Employment — offers and agreements
Offer letters, employment agreements, and what an e-signed offer needs
An offer letter and an employment agreement are not the same document, and mixing them up is how a company accidentally promises a year of employment it did not mean to promise.
An offer letter states the job, the pay and the start date. An employment agreement sets terms both sides are bound to — term, duties, confidentiality, sometimes severance. In most of the United States employment is at-will by default, meaning either side can end it at any time for any lawful reason. Language that promises a fixed term or a specific process can change that, whether or not anyone meant it to.
What the law generally requires
At-will employment is the default rule in every U.S. state except Montana, which by statute limits discharge after a probationary period. At-will is a default, not a guarantee: it can be modified by contract language, and it is always limited by anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation law.
Written notice of pay terms is required in a growing number of states at or before hire — the wage-theft-prevention notices in New York and California are the best-known examples. These are separate documents from the offer letter, with their own required contents.
Employment documents can generally be signed electronically under ESIGN and state UETA. Some payroll and tax forms have their own electronic-signature rules set by the agency that owns the form.
Non-compete and non-solicit terms are governed entirely by state law and vary enormously — enforceable with limits in some states, void for most workers in others. Never reuse a restrictive covenant across states without checking.
What most offers and agreements include
Position, reporting line, start date, and whether the role is exempt or non-exempt.
Compensation, how it is paid, and whether any bonus is discretionary — that one word does a lot of work.
An at-will statement, in an offer letter, saying nothing in the letter creates a fixed term of employment.
Confidentiality, and an assignment of work product where the role creates any.
Contingencies — background check, work authorization, signing the confidentiality agreement — stated as conditions, before the start date.
In a true employment agreement: term, termination rights, notice periods, severance, and what survives the end of employment.
What an e-signed offer needs
The candidate's agreement to sign electronically, captured before signing rather than assumed.
A signature attached to the exact version of the letter the candidate read — not to a later revision.
A dated record showing when the offer was sent, opened and accepted, because acceptance windows and start dates are argued over more often than pay is.
A copy the candidate can keep, immediately, without logging in to anything.
If the candidate reads another language better than English, the version they understood matters. See the bilingual guide for what a second-language signature does and does not prove.
What XOsign does about it
- Sends the offer, records consent to sign electronically, and captures the accepted-at time in an append-only trail.
- Keeps the original letter and the signed version together, so it is clear which text was accepted.
- Fingerprints and timestamps the completed file, so an accepted offer can be verified later.
- Shows a translated version beside the original when the signer reads another language better, with the signed record anchored to the original.
- Explains what a document says in plain language. XOsign never decides anything for you and never gives legal advice.
What to ask an attorney
- Does anything in this letter accidentally create a fixed term or a promise of continued employment?
- What notices does my state require at hire, and are they separate documents?
- Are my confidentiality and restrictive-covenant terms enforceable in the state where this person will work?
- Is this role properly classified as exempt or non-exempt?
Frequently asked questions
Does an offer letter have to be signed?
It does not have to be, but a countersigned letter is far better evidence of what was agreed — and of when the candidate accepted.
Can we send an offer for electronic signature?
Generally yes. Offer letters and employment agreements are ordinary contracts for electronic-signature purposes; specific payroll or tax forms may have their own rules.
Is an offer letter an employment contract?
Usually not, and most letters say so explicitly. But language promising a term, a process, or a guaranteed bonus can turn a letter into something closer to a contract than the employer intended.
XOsign is not a law firm and this page is not legal advice. It explains, in plain English, what the law generally requires so you can have a better conversation with your own attorney. Laws differ by state and change over time, and only a licensed attorney who knows your situation can tell you what to do about yours.
Send an offer and see the record
Open the sample document to see what the signer sees, and what the completed record contains.