How to Create an Online Leave Request Form (Free Template)
Tim Formulix ·
You can build an online leave request form in about 5 minutes: pick the "Leave request" template in Formulix, adjust the leave types, and share the link with your team. Every request lands in your dashboard and your inbox, with the dates, the leave type, and a doctor's note when it's sick leave.
This guide covers what a good leave request form should ask, how to build one step by step, and a few small settings that save HR from chasing missing details.
Why move leave requests online?
In many small teams, leave is still requested over chat, email, or a paper form signed by a manager. That works until the team grows. Then the same problems show up:
- Requests are scattered. Some arrive in private chats, some in group chats, some by email. At year end, HR has to scroll back through all of them to count remaining leave.
- Details are missing. Someone forgets the end date or the leave type, and HR has to ask again.
- Dates are wrong. The end date is earlier than the start date, or the year is off. A small mistake, but it breaks the records.
- Documents get lost. A doctor's note sent as a photo in a chat is hard to find a month later.
With an online form, every request has the same format, the required fields are always filled in, and everything is stored in one place you can export.
What a leave request form should include
A good leave request form is short, but complete enough that HR never has to follow up. This is what we recommend, and it's what the Formulix template already contains:
| Question | Answer type | Why it's needed |
|---|---|---|
| Employee name | Short text | Who is asking |
| Leave type | Choice: annual leave, sick leave, maternity leave, special leave | Decides the rules and documents that apply |
| Start date | Date | First day of leave |
| End date | Date | Can't be before the start date |
| Doctor's note | File upload, shown only for sick leave | Proof for sick leave |
| Notes | Long text | Reason or handover details |
For a larger company, you might add department, line manager, or who covers the work during the leave. Try to stay under 10 questions so people actually finish the form.
How to create a leave request form in Formulix
1. Sign up and open the template gallery
Sign up for free at formulix.id with Google or email. On your dashboard, click New form, then Use a template, and type "leave" in the search box. On the Leave request card, click Use.
2. Adjust the leave types
Open the "Leave type" question and change the options to match your company policy. For example, add "Bereavement leave" or "Unpaid leave", or remove types you don't offer. Mark the important questions as Required so no request comes in half-empty.
3. Make sure the end date can't come before the start date
Click the "End date" question. Under Must not be before, choose the "Start date" question. Leave Same day is allowed checked so one-day leave still works.
Now nobody can pick an end date earlier than their start date. It's the most common mistake on ordinary leave forms.
4. Ask for a doctor's note only for sick leave
The template already includes a Logic rule: the "Doctor's note" question only appears when someone picks "Sick leave". People requesting annual leave never see it, so the form stays short.
5. Limit who can fill in the form
To keep outsiders out, turn on Only invited emails in Form Options (the gear icon), on the Behavior tab. List employee emails one per line, or just enter @yourcompany.com to allow every company address. Respondents confirm their email with a 6-digit code before they start.
6. Get notified and keep a running record
- Turn on the New response received notification in your account settings. You'll get an email with the answers every time someone submits a request.
- Connect Google Sheets so every request is added to a spreadsheet automatically. Tracking remaining leave then takes a simple formula.
7. Share it with your team
Publish the form, then share the link in your team chat, pin it on your intranet, or save it as a shared bookmark. The same link works for every future request.
Tips to make sure people use it
- One link for everything. Don't make a new form every month. Keeping one form keeps your Google Sheets record clean.
- Put a short policy on the welcome page. For example, "Request annual leave at least 7 days in advance." People read it right before they fill in the form.
- Use choices, not free text. Leave types as options are far easier to count than typed answers.
- Test it before you share it. Fill it in once yourself, pick "Sick leave", and check that the doctor's note field appears.
Frequently asked questions
Is it free to create a leave request form in Formulix?
Yes. Templates, date questions, file uploads, logic and Google Sheets are available on the free plan.
Do employees need an account?
No. They just open the link and fill it in. If you turn on "Only invited emails", they only need to enter a 6-digit code sent to their work email.
Can a manager approve leave from the form?
The form records the request. For approvals, add a status column such as "Approved" or "Declined" in the connected Google Sheet.
What if our current form is in Google Forms?
Formulix can import forms from Google Forms, so you don't have to rebuild your questions from scratch.
Get started
A tidy leave request form saves HR time every week, and employees no longer have to guess where to send their request. The Formulix template already has every question above plus the doctor's note logic, so all you need to do is adjust the leave types.