Hardly any topic raises as many questions as annual leave: When does untaken leave expire? Does the employer have to approve leave? What happens to outstanding days on dismissal? In recent years, case law has changed holiday law significantly in favour of employees – many leave days that were thought to have expired still exist.
Key points at a glance
- The statutory minimum leave is 24 working days based on a six-day week, i.e. 20 working days based on a five-day week (§ 3 BUrlG).
- Leave only expires at the end of the year if the employer has informed you in good time and specifically of the impending expiry.
- The limitation period for leave entitlements also only begins after such notice.
- If you fall ill during your holiday, the days certified by a doctor are not counted as leave (§ 9 BUrlG).
- If leave can no longer be taken because the employment ends, it must be paid out in lieu (§ 7 Abs. 4 BUrlG).
How much leave are you entitled to?
The Federal Leave Act (Bundesurlaubsgesetz) guarantees minimum leave of four weeks per year. Many employment contracts and collective agreements grant more, often 25 to 30 days. For part-time employees, leave is converted according to the number of working days: anyone who works three days a week is entitled to 3/5 of the leave of a full-time employee – measured in days, but with the same number of weeks off. Severely disabled persons are entitled to five additional working days (§ 208 SGB IX).
The full leave entitlement arises for the first time after six months (waiting period, § 4 BUrlG). Anyone who leaves in the first half of the year or starts in the second half of the year receives partial leave of one twelfth for each full month (§ 5 BUrlG).
Requesting and approving leave
The employer must take your wishes regarding leave into account. It may only refuse if urgent operational requirements or the leave requests of other employees that take priority on social grounds stand in the way (§ 7 Abs. 1 BUrlG). Important: never take leave on your own authority. Taking unauthorised leave can justify dismissal without notice. In urgent cases, an interim injunction from the Labour Court (Arbeitsgericht) can help.
As a rule, the employer cannot revoke leave once it has been granted; you are generally not obliged to comply with a recall from holiday.
Expiry of leave: the employer’s duty to cooperate
Under the statute, leave must be taken in the current calendar year; carrying it over until 31 March of the following year is only possible for urgent operational or personal reasons (§ 7 Abs. 3 BUrlG). However, since the decisions of the European Court of Justice (Europäischer Gerichtshof) and the Federal Labour Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht) (BAG, judgment of 19 February 2019 – 9 AZR 423/16), the following applies:
- Leave only expires if the employer has specifically and in good time asked you to take your leave and has clearly informed you that it will otherwise expire.
- If this notice is missing, the leave is carried over into the following year and can accumulate over several years.
- The three-year limitation period also only begins once the employer has fulfilled its duty to inform (BAG, judgment of 20 December 2022 – 9 AZR 266/20).
Long-term illness
Anyone who is unfit for work for the whole year cannot take their leave. In this case, statutory leave expires 15 months after the end of the leave year. However, if the employer failed to fulfil its duty to inform before the illness began in the leave year, even though the employee could still have taken leave before then, the entitlement for that portion remains.
Leave on dismissal and termination
After a dismissal, the employer can schedule the remaining leave during the notice period, in particular as part of a release from work – but only if it declares the release to be irrevocable and makes clear that leave is thereby being granted. If the leave can no longer be taken, it must be paid out in lieu under § 7 Abs. 4 BUrlG. The claim for payment in lieu is a purely monetary claim and is subject to cut-off periods – so prompt action is required.
The statutory minimum leave cannot be validly waived during the employment relationship – according to the case law of the Federal Labour Court, not even in a court settlement. Leave should therefore be clearly regulated in termination agreements and settlements.
Holiday pay and holiday bonus
You continue to receive your salary during your leave. If your pay fluctuates, holiday pay is calculated on the basis of your average earnings over the last 13 weeks (§ 11 BUrlG), including regular commissions and supplements. An additional holiday bonus, on the other hand, is only owed if it has been agreed.
Practical examples
The following cases are simplified, typical scenarios from employment law practice. They are for illustration only; every individual case must be assessed separately.
Untaken leave from three years
Situation: Due to staff shortages, a customer adviser was unable to take all of his leave for years. When he leaves, the employer refuses to pay out 37 days from previous years, citing their expiry.
Legal assessment and course of action: The employer had never warned of the impending expiry. The leave days had therefore neither expired nor become time-barred. They had to be paid out in full – an amount of more than €9,000 gross.
Ill on holiday
Situation: A nursery teacher catches flu during her two-week holiday and is signed off sick for five days.
Legal assessment and course of action: The five days of sickness are not counted as leave. However, she may not extend her holiday on her own authority, but must apply for the days again.
Release from work without offsetting leave
Situation: After a dismissal, an employee is released from work „until further notice“. Later, the employer refuses to pay out his leave because the leave had supposedly been „taken during the release“.
Legal assessment and course of action: A revocable release from work without express offsetting of leave does not satisfy the leave entitlement. The leave had to be paid out.
Employer organises the notice
Situation: A company with 120 employees wants to limit the risk of accumulated leave entitlements.
Legal assessment and course of action: We developed an annual, personalised notification process that specifies the remaining days and clearly explains the expiry, issued in good time before the end of the year and documented. Since then, untaken days have once again expired in a predictable way.
Frequently asked questions
May the employer impose a company-wide shutdown period?
Yes, if there are urgent operational reasons. If there is a works council (Betriebsrat), it has a right of co-determination. A reasonable portion of leave must remain freely schedulable.
Do I accrue leave during parental leave?
The employer may reduce annual leave by one twelfth for each full month of parental leave, but must declare this (§ 17 BEEG). If you work part-time during parental leave, there is no reduction.
Do I have to be reachable while on holiday?
No. Leave is intended for rest and recuperation. As a rule, there is no obligation to be reachable.
Can I have my leave paid out instead of taking it?
Not during the employment relationship – at least not the statutory minimum leave. Payment in lieu is only possible on termination.
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Note: This information provides a general overview of the legal situation (as of November 2026) and does not replace legal advice on your individual case.
This page is a translation of the German original. It is for general information only and does not replace legal advice on your individual case. German version