When to Use Passive Voice in Business Writing, With Examples

“The invoice was approved.” That sentence may give a supplier exactly the update they need. Put it in a query about who authorised an unexpected payment, though, and it leaves the main question unanswered. The grammar is sound; its usefulness depends on the reader’s task.

Knowing when to use passive voice in business writing helps you control that emphasis. Use it when the result deserves the opening position, when the actor is unknown, or when a factual update benefits from a neutral focus. Name the responsible person whenever the reader needs that information to understand a decision or take action.

The examples below are fictional workplace situations. Each pair preserves the same core event while changing what the sentence places first.

Recognise what active and passive voice do

In an active sentence, the grammatical subject performs the action: “Maya approved the invoice.” Maya is the subject, and she does the approving. In the passive version, “The invoice was approved by Maya”, the subject receives the action. The invoice occupies the opening position; Maya appears in a phrase beginning with “by”.

A typical passive construction combines a form of be with a past participle: “was approved”, “is being checked” or “will be delivered”. A past participle is a verb form such as “approved”, “written” or “sent”. You can often omit the actor: “The invoice was approved.” Passive constructions can also use get, as in “The parcel got damaged”, although that wording may sound more conversational.

A form of be alone proves little. “The invoice is overdue” describes its state; “The invoice was sent yesterday” describes an action performed on it. Look at how the whole verb phrase works before reaching for the delete key.

Four active/passive comparisons

Choose the version that fits the surrounding message. Active wording often gives a direct account of responsibility. Passive wording can keep attention on the thing the reader is already asking about.

1. Put a completed result first

Active: “The maintenance team replaced the entrance lock this morning.”
Passive: “The entrance lock was replaced by the maintenance team this morning.”

In an update headed “Entrance lock”, the passive sentence keeps the lock as the topic. Staff checking whether they can use the entrance may need the result most. If the team’s identity adds nothing useful, “The entrance lock was replaced this morning” can stand on its own. Keep any access instructions alongside it.

2. Report an event when the actor is unknown

Active, with an unspecified actor: “Someone removed the parcel from reception.”
Passive: “The parcel was removed from reception.”

The passive version suits a message tracing a missing parcel when nobody knows who collected it. “Someone” supplies no additional identity. Follow the update with a useful next step, such as “Please contact reception if you collected it.” Check the evidence first: if staff only know that the parcel is missing, write that. “Was removed” asserts that a removal occurred.

3. Keep a correction focused on the document

Active: “You entered the old address on the form.”
Passive: “The old address was entered on the form.”

For a routine correction, the passive sentence keeps attention on the field requiring a change. You could continue, “Please replace it with the current address before sending the form.” This can soften the immediate focus on a colleague, although the wider message and working relationship still shape its tone.

Use the active version when authorship needs to be established. A record of who changed a document, or an investigation of a repeated problem, may require explicit attribution. Courteous wording can still name the person involved.

Try rewriting one of your own routine updates in both voices, then explain what each opening leads the reader to notice. WriteCraft Pro offers practice in grammar and professional communication, with personalised feedback on submitted writing.

4. Make the next owner visible

Active: “Priya will check the revised figures by noon.”
Passive: “The revised figures will be checked by Priya by noon.”

Both sentences name the owner and deadline. The active version gives a colleague a particularly clear action record: Priya is doing the checking. Removing “by Priya” from the passive version would leave readers unsure whom to contact. In a handover, keep the named owner whenever the action depends on a particular person.

Separate sentence focus from responsibility

You can lead with the result and still state who is accountable. A passive opening can be followed by a direct sentence naming the person handling the next step. Read the small update below as one message.

“Mistakes were made” can sound evasive when the reader needs an account of a decision. Switching it mechanically to “We made mistakes” still leaves the actual event vague. Say what happened, identify responsibility where relevant and explain the response. Grammar helps organise the facts; you must supply them.

Choose and rewrite: a short exercise

For each situation, choose a suitable voice and write one or two sentences. Use only the supplied facts. Compare your choices with the possible answers afterwards.

1. A customer asks whether a refund has been authorised. Accounts authorised it this morning; the customer needs that confirmation.
2. A handover must tell colleagues that Ellis will send the revised quotation by 3 pm tomorrow.
3. A box is missing from the store cupboard. Nobody yet knows what happened. Morgan will check the delivery log today.

Possible answers and reasons

1. “Your refund was authorised this morning.” The passive opening answers the customer’s question directly. “Accounts authorised your refund this morning” is also clear. Neither version promises a payment-arrival date, which the brief leaves unknown.

2. “Ellis will send the revised quotation by 3 pm tomorrow.” Active wording makes the owner easy to find. A passive alternative can retain Ellis, but compare how quickly a colleague can identify their task.

3. “The box is missing from the store cupboard. Morgan will check the delivery log today.” The first sentence describes a state; the second assigns an action. Writing “The box was taken” would invent an explanation. Your choice of voice starts with an accurate account of the facts.

Apply the choice to a real message

Highlight a passive sentence in a recent email. Ask what the reader needs first, whether the actor is known and whether that identity affects the next step. Try an active version, compare both in their paragraph and keep the wording that serves the message.

For practice with the whole email, use our business writing exercises with explained answers. They extend the same reader-focused decisions to openings, summaries and requests.

A small grammatical choice can change where a reader looks for responsibility. WriteCraft Pro gives you space to test such choices across grammar and workplace writing, then use personalised feedback to examine your revisions.