How long do I have to sign a severance agreement in New York?
If you are 40 or older, federal law gives you 21 days to consider an agreement that releases an age claim (45 if you are let go as part of a group) and 7 days after signing to revoke it. If the agreement has a confidentiality term and your situation involves discrimination, harassment or retaliation, New York adds its own 21-day and 7-day clocks at any age. Outside those situations, the time you have is generally whatever the offer, or any severance plan, provides.
Who does this apply to?
The federal periods apply to anyone 40 or older whose agreement releases an age discrimination claim, which almost every general release does. The New York periods apply at any age, but only where the agreement contains a confidentiality term and the underlying situation involves discrimination, harassment or retaliation (Gen. Oblig. Law § 5-336(1)).
The rules
- 21 days to consider, 45 in a group layoff. Required for a valid release of an age claim (29 U.S.C. § 626(f)(1)(F)). You may sign early if you want to, but the employer may not pressure you to by threatening to withdraw the offer or by giving better terms to people who sign fast (29 C.F.R. § 1625.22(e)(6)).
- 7 days to revoke. If the agreement releases an age claim, you have at least seven days after signing to change your mind, and the agreement does not take effect until they pass. This period “cannot be shortened by agreement or otherwise” (29 C.F.R. § 1625.22(e)(5)).
- New York’s own clocks. Where § 5-336 applies, a confidentiality term is allowed only if secrecy is your preference, and you get up to 21 days to consider it and at least 7 days to revoke (Gen. Oblig. Law § 5-336(1)).
- A material change restarts the clock. If the employer changes the offer in a material way, the 21 or 45 days begin again, unless you agree otherwise (29 C.F.R. § 1625.22(e)(4)).
What if nobody gave me the time?
If you are 40 or older and the agreement did not give you the consideration period, the release does not waive your age claim. You also do not have to give the money back to challenge it; see severance agreements if you are over 40.
What is unsettled?
Whether § 5-336 governs an ordinary severance agreement offered before anyone has asserted a claim. The text reaches “any settlement, agreement or other resolution of any claim,” and the one federal decision on what triggers the statute points to the confidentiality term rather than a filed complaint, but no New York appellate court has decided it. See the open questions.
What should I do with the time?
- Write down the date and time you received the agreement.
- If you were let go in a group, check that you received the list of job titles and ages.
- If you receive unemployment, look at when the first payment is due; see whether severance affects unemployment.
- Decide what you would ask for; see what is negotiable.
Before you sign: what are your claims worth?
A release trades your claims for the severance. If you think you may have a claim, the New York employment case evaluator reviews your answers and documents the way I review a new matter and gives you a realistic pre-suit estimate, so you can compare what you would be giving up with what the agreement pays. It charges only the actual cost of running the analysis, never more than $5. Afterwards you can choose whether to send it to me for review.
This page is general information about New York and federal law, last reviewed September 2026. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Dollar figures, deadlines and pending legislation change. If you are holding an agreement with a deadline on it, speak with a lawyer now.