An internal transfer policy sets the rules for employees moving to a different role, team or location in the same company: who can apply, how, and what happens to pay and the old position.
| Section | Common rule |
|---|---|
| Eligibility | Several months in the current role, no active final warning |
| How to apply | Application or request form; manager informed, not asked for permission |
| Release timing | Current manager can delay the move for a set period, such as 2 weeks |
| Pay | Set within the new role’s range; a lateral move to a lower-paid location is discussed upfront |
| Relocation | Whether any costs are covered, and any repayment terms |
Use the employee transfer request form to keep requests in one format.
A hotel group’s front desk agent, 14 months in her role, wants to transfer to the group’s newer hotel closer to home. Under the old informal approach, she would have to ask her manager, who has said before that he does not release good people.
EZTime digital HR forms let you send, sign and file employee documents online.
The new policy lets employees with 6 months in role and no final warning apply directly. Her manager is informed and can hold the move for up to 2 weeks to cover the schedule. Pay at the new hotel is set within its range; hers stays the same because both hotels use the same front desk range.
She moves in 12 days. Her old hotel backfills from a part-time agent who wanted more hours. In exit interviews the year before, two agents had said they left because they could not transfer; this year, none do.
Three questions cause most transfer disputes. First, pay: does the employee keep their rate, move to the new role’s range, or something in between? Write the rule down and tell the employee the new rate in writing before they accept. Second, seniority: does time with the company count for shift bids, vacation priority and PTO accrual in the new location? Third, the schedule: when does the new schedule start, and who covers the gap?
A one-page transfer agreement that answers all three, signed before the move, prevents most of them. Store it in the employee’s file alongside the original request form.
A restaurant group pays $18 an hour for line cooks downtown and $16.50 in a suburban location. A downtown cook asks to transfer to the suburban kitchen near her new home.
The policy says lateral transfers move to the new location’s range. HR shows her the $16.50 rate before she applies, and she decides the shorter commute is worth more than $60 a week at 40 hours. Because she knew the rate in advance, the move happens without a dispute, and the downtown kitchen backfills with a part-time cook who wanted more hours.
A move by an employee to another role, team, shift or location in the same organization.
It depends on the policy. Many good policies require informing the manager, not getting permission, with a set release period.
It can. The policy should say how pay is set in the new role and whether a lateral move keeps the current rate.
To keep employees who want a change, make moves fair and consistent, and prevent informal poaching.
It depends on your policy, and on any union agreement. State the rule in writing so employees know before they apply.
Yes, if the employee does not meet the written eligibility rules or there is no open role. Give the reason in writing and say when they can apply again.
Digital HR forms, e-signatures and a digital employee file with expiry reminders, plus announcements by location, department or role.