How Long Do You Have to Review a Severance or Settlement Agreement? The 21-Day, 45-Day and 7-Day Rules

There is no single review period for every agreement. Federal law sets a minimum of 21 days (45 days in a group program) to consider a release of age-discrimination claims and 7 days to revoke it, and those periods apply to waivers of federal age claims.⁠^[1] New York State General Obligations Law § 5-336 separately gives a complainant up to twenty-one days to consider a confidentiality term in a settlement of a discrimination, harassment or retaliation claim, and at least seven days to revoke after signing.⁠^[2][3] A second State statute, CPLR § 5003-b, says twenty-one days for a plaintiff resolving a claim that involves discrimination.⁠^[4]

Outside those situations, the laws described on this page set no fixed number of days; the EEOC says that for releases of other federal claims most courts weigh whether the employee had enough time.⁠^[5]

Which period applies to which agreement?

Situation	Layer	Time to consider	Time to revoke after signing
Release of federal age claims by one employee who is at least 40	Federal	At least 21 days⁠[1]	At least 7 days⁠[1]
Release of federal age claims in an exit incentive or other termination program offered to a group or class	Federal	At least 45 days⁠[1]	At least 7 days⁠[1]
Settlement of an age charge already filed with the EEOC, or of an age lawsuit	Federal	"A reasonable period of time"⁠[7]	The 7-day revocation condition is not among those the statute carries over⁠[7]
Confidentiality term in a settlement of a discrimination, harassment or retaliation claim	New York State (Gen. Oblig. Law § 5-336)	Up to twenty-one days⁠[2]	At least seven days⁠[3]
Confidentiality term when a claim or cause of action involving discrimination is resolved by agreed judgment, stipulation, decree, agreement to settle, assurance of discontinuance or otherwise; the statute refers to "the plaintiff"⁠[4]	New York State (CPLR § 5003-b)	Twenty-one days⁠[4]	At least seven days⁠[4]
Release of Title VII, ADA or Equal Pay Act claims, with none of the above	Federal	No period stated; enough time is one factor courts weigh⁠[5]	None stated in the EEOC's summary⁠[5]

More than one row can apply to the same document. An agreement that releases a 50-year-old employee's federal age claims and also settles a harassment complaint with a confidentiality clause has to satisfy both the federal age-waiver conditions and the New York State confidentiality rules.⁠^[1][8]

The federal 21-day, 45-day and 7-day rules for workers 40 and over

The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act protects individuals who are at least 40 years of age.⁠^[9] Under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, which amended it, a waiver of federal age claims is not knowing and voluntary unless the person is given at least 21 days to consider the agreement, or at least 45 days when the waiver is requested as part of an exit incentive or other employment termination program offered to a group or class of employees.⁠^[1] The agreement also has to give the person at least 7 days after signing to revoke, and it does not become effective or enforceable until that period ends.⁠^[1]

The time periods are two items on a longer federal list. The same statute requires an understandable written agreement that refers specifically to age-law rights, no waiver of rights arising after signing, consideration beyond what the person is already entitled to, and written advice to consult an attorney.⁠^[1] In a group program the employer has to hand over, at the start of the 45 days, written information about who is covered by the program, the job titles and ages of those eligible or selected, and the ages of those in the same job classification or unit who are not.⁠^[10]

When do the 21 or 45 days start, and do changes restart them?

Under the federal regulation, the 21-day or 45-day period runs from the date of the employer's final offer.⁠^[6] Material changes to the final offer restart the period; changes that are not material do not; and the parties may agree that changes, material or not, do not restart it.⁠^[6]

Can I sign early?

Under the federal regulation, an employee may sign before the 21 or 45 days end, which starts the 7-day revocation period.⁠^[6] The regulation allows this as long as the decision is knowing and voluntary and is not induced by the employer through fraud, misrepresentation, a threat to withdraw or alter the offer before the period expires, or different terms for employees who sign early.⁠^[6] The 7-day revocation period is different: under the same federal regulation the parties cannot shorten it, by agreement or otherwise.⁠^[6]

What if the age release does not comply?

In Oubre v. Entergy Operations, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court held that a release that did not comply with the federal requirements could not bar the employee's federal age claim.⁠^[11] In a dispute over whether the federal conditions were met, the party asserting that the waiver is valid has the burden of proving it was knowing and voluntary.⁠^[10]

What if an age charge or lawsuit is already pending?

The federal statute treats that situation separately. A waiver that settles an age charge filed with the EEOC, or a court action, has to meet the other basic conditions and give the individual a reasonable period of time to consider the settlement agreement.⁠^[7]

New York State's rule for confidentiality terms: up to 21 days, then 7

New York State General Obligations Law § 5-336 applies to any settlement, agreement or other resolution of a claim whose factual foundation involves discrimination, harassment or retaliation.⁠^[8] Under it, an employer may not include a term that prevents disclosure of the underlying facts and circumstances unless confidentiality is the complainant's preference.⁠^[8]

When such a term is proposed, § 5-336 requires it to be provided in writing to all parties in plain English and, if applicable, the complainant's primary language, and the complainant "shall have up to twenty-one days to consider" it.⁠^[2] If confidentiality is the complainant's preference, that preference is recorded in an agreement signed by all parties.⁠^[2] For at least seven days after signing, the complainant may revoke, and under § 5-336 the agreement is not effective or enforceable until the revocation period has expired.⁠^[3]

The State period attaches to the confidentiality term. It is not written as a review period for every release.⁠^[2]

What changed in 2023, and what did not

General Obligations Law § 5-336 used to give the complainant "twenty-one days". A 2023 amendment, signed on November 17, 2023, and applying to agreements entered on or after that date, changed the words to "up to twenty-one days" and removed "after twenty-one days" from the sentence on recording the complainant's preference.⁠^[12][2] The seven-day revocation sentence was not changed.⁠^[3]

The 2023 bill amended only the General Obligations Law.⁠^[12] CPLR § 5003-b still says the plaintiff "shall have twenty-one days to consider" the term and that the preference is recorded "after twenty-one days".⁠^[4] The two statutes also describe their coverage differently:

• General Obligations Law § 5-336 applies to any settlement, agreement or other resolution of a claim whose factual foundation involves "discrimination, harassment, or retaliation", and refers to "the complainant".⁠^[8]
• CPLR § 5003-b applies to "any claim or cause of action" whose factual foundation involves discrimination, resolved "by agreed judgment, stipulation, decree, agreement to settle, assurance of discontinuance or otherwise", and refers to "the plaintiff".⁠^[4]

This is a difference in the wording of two statutes: one says "up to twenty-one days" and the other "twenty-one days".⁠^[2][4] This page does not cover how courts fit the two together.

As of September 16, 2026, the State's own "Combating Workplace Sexual Harassment" FAQ page still said the 21-day period cannot be waived or shortened and quoted the older text of § 5-336.⁠^[13] That statement does not match the current wording of § 5-336.⁠^[2][13]

When does the law set no period at all?

A release of Title VII, ADA or Equal Pay Act claims by a worker under 40, in an agreement with no confidentiality term covered by the State rules, falls outside both sets of periods above. For those federal claims the EEOC says the rules come from case law, and that most courts look at all the circumstances, including whether the employee had enough time to read and think about the advantages and disadvantages of the agreement before signing.⁠^[5] The EEOC's summary concerns waivers under the federal laws it names.⁠^[5]

Does a review period pause the deadline to file a claim?

A review period and a filing period are different clocks. The EEOC says its time limits for filing a charge generally will not be extended while a person tries to resolve the dispute through another forum such as an internal grievance procedure, a union grievance, arbitration or mediation.⁠^[14] The filing periods under each law are listed in the guide to New York employment claim deadlines.

What people commonly get wrong

• "The employer gave me three days, so the agreement is illegal." Whether a set period applies depends on what is being released and what the agreement contains. The federal minimums apply to waivers of federal age claims.⁠^[1]
• "The 21 days and the 7 days can be combined." Under the federal age rules and under New York State General Obligations Law § 5-336, the revocation period follows the signing of the agreement.⁠^[1][3]
• "I have to take the full 21 days." The federal regulation permits signing early if the choice is knowing and voluntary, and General Obligations Law § 5-336 gives the complainant up to twenty-one days; CPLR § 5003-b does not contain the words "up to".⁠^[6][2][4]

Practical points

• Write down the date you received the final version of the agreement and the date you sign.
• Look for the paragraph that describes the consideration and revocation periods and how a revocation has to be delivered.
• If a revised draft arrives, keep both versions so the changes can be compared.

For what the release itself can and cannot cover, see severance agreements and releases in New York. For the confidentiality rules in full, see NDAs in New York harassment and discrimination settlements. For group programs, see discrimination after a layoff or reorganization. Agreements reached through an agency are covered in mediation in employment cases, and the tax treatment of a payment in whether employment settlements are taxable.