Bonafide Certificate Generator: Employee Bonafide Certificate Online

What is a bonafide certificate for an employee?

A bonafide certificate is a letter from an employer confirming that a named person is a genuine, current employee of the company. It states the designation, the date of joining and usually the purpose for which it is issued. The word bonafide simply means genuine. Schools and colleges issue the same kind of certificate for students, which is why searches for bonafide certificate format return both.

For an employee the certificate is asked for by embassies for visa applications, by passport offices, by banks opening a salary account, by landlords and housing societies as proof of employment and address, and occasionally by courts and government offices. It is the shortest document HR issues and one of the most frequently requested.

Salary certificate generator · Employment verification letter template

Bonafide certificate format for employees

The certificate goes on letterhead with a date and a reference number, and is headed Bonafide Certificate. It is addressed to the authority asking for it or to whomsoever it may concern. The body is two or three sentences: that the named person, with the employee code, is a bonafide employee of the company working as a stated designation in a stated department since a stated date; the purpose for which it is issued; and a line inviting verification. It is signed by an authorised signatory with name and designation.

Do not add salary unless the recipient has asked for it. A bonafide certificate confirms employment, and a separate salary certificate confirms income. Mixing the two means the employee shows their salary to a landlord who only needed to know they have a job.

• Company name, address and logo, with the date and reference number
• The heading: Bonafide Certificate
• The addressee, or To whomsoever it may concern
• Employee name, employee code, designation, department and work location
• Date of joining and type of employment
• Passport number for a visa or passport application, if asked
• The purpose, and sanctioned leave dates for a visa
• A verification contact, and the signatory's name, designation and signature

Bonafide certificate for a visa application

Most visa applications by employed Indians need a letter from the employer. For Schengen, UK, US and Canadian visitor visas it is the same document under different names: a bonafide certificate, an employment letter, a no-objection certificate or a leave sanction letter. The embassy wants to know that the applicant has a job, that leave has been approved for the travel dates, and that the applicant is expected back.

Address it to the visa officer of the embassy or consulate, include the passport number, state the designation and date of joining, give the sanctioned leave dates, and add a phone number or email for verification. Include the salary only if the embassy's checklist asks for it; most do, so check before issuing.

Bonafide certificate as proof of employment and address

Banks opening a salary account, housing societies, landlords and some government offices accept a bonafide certificate as proof that the person is employed at a stated location. It is not an address proof for the employee's residence, and it should not claim to be. It confirms the work location, and a bank that needs the employee's residential address will take that from Aadhaar or a utility bill.

For these purposes the certificate needs no salary and no passport number. State the designation, the work location and the date of joining, name the purpose, and sign. If the landlord or society also wants income, issue a salary certificate alongside rather than adding figures to this one, so the employee decides what each recipient sees. Put the reference number on both and keep copies in the personnel file; when a society calls to verify months later, the number is how you find the letter.

Background check, in the HR glossary · Employment history, in the HR glossary

Who issues a bonafide certificate, and how fast?

The employer, through HR or the reporting manager, signed by someone with authority over personnel records. There is no statutory duty to issue one, but there is no reason to refuse. The employee is asking the company to confirm a fact that is already on the payroll. Issue it the same day. A visa appointment does not wait for HR's turnaround time. In a small company the proprietor or a director signs; in a larger one the authority usually sits with the HR head, and it is worth naming that person in the policy so requests do not queue behind a single signature.

Keep a copy with the reference number in the personnel file, so that when the consulate calls, whoever picks up can confirm the letter was issued. If the person has already left, do not issue a bonafide certificate: it certifies current employment. Issue an experience letter instead, which states the period served.