GUIDE
Your first Estonia probation review: act before the last week
By Eliana Martinez · Senior Talent Management Analyst
Updated
On this page
Put the review in the manager’s diary on day one
The first employee often reports to a busy founder, which makes a probation deadline easy to miss. Assign a manager to provide regular feedback, keep useful records and raise concerns while there is still time to improve the working relationship. Agree the review dates when the hire starts.
With Teamed as EOR, use the designated contact to bring the employer into a developing issue early. The value is a clear coordination route for the employment decision. The provider needs the facts; it cannot reconstruct months of unwritten expectations from a last-minute request to end the contract.
Ask for the employee’s actual probation end date
The Labour Inspectorate explains a four-month default and rules under which certain absences are excluded from the calculation. The parties may agree a shorter period or none. Have the employer confirm the applicable terms and calendar calculation for this individual.
When leave or sickness changes the working history, ask whether the review date also needs updating. Keep the employment deadline distinct from your internal management checkpoint. A calendar reminder can help the manager act early, but it is not a legal calculation and should not become the basis for sending a notice.
Separate performance concerns from business changes
Write what the employee was expected to do, what happened, the support provided and the employee’s response. If the real issue is that the company no longer needs the role, say that. The official termination guidance requires an employer’s probation cancellation to relate to the purpose of probation; it is not a universal exit route.
Give the employer the underlying facts before deciding which process applies. Avoid drafting a convenient reason after the business has already announced an outcome. The quality of the record matters more than the number of messages in the folder.
Let the employer check the decision and communication
The official guidance states 15 calendar days’ advance notice for cancellation during probation and requires the employer to justify its decision. That does not make every termination lawful merely because notice is paid or given. Ask the employer to review grounds, timing, documentation and the proposed employee communication together.
Do not send a dismissal message directly and ask the EOR to regularise it afterwards. Agree who speaks to the employee, who issues the employment document and how access or equipment changes are coordinated. If a different lawful route applies, revise the plan before announcing it.
Reconcile the employment ending and commercial ending
Request a final-pay estimate, treatment of unused leave, benefits end dates, registration actions and return-of-equipment plan. Separately ask when provider billing stops, what fees apply and how security is reconciled. Provider administration charges and statutory employment liabilities are different items.
Teamed’s pricing advertises zero exit fees, while its honest-invoice page specifies no offboarding fee after three months. Obtain the applicable earlier-exit terms for your agreement. Use the closing checklist below to keep an orderly record without treating the article as authority to dismiss. If the hire continues, retain the same review notes as the foundation for the next development conversation and confirm any agreed changes to the employee.
PUT IT TO WORK
Probation decision and close checklist
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| Date | Employer confirms actual probation calculation and internal review deadline. |
| Evidence | Manager records expectations, support, examples and employee response. |
| Reason | Employer identifies applicable process from the real facts. |
| Communication | Agree sender, timing, documents and employee support. |
| Final payroll | Estimate salary, leave, benefits and other applicable liabilities. |
| Commercial close | Confirm provider charges, security reconciliation and billing stop. |
Sources behind this page
Labour Inspectorate: probation · 2026-10-19
Official guidance updated 28 January 2026: four-month default, permitted shortening or exclusion, and absence-related calculation rules.
Labour Inspectorate: termination · 2026-10-19
Official guidance explains reason requirements and 15-calendar-day notice during probation. Retrieved 19 October 2026.
Labour Inspectorate: holiday types · 2026-10-19
Official guidance updated 20 July 2026: ordinary annual holiday is at least 28 calendar days; special categories differ.
Teamed pricing · 2026-10-19
Provider advertises zero FX markup; refundable security of one month gross salary is separate from first employment funding. Country quote controls the actual package.
Teamed invoice explanation · 2026-10-19
This page describes security as one month total employment cost, unlike pricing’s gross-salary basis, and no offboarding fee after three months. Resolve both differences in the agreement.
Teamed account support · 2026-10-19
Provider advertises a designated account person, cover when absent and specialist access for accounts of all sizes.