Demand letter template you can edit and mail

A demand letter template is a short, fill-in letter that tells a person or business what you believe they owe you, why, and the date you expect it by. This page has a sample you can edit, then the part most templates leave out: for some claims the law sets what the letter must say and how long you must wait, and it differs by state. We read three of those rules at the source on 13 Nov 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice, and Certisent is not a law firm.

Sample demand letter

Edit the brackets. The four parts in the middle are the four boxes of the template above.

[Your name]
[Your mailing address]
[Date]

[Recipient's name]
[Recipient's mailing address]

Re: Demand for [amount or item]

To whom it may concern:

On [date], [what happened, in plain facts. For example: I paid you a deposit for work at my home, the work was not started, and the deposit has not been returned]. I asked you about this on [date] by [phone / email] and it has not been resolved.

I ask that you send [amount or item] by [date].

[Optional:] If I do not hear from you by that date, I intend to file a claim in small claims court.

Sincerely,
[Your name]

That is the whole letter: facts, a specific request, a date, and at most one sentence about what you will do next. The California Courts self-help guide puts the core in one line: "Let them know how much they owe you and why you think they owe you the money."

Keep the optional sentence only if it is true. A letter that announces a step you do not intend to take adds nothing to the request.

Is a demand letter required? Three rules, read at the source

Templates online often say a demand letter is "the last step before court" everywhere. The rules are narrower and more specific than that. Here are three, each from the court, agency or statute that states it.

Where and what	What the source says	How long	Source, read 13 Nov 2026
California, small claims court	"The court wants you to ask the other side for the money you think they owe you before you start a small claims case." It calls this a step you must take before filing. You can ask in person, by letter or by email.	No waiting period stated	California Courts, Ask for the money
Massachusetts, Consumer Protection Act (Chapter 93A) claims against a business	"State law requires you to send the business a letter 30 days before filing a claim in court." The letter must outline the complaint, the harm and how you want it resolved.	30 days	Mass.gov, 30 Day Demand Letter
Texas, damages suits under the Deceptive Trade Practices Act	"A consumer shall give written notice to the person at least 60 days before filing the suit advising the person in reasonable detail of the consumer's specific complaint" and the amount of damages and expenses.	60 days	Tex. Bus. & Com. Code 17.505(a)

Each one has its own edges:

• California. The court page gives one exception: "If there's a restraining order between you and the other side or you think it would be dangerous, you don't need to ask them." It also says that once you have asked, "you can wait to hear back or file your case right away."
• Massachusetts. The Attorney General's page says you must send the letter "regardless of which Court you plan to use," but not if the merchant does not maintain a place of business or keep assets within Massachusetts, and not if you raise the claim as a counterclaim or cross-claim. It lists four things the letter must include: your full name and address, a description of the unfair or deceptive act with the dates, the injury you suffered, and the relief you demand, including the amount of money.
• Texas. Section 17.505(b) drops the notice when 60 days' notice is "rendered impracticable" because suit must be filed to prevent the statute of limitations from expiring, or when the claim is a counterclaim. Under subsections (c) and (d), a defendant who did not receive the notice can ask the court to abate the suit.

These are three examples, not a survey of 50 states. Security deposits, bad checks, unpaid wages, claims against a government agency and many other claims have notice rules of their own, and they are not interchangeable. The self-help page of the court you would file in is the place to start.

The court and agency letters differ from a generic template

Two of the sources above publish their own letters, and it is worth knowing they exist before you use anyone's template, ours included.

• California Courts run a program that writes the letter from your answers, plus a separate one for a tenant asking a landlord for a security deposit, and sample letters for a bad check and for a stopped payment.
• The Massachusetts Attorney General's sample opens by naming the statute: "Under the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 93A, Section 9, I hereby make written demand for relief as outlined in that statute." A generic letter does not say that.

If your claim falls under a statute like these, the generic sample on this page is not enough by itself. Use the wording the statute or the agency asks for. The template above has room for it: the request box takes your own words.

What a demand letter must not threaten

A demand letter asks. It can also say what you plan to do in court. It should not try to frighten the other person into paying, and federal law draws that line for anything sent through the mail:

• 18 U.S.C. 876(d) covers anyone who, "with intent to extort from any person any money or other thing of value," mails a communication "containing any threat to injure the property or reputation of the addressee or of another," or "any threat to accuse the addressee or any other person of a crime." The penalty is a fine, up to two years in prison, or both.
• 18 U.S.C. 873 covers anyone who "under a threat of informing, or as a consideration for not informing, against any violation of any law of the United States, demands or receives any money or other valuable thing."

In practice that means leaving out sentences like these: pay or I will report you to the police, pay or I will tell your employer, pay or I will post about you online. States have their own laws on this too. Whether a particular sentence crosses a line is a legal question, and the simple way to stay clear of it is to write only facts, your request, your date and, if true, that you intend to file a claim.

Our Acceptable Use Policy follows the same line. We do not print letters that threaten or harass, or demands backed by a threat to harm, expose or accuse someone.

Write it as yourself

A demand letter from you should look like a letter from you.

• Sign it with your own name. If you write for a business you own, say so.
• Do not use a law firm's name, a made-up "legal department," a case number or a layout that imitates a court notice. Our policy does not allow a letter that pretends to come from someone else or imitates a court or a law firm.
• Certisent prints your letter under your name and return address. We add no letterhead, we do not write the letter, and we do not contact the other side.

Before you set the date: how much, and which court

Small claims courts have dollar limits, and they are set state by state. Two examples from the sources above:

• California: "Generally, you can only sue for up to $12,500 in small claims court (or up to $6,250 if you're a business)." (California Courts, Small claims in California, read 13 Nov 2026)
• Massachusetts: the Attorney General's page says "For claims under $7,000, Small Claims Court is the least costly option."

Your state's limit will be different, and limits change. Check your own court's page before you write "small claims court" in a letter.

Why people send it by certified mail

No general rule says a demand letter must travel by certified mail. California's court page accepts a request made in person or by email. What certified mail adds is a record: when the letter was mailed and, with a return receipt, when and where it was delivered.

The Massachusetts page says it plainly: "Although it is not required by law, the 30-Day Demand Letter should be sent by certified mail, return-receipt requested, so that you will have proof of delivery. Send the letter by regular mail also, and keep a copy for your files."

When a waiting period runs before you can file, as in the Massachusetts and Texas examples, the date the letter went out is the date you may later have to show. Our guides to proof of mailing and the return receipt explain what each record proves and what it does not.

Sending it

Mail the letter to the address where the person or business receives mail. For a business, that is usually the address on your contract, invoice or receipt.

At a post office the Certified Mail fee is $5.55 and an electronic return receipt is $2.91, plus postage (USPS Notice 123, price list effective 4 Oct 2026, read 13 Nov 2026). With Certisent you fill in the template, we print the letter and hand it to USPS as Certified Mail for $14.99, and you get the tracking number, a proof of mailing and the electronic return receipt by email. We cannot promise a delivery date, and sending a demand letter does not mean you will be paid.