Annual Leave - 20 Days Minimum (Germany)

Germany's Federal Vacation Act (Bundesurlaubsgesetz, BUrlG) guarantees every employee a minimum of 20 working days of paid annual leave per year based on a five-day workweek, though collective bargaining agreements and employment contracts typically push the actual average to around 30 days.

What Is Germany's 20-Day Annual Leave Minimum?

Key Takeaways

  • ✓The Bundesurlaubsgesetz (BUrlG) sets the statutory minimum at 24 working days based on a six-day workweek, which translates to 20 days for the now-standard five-day workweek.
  • ✓Most German employees receive 25-30 days through collective bargaining agreements (Tarifverträge), works council agreements, or individual contracts.
  • ✓The waiting period is 6 months of continuous employment. After that, the full annual entitlement is available.
  • ✓Unused statutory leave must generally be taken by March 31 of the following year, or it expires. But German courts have added significant exceptions to this rule.

Germany's BUrlG was passed in 1963 and still forms the legal foundation for annual leave. The statute uses a six-day workweek as its baseline, granting 24 working days minimum. Since most German workers now work five days a week, this converts to 20 days. But nobody in Germany actually works with just 20 days. Collective agreements between unions and employer associations cover roughly 52% of employees in western Germany and 45% in eastern Germany. These agreements routinely set leave at 28-30 days. Even non-unionized companies offer 25-30 days to stay competitive in Germany's tight labor market. Public holidays add another 9-13 days depending on the federal state (Bundesland). Bavaria leads with up to 13 public holidays, while Berlin and several northern states have only 9-10. This means a Bavarian employee with 30 days of annual leave and 13 public holidays gets 43 paid days off per year. A Berlin employee with the same contract gets 39-40. German labor courts have shaped annual leave law extensively. The European Court of Justice's rulings on carryover during sickness, the German Federal Labour Court's decisions on employer notification obligations, and works council co-determination rights have created a leave framework that's far more employee-friendly than the bare text of the BUrlG suggests.

20 daysStatutory minimum annual leave for a five-day workweek under the BUrlG
30 daysAverage annual leave in Germany due to collective agreements and company policies (Destatis, 2024)
24 daysStatutory minimum for a six-day workweek (the BUrlG originally used a six-day reference)
9-13Public holidays per year in Germany, varying by federal state (Bundesland)

Carryover and Expiry of Annual Leave

The BUrlG says unused leave expires on March 31 of the following year. German courts have fundamentally changed how this works.

The employer's notification obligation

In 2018, the ECJ ruled in Max-Planck-Gesellschaft v Shimizu that annual leave can't automatically expire at year-end unless the employer actively informed the employee about their remaining leave balance and explicitly warned them that unused leave would be lost. The German Federal Labour Court (BAG) adopted this in 2019. Now, employers must send written notice to each employee, ideally mid-year, stating their remaining leave balance, urging them to take it, and warning that untaken leave will expire. If the employer fails to send this notice, the leave carries over indefinitely and doesn't expire.

Carryover during long-term illness

The ECJ's Schultz-Hoff ruling (2009) established that workers on long-term sick leave can't lose their EU-derived minimum leave. The BAG set a 15-month carryover limit: statutory leave earned in a given year carries over and expires 15 months after the end of that leave year (i.e., March 31 of the year after next). Contractual leave above the statutory minimum can follow different carryover rules if specified in the CBA or employment contract.

The Role of Collective Agreements and Works Councils

In Germany, annual leave is shaped as much by collective bargaining as by statute.

Collective bargaining agreements (Tarifverträge)

Sector-level CBAs set leave entitlements for entire industries. The metalworking and electrical industry (IG Metall) CBA provides 30 days. The chemical industry CBA provides 30 days. The public sector (TVoD) provides 30 days. Banking typically provides 30 days. Retail CBAs range from 28-36 days depending on the region. Even in non-unionized companies, CBAs often serve as the market benchmark. A company offering fewer days than the applicable CBA will struggle to attract talent.

Works council co-determination (Betriebsrat)

Under the Works Constitution Act (BetrVG), the works council has co-determination rights over general leave scheduling principles, blackout periods, and the process for resolving conflicting leave requests. The employer can't unilaterally impose a company-wide shutdown period or change leave booking procedures without the works council's agreement. Individual leave requests are typically handled by line managers, but the underlying policy framework requires works council approval.

Public Holidays by Federal State

Germany's public holiday count varies significantly by state, affecting total paid time off.

Federal StatePublic HolidaysNotable Holidays Unique to This State
Bavaria12-13 daysEpiphany, Corpus Christi, Assumption of Mary, All Saints' Day (Augsburg adds Peace Festival)
Baden-Wurttemberg12 daysEpiphany, Corpus Christi, All Saints' Day
North Rhine-Westphalia11 daysCorpus Christi, All Saints' Day
Berlin10 daysInternational Women's Day (since 2019)
Hamburg / Bremen / Lower Saxony9-10 daysReformation Day (since 2018)
Saxony11 daysReformation Day, Repentance and Prayer Day

Special Cases and Edge Scenarios

German annual leave law has specific rules for situations that come up regularly in HR practice.

Sick during vacation

Under Section 9 of the BUrlG, if an employee falls ill during annual leave and has a doctor's certificate covering the sick days, those days don't count as annual leave. The employee gets them back. This rule is unique to Germany and catches many international employers off guard. It means an employee on a two-week vacation who gets sick for three days (with a medical certificate) effectively gets three extra vacation days. Some employers suspect abuse, but German courts have consistently upheld this provision.

Minijob and part-time workers

Part-time employees receive pro-rated leave based on their working days per week, not hours. An employee working 3 days per week with a statutory minimum of 20 days (for 5 days) receives 12 days (20 x 3/5). Minijob workers (earning up to EUR 538/month) have the same leave rights as full-time employees, pro-rated to their working pattern. Many employers mistakenly believe minijobbers don't receive annual leave.

Germany Annual Leave Statistics [2026]

Data on annual leave in one of Europe's most employee-friendly labor markets.

30 days
Average annual leave granted by German employers (above the 20-day statutory minimum)Destatis, 2024
52%
Of German employees in western states covered by collective bargaining agreementsIAB, 2024
9.5 days
Average sick days per German employee per year (claimed during leave or otherwise)AOK/BAuA, 2024
43 days
Total paid days off (leave + public holidays) for a Bavarian employee with 30 days of annual leaveCalculated

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an employer reject a leave request in Germany?

Yes, but only for urgent operational reasons or to accommodate conflicting requests from other employees (Section 7(1) BUrlG). If two employees request the same period and only one can be spared, the employer must consider social criteria (school-age children, working spouse's holiday schedule). If the employer rejects a request, they must offer an alternative. An employer who repeatedly refuses leave without valid cause risks a claim at the labor court.

Do employees on parental leave (Elternzeit) accrue annual leave?

Yes, annual leave continues to accrue during parental leave. However, the employer can reduce the leave entitlement by 1/12 for each full month of parental leave (Section 17 of the Federal Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act). This reduction must be actively declared by the employer. If the employer doesn't declare the reduction, the full leave entitlement accrues. Any leave remaining at the start of parental leave must be carried over and taken after the employee returns.

What happens to annual leave when an employee is terminated?

Upon termination, any accrued but unused leave must be paid out as compensation (Section 7(4) BUrlG). If the notice period is long enough, the employer can require the employee to take remaining leave during the notice period. If the employee has taken more leave than accrued at the point of termination (e.g., used 20 days but only earned 10 by mid-year), the employer generally cannot reclaim the excess if the termination was employer-initiated. If the employee resigned, clawback may be possible depending on the CBA or contract terms.

Is there a right to take leave in school holidays?

Not explicitly in the BUrlG. However, the statute requires employers to consider employees' personal wishes when scheduling leave, and Section 7(1) specifically mentions social aspects. In practice, employees with school-age children are given priority for leave during school holidays. Works councils often negotiate frameworks that balance the needs of parents with those of employees without children. Employers can't create blanket rules giving parents automatic priority; they must assess each situation individually.

Can unused leave be paid out during employment?

No. Section 7(4) of the BUrlG explicitly prohibits payment in lieu of leave during the employment relationship. The purpose of leave is rest, and German law takes this seriously. Leave can only be paid out upon termination. This is one of the strictest rules in German leave law and applies to both statutory and contractual leave unless the CBA explicitly provides otherwise.
Adithyan RKWritten by Adithyan RK
Surya N
Fact-checked by Surya N
Published on: 25 Mar 2026Last updated:
Share:
Previous
Next