Germany is considered to be one of the countries where you can take a lot of vacation. But what about the basic rules surrounding this topic? I have picked out some of the most frequently asked questions here:
In Germany, the rules for leave are determined by the Federal Leave Act (BUlrG). The minimum annual leave entitlement for employees who work five days a week is at least 24 working days of paid leave per full calendar year in accordance with Section § 3 of the Federal Leave Act. All days that are not Sundays or public holidays count as working days.
Vacation can be taken for the first time after 6 months in the new employment relationship. As a rule, this is also exactly the time of the agreed probationary period. Less probationary period can be possible upon special agreement with the employer.
Six working days per week are assumed - because for many people, Saturday is now also a regular working day. With a five-day week, you therefore only have a statutory vacation entitlement of 20 days per year. The fact that many employees still get more vacation days is also due to the fact that employers can agree more days off in employment or collective agreements.
In other countries, there are different counting methods, for example all calendar days count. In some countries, you can accumulate your vacation days over the years and have them paid out at the end of your employment. This may seem very lucrative at first. However, the legislator in Germany wants the purpose of vacation days to be preserved - namely to relax and maintain your ability to work so that your energy stores are replenished. This is why your employer must give you 12 consecutive vacation days once a year. For the rest you can split and take less consecutive days.
But what happens if you don't take your vacation? In Germany, the remaining vacation entitlement expires either at the end of the year or, if it was carried over to the following year for a valid reason, on March 31 of the following year. Or according to deadlines specified in the employment contract or collective agreement, which can be longer, sometimes even December 31 of the following year. However, since the ruling of the European Court of Justice (judgment of 22.09.2022, C-120/21), the employer is obliged to inform the employee in good time about the expiry of the leave. If the employer does not comply with the duty to inform and cooperate, the vacation days not taken will be offset against the vacation entitlement for the following year.
This is just a brief overview of the wide topic of "vacation". There is certainly a lot more to say in individual cases, as the different case scenarios can be a never ending story.
I publish interesting questions about German employment law judgements on this blog regularly. If you need special advice tailored upon your individual case, don't hesitate to get in contact with me.
photo / source: Kokomo beach Curacao; own