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🏖️ Entitlement to leave

How much minimum leave you are entitled to by law, when it lapses – and why the employer must actively warn you of its expiry.

Federal Leave Act BUrlG Minimum leave Lapse of leave Carry-over Payment in lieu of leave Waiting period

In brief

The Federal Leave Act guarantees every employee statutory minimum leave of 24 working days (Werktage) a year, based on a six-day week – equivalent to 20 working days in a usual five-day week. Many employment and collective agreements provide for more leave on top of that.

Leave should in principle be taken in the current calendar year. Carry-over into the next year is possible only for urgent operational reasons or reasons relating to the person, and must then generally be taken by 31 March. According to case law, however, leave only lapses if the employer has previously warned of the impending lapse in good time and individually.

Step by step

  1. Work out your own leave entitlementCheck your employment or collective agreement: it may not fall below the statutory minimum leave, but it may grant more leave.
  2. Request leave in good timeThe employer must take leave requests into account, but can refuse them for urgent operational reasons or because other colleagues have priority (§ 7 Abs. 1 BUrlG).
  3. If you have leave left at year end: wait for the employer's notice or ask activelyThe employer must specifically notify you of leave still outstanding and its impending lapse; if this notice is missing, the leave can remain.
  4. When you leave: ask for payment in lieuIf remaining leave can no longer be taken because the employment has ended, it must be paid out in money (§ 7 Abs. 4 BUrlG).

Deadlines

24 working days (Werktage) / 20 working days (Arbeitstage)
Statutory minimum leave per calendar year, based on a six-day and five-day week respectively.§ 3 Abs. 1 BUrlG
6 months
Waiting period: the full leave entitlement first arises after the employment has lasted six months.§ 4 BUrlG
31 March of the following year
Regular latest date by which leave carried over into the following year must be taken, unless the employer has, despite giving notice, missed an earlier opportunity for it to lapse.§ 7 Abs. 3 BUrlG
Watch out – common mistakes
  • According to case law of the Federal Labour Court (following the European Court of Justice), statutory minimum leave lapses at year end or on 31 March only if the employer has previously notified you specifically, individually and in good time of the exact number of remaining leave days and the impending lapse – without this notice, the entitlement in principle remains.
  • "I had no time for leave" does not automatically lead to lapse if the employer has given no notice – in a dispute it is worth checking carefully whether the employer actually complied with its duty to notify.
  • In the case of long-term illness, according to case law statutory leave can only be carried over for a limited period (15 months after the end of the leave year) and then lapses even without a duty on the employer to notify.
  • Contractual leave above the statutory minimum leave can be subject to different, stricter lapse rules in employment or collective agreements – this must be checked separately from the statutory minimum leave.
In depth · legal basis, figures and practice – for advisers and professionals

Scope of statutory minimum leave

§ 3 Abs. 1 BUrlG guarantees 24 working days (Werktage) of leave in the calendar year where working time is spread over six working days a week. With today's usual five-day week, that is arithmetically equivalent to 20 working days (Arbeitstage). The full entitlement first arises after a waiting period of six months (§ 4 BUrlG); before that there is a partial entitlement of one twelfth for each full month of employment (§ 5 BUrlG).

Carry-over and lapse

In principle, leave must be granted and taken in the current calendar year. Carry-over into the first quarter of the following year is permitted only for urgent operational reasons or reasons relating to the employee; in that case the carried-over leave must be taken by 31 March, otherwise it in principle expires (§ 7 Abs. 3 BUrlG).

The employer's duty to cooperate

The European Court of Justice and, following it, the Federal Labour Court have restricted these lapse rules considerably since 2018/2019: statutory minimum leave lapses only if the employer has previously put the employee in a position to actually take the leave – in particular through a specific, individual notice of the number of remaining leave days and the lapse deadline and an express request to take the leave. If this notice is not given, the entitlement in principle remains without a time limit, apart from a separate, long-term limitation period.

Payment in lieu of leave

If leave can no longer be taken because the employment has ended, it must be paid out in money (§ 7 Abs. 4 BUrlG). The entitlement to payment arises on termination of the employment and – unlike the leave entitlement itself during ongoing employment – is in principle subject to the regular limitation period and any contractual time limits for claims.

Who is responsible
  • Employer
  • Works council, if there is one
  • Local labour court in case of dispute
Further reading
Working time and overtimePay, minimum wage and back pay

Quick questions

Worum geht es bei „Entitlement to leave“?
How much minimum leave you are entitled to by law, when it lapses – and why the employer must actively warn you of its expiry.
Which deadlines and figures matter?
  • 24 working days (Werktage) / 20 working days (Arbeitstage): Statutory minimum leave per calendar year, based on a six-day and five-day week respectively. (§ 3 Abs. 1 BUrlG)
  • 6 months: Waiting period: the full leave entitlement first arises after the employment has lasted six months. (§ 4 BUrlG)
  • 31 March of the following year: Regular latest date by which leave carried over into the following year must be taken, unless the employer has, despite giving notice, missed an earlier opportunity for it to lapse. (§ 7 Abs. 3 BUrlG)
What should I do first?
  • Work out your own leave entitlement: Check your employment or collective agreement: it may not fall below the statutory minimum leave, but it may grant more leave.
  • Request leave in good time: The employer must take leave requests into account, but can refuse them for urgent operational reasons or because other colleagues have priority (§ 7 Abs. 1 BUrlG).
  • If you have leave left at year end: wait for the employer's notice or ask actively: The employer must specifically notify you of leave still outstanding and its impending lapse; if this notice is missing, the leave can remain.
What do I need to watch out for?
  • According to case law of the Federal Labour Court (following the European Court of Justice), statutory minimum leave lapses at year end or on 31 March only if the employer has previously notified you specifically, individually and in good time of the exact number of remaining leave days and the impending lapse – without this notice, the entitlement in principle remains.
  • "I had no time for leave" does not automatically lead to lapse if the employer has given no notice – in a dispute it is worth checking carefully whether the employer actually complied with its duty to notify.
  • In the case of long-term illness, according to case law statutory leave can only be carried over for a limited period (15 months after the end of the leave year) and then lapses even without a duty on the employer to notify.
Evidence
  • Bundesurlaubsgesetz (BUrlG), gesetze-im-internet.de
  • Case law of the Federal Labour Court on the employer's duty to cooperate (following ECJ case law since 2018)
As of

September 2026 · Sources and method

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