Letter of Declination

A letter of declination is sent in order to politely reject a job offer, business proposal, application, idea or any other scenario that requires a formal way of declining something.

 

For example if you applied for a job, and received an offer, but didn’t want to accept it, you would send a letter of declination stating your intentions. Similarly it is good manners to send a letter of declination to a college or university that offered you a place that you won’t be taking.

 

Likewise if a company formally approaches your business with a proposal for a construction project or a simple offer to provide cleaning services for example, you may write a letter of declination if you aren’t interested.

 

Lenders such as mortgage companies and banks often send declination letters to those whose loan applications have been rejected.

 

Less formally you may decide to send a letter of declination if you cannot attend an event or function you’ve been invited to.

Steps

Starting to Write

1

Be polite but straightforward. The person being declined doesn’t want to feel bad about the situation, but they also don’t want to be bogged down in ambiguous language that might confuse the matter.

2

Clearly state the reason why you are declining, but don’t make it personal.

3

It is good manners to thank the person for their time.

4

Only say you may be interested in the future if it is true. You don’t want to be contacted once a week.

Sample Letters

Letter of Declination for Proposal Sample


Dear Anders Palgrem,

Thank you for your kind offer of providing gardening work for the Henderson business block and surrounding gardens.

 

However we regretfully have to decline the proposal as we already have several gardeners working for us and we are happy with the costs and results.

 

I do personally like the look of your portfolio and will definitely get in touch if circumstances change or we become aware of work needing doing at any of our other properties.

 

Take care,

Corey Greenwood

Henderson Associates

Letter of Declination to Invitation Sample


Hi Mary,

Albury and I would like to thank you kindly for your invitation to attend Constance’s high school graduation celebration dinner, unfortunately Albury will be out of town that day on a business function and I have already promised my mother that I would go and visit her in Long Island.

 

Please let Constance know that we’re very proud of her achievement – what superb grades – and will likely see her at the August Ballroom show.

 

Warm regards,

Heather

Letter of Declination for College Sample


Dear Admissions,

I am delighted and encouraged that you have offered me a place at the University, however unfortunately I have to respectfully decline.

 

I haven’t taken this decision lightly, but the required tuition has proven itself too costly for my circumstances and having pursued all possible avenues, I have decided to attend a college closer to my home in Maryland.

 

Sincerely,

Anne Swanson

Letter of Declination for Mortgage Sample


Dear Mr. Murphy,

We regret to inform you that your mortgage application has been declined and we cannot provided you with any finance at this time.

 

Even though your request of $60,000 falls within our lower band scheme, your personal information and financial circumstances did not meet our internal criteria.

 

You are free to pursue another application after 6 months. If you have any questions or queries about this rejection please contact customer services for free on 608-555-0158.

 

Sincerely,

Ms. Cheyenne Rouge

Manfred Mortgages

Letter of Declination for Job Sample


Daniel K. Forsythe

2548 Modoc Alley
Dixie, ID 83525

 

Dear Mr. Forsythe,

I am thrilled that I was chosen for the job of Head Architect and John Boise Architects Inc.

 

Unfortunately, I will not be able to accept this position, as I have already started a new job at another firm. It is more suitable for me than the job at John Boise Architects Inc. would have been.

 

I want to thank you for choosing me for this position. I am honored that I beat out all the other candidates for this very prestigious job.

 

I hope we may be able to work together in the future!

 

Best regards,

Terrance A. Olszewski