist roles and won't surprise anyone hiring at that level. It's rarely a dealbreaker on its own. What matters more is how you frame it if asked directly.

• State it plainly: "My notice period is three months." No need to apologise for it or over-explain.
• If there's room to negotiate it down (some contracts allow this with employer agreement), say so: "My contract states three months, though I could discuss shortening this with my current employer if needed."
• Don't guess or round down hoping it'll sound better — this comes out in reference checks or contract paperwork and creates a credibility problem at exactly the wrong moment.

A long notice period is a logistics question for the employer, not a character flaw. Answer it like logistics.

If you're between jobs or immediately available

If you have no notice period — you've already left your last role, you're a contractor, or you're a graduate — say so plainly. "Immediately available" is a genuinely useful phrase for recruiters filling urgent roles, and it can work in your favour. Don't oversell it as a virtue, just state it as fact.

A note on gaps and notice periods together

If you've got a gap on your CV and are also currently unemployed, there's no need to link the two defensively. "Available immediately" stands on its own — you don't have to explain why.

What not to do

• Don't leave the field blank on an application form hoping it won't come up — it will, usually at offer stage, which is a worse time to have an awkward conversation.
• Don't claim a shorter notice period than your contract states unless you've actually confirmed you can leave early.
• Don't bury notice period language in vague terms like "flexible" if you actually mean "three months, negotiable" — be specific, it saves everyone a back-and-forth.

Notice period questions are administrative, not evaluative. Employers ask because they're planning, not testing you. Answer directly, and save your energy for the parts of the application that actually decide whether you get the interview.

If you're not sure what to prioritise across a CV — notice period included — FixMyCV reads the job description, scores your CV against it, and highlights real gaps for you to confirm before rewriting anything in the role's own language, without inventing details on your behalf.