Annual Leave in Europe: A Guide for Employers

Leave entitlements depend on where an employee works, their working pattern and any applicable agreement. The figures below are a starting point for checking a policy, not a complete calculation for an individual employee.

Fact-checked on 21 September 2026. This guide covers ordinary employment arrangements; national exceptions and more favourable agreements can apply.

Start with weeks, then check how days are counted

The EU Working Time Directive provides a minimum of four weeks of paid annual leave. For a regular five-day working week, that corresponds to 20 working days. The minimum cannot be exchanged for money while employment continues; payment in lieu is permitted when employment ends. National law and agreements can provide more. Working Time Directive, Article 7

A day is not the same unit in every country. Some systems count Saturdays; others use calendar days or hours. Keep public holidays separate from annual leave, and check how part-time work, joining dates and absences affect the calculation.

Country-by-country starting points

Germany

The statutory minimum is 24 working days on a six-day week, equivalent to 20 on a five-day week. Contracts and collective agreements may increase it. Carry-over under the statute requires qualifying operational or personal reasons and is normally used in the first three months of the following year. Medically certified days of incapacity during holiday do not count as holiday. Federal Leave Act, sections 3, 7 and 9

Expiry also depends on whether the employer enabled and encouraged the employee to take leave and explained the consequences of not doing so. Do not apply an automatic year-end expiry without checking those duties and sickness-related exceptions. CJEU: loss of accrued annual leave

France

The usual full-year entitlement is 30 jours ouvrables, corresponding to five weeks; an equivalent calculation using jours ouvrés commonly gives 25 days. The normal accrual rate is 2.5 jours ouvrables per month, with specific rules for sickness. The reference period is generally June to May unless another arrangement applies. Service Public: paid leave

RTT days are a separate working-time arrangement. They are not an automatic extra allocation for every employee and their number depends on the applicable agreement. Check that agreement rather than adding a standard RTT allowance. Service Public: RTT

Netherlands

The minimum is four times weekly working hours: 160 hours for someone working 40 hours a week. Statutory leave generally expires six months after the accrual year, with exceptions where the employee could not reasonably take it. Additional contractual leave generally has a five-year limitation period. Dutch government: holiday entitlement

Holiday allowance is separate from pay during leave. The usual minimum is 8%, with statutory exceptions and rules on which pay counts. Dutch government: holiday allowance

Belgium

Ordinary annual leave is generally based on work in the preceding year, with a full entitlement corresponding to four weeks in the current work pattern. Supplementary European holidays can help eligible people starting or resuming work obtain leave before a full ordinary entitlement is available. Youth holidays are a different scheme with their own eligibility rules. Check the appropriate route rather than treating the first year as automatically holiday-free. Belgian social security: annual leave

Spain

The statutory minimum is 30 calendar days. Do not present this as an exact, universal conversion to 22 working days. The contract or collective agreement and the agreed leave calendar determine how entitlement is administered. Article 38 also protects leave that overlaps specified absences, including temporary incapacity, subject to its conditions and time limits. Workers' Statute, Article 38

Italy

The minimum is four weeks. At least two are normally taken in the accrual year, consecutively if the employee requests it; the remaining two are normally taken within the following 18 months. Applicable collective rules must also be checked. Italian Ministry of Labour: working conditions

Poland

The standard entitlement is 20 days below ten years of qualifying service and 26 days from ten years. Recognised education periods contribute to the calculation, subject to rules that prevent double-counting education and employment. Part-time entitlements are proportionate. Polish Ministry: duration of annual leave

Portugal

The usual annual minimum is 22 working days. In the admission year, employees generally accrue two working days per month of the contract, up to 20 days, normally usable after six complete months. Short contracts and the timing of the first leave year need separate checks. Portuguese government: working in Portugal

Sweden

The Annual Leave Act provides 25 days, but entitlement to leave and entitlement to paid leave are separate calculations. The usual summer rule provides four consecutive weeks during June–August, subject to statutory exceptions and agreements. Paid days above 20 may generally be saved and used within five years. This is not a universal five-day saving cap for employees with enhanced entitlements. Annual Leave Act, sections 4, 7, 12 and 18

Austria

The ordinary minimum is five weeks: 25 days on a five-day week or 30 on a six-day week. It rises to six weeks after the qualifying service threshold of 25 years. Creditable prior service and education can affect the calculation; it is not always necessary to spend all 25 years with the same employer. Austrian government: leave

Denmark

Employees can take five weeks of holiday. Paid holiday normally accrues at 2.08 days per month of employment, giving 25 days over a full year. The September–August accrual year and the period for taking holiday need to be distinguished. Danish government: holiday allowance

Finland

Under the ordinary accrual rules, employees earn two or 2.5 holiday weekdays per full holiday credit month, depending on length of service. A full accrual year therefore commonly gives 24 or 30 weekdays. Saturdays generally count: these figures are not directly comparable with a Monday–Friday allowance. Finnish occupational safety authority: annual holidays

Compare the units before comparing the numbers

Turn the rules into a usable leave policy

For each employee, record the applicable country, work pattern, contract and collective agreement. Then check entitlement, accrual, carry-over, expiry notices, holiday pay and the treatment of sickness. A more favourable agreement can increase statutory rights; it does not make the statutory protections irrelevant.

Use the linked national sources to resolve an individual case, particularly a long absence or termination. PersoHR provides configurable leave policies and balances to help administer those decisions. The employer remains responsible for choosing and maintaining the correct rules.