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Calculate leave entitlement: part-time & more

How many leave days are due for 2, 3 or 4 working days per week? The calculator converts full-time leave correctly to your work week — including the statutory minimum, pro-rata twelfths on entry/exit and a transparent breakdown under the Federal Leave Act (BUrlG).

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Leave entitlement calculator
BUrlG · 2026 figures

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Working days per week

How many days per week are actually worked — regardless of how many hours per day.

Full-time week at the company

Leave empty for the statutory minimum (20 days on a 5-day week). Many contracts grant more, e.g. 28 or 30.

Only needed for entry or exit during the year — we then factor in the pro-rata twelfths under § 5 BUrlG.

Result for 2026

20leave days

for 5 working days per week (statutory minimum)

Statutory minimum: 20 days
How we calculated this

1. Conversion: 20 full-time days × 5 ÷ 5 = 20 days of annual entitlement. Fractions from this conversion must not be rounded down.

Statutory minimum: 4 weeks of leave = 4 × 5 working days = 20 days (§ 3 BUrlG). Contractually agreed leave may be above, but not below, this.

Guidance value under BUrlG — collective agreements (e.g. TVöD) and works agreements may differ. Not legal advice.

Clearly explained

How the calculation works

The Federal Leave Act guarantees 4 weeks of leave per year (§ 3 BUrlG) — that is 24 working days on a 6-day week or 20 working days on a 5-day week. For part-time, leave is converted by day: full-time leave days × your own working days ÷ reference working days. The number of hours per day plays no role here.

On entry or exit during the year the pro-rata twelfths apply in three cases (§ 5 BUrlG): entry after 1 July, exit before the 6-month qualifying period ends, or exit in the first half of the year. Each full month of employment then counts as 1/12 of the annual leave; fractions of 0.5 days or more are rounded up (§ 5 (2) BUrlG). Important: fractions from the part-time conversion itself (such as 22.4 days), by contrast, must not be rounded down .

The calculator always shows both: your entitlement from the contract and the statutory minimum as the floor. Collective agreements and works agreements may contain more favorable rules — those take precedence.

From planning practice

4 practical tips on leave entitlement

Check the contract before the law

Many employment and collective agreements grant more than the minimum (28–30 days). The contract days are then used for the calculation — the law is only the floor.

Apply twelfths cleanly on entry and exit

Incorrect partial-leave calculations are a classic mistake on exits. Remember: exit in the 2nd half of the year after the qualifying period = full statutory leave.

Don't count public holidays

Public holidays on which no work is done are not leave days and must not be deducted from the leave account.

Hours are not days

With part-time work involving fewer hours on the same number of days, the leave-day count stays the same. Only fewer working days per week reduce the entitlement.

Built into the product

Shiftdesk runs leave accounts automatically

Entitlement, remaining leave, carryover until 31 March and public-holiday logic — Shiftdesk calculates every employee's leave account automatically and checks requests against the available balance.

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Free shift-schedule template included

Get the free shift-schedule template for Excel and PDF — with automatic hour calculation, target-vs-actual comparison and a working-hours (ArbZG) checklist.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions about leave entitlement

How is leave entitlement calculated for part-time work?
What matters is the number of working days per week, not the number of hours: full-time leave days × your own working days ÷ working days of the company's full-time week. Example: 30 days of full-time leave on a 5-day week with 3 working days → 30 × 3 ÷ 5 = 18 days. Someone working 5 days of 4 hours each has the same leave entitlement as a full-time employee — the days are just paid for fewer hours.
How much leave is due on a 4-day week?
Statutory minimum: 4 weeks of leave, i.e. 4 × 4 = 16 leave days. With 28 contractual days (5-day week), the conversion gives 28 × 4 ÷ 5 = 22.4 days. Such fractions from the part-time conversion must not simply be rounded down.
Are Minijob workers entitled to paid leave?
Yes, in full. Minijob workers are part-time employees and are treated the same way for leave: 4 weeks of statutory minimum leave, converted to their working days per week. Someone working 2 days per week as a Minijob worker has at least 8 leave days per year.
What are pro-rata twelfths in leave entitlement?
On entry or exit during the year, only partial leave of 1/12 of the annual leave per full month of employment arises in three cases (§ 5 BUrlG): on entry after 1 July, on exit before the 6-month qualifying period ends, and on exit in the first half of the year. Fractions of half a day or more are rounded up.
How much leave do I get on termination in the second half of the year?
Anyone leaving in the second half of the year after completing the qualifying period keeps the full statutory annual leave — a pro-rata reduction of the statutory minimum is not provided for. Only for contractual additional leave (anything above the statutory minimum) may the employment contract contain a pro-rata rule.
What applies with irregular working days or shift work?
When the number of working days changes from week to week, the annual working days are usually used: contractual leave days × actual annual working days ÷ annual working days of a full-time employee (usually around 260 on a 5-day week). For such cases the weekly calculator above is only an approximation — scheduling software with a stored working-time model handles it automatically.
What happens to leave when changing employer during the year?
There is no double entitlement: leave that the previous employer has already granted or paid out is credited by the new one (§ 6 BUrlG). For this, the previous employer issues a leave certificate. So anyone calculating with the new employer should deduct the leave already taken.
Which special cases does this tool not account for?
Not covered are additional and special entitlements: +5 days for people with severe disabilities (§ 208 SGB IX), the higher age-graduated entitlements for young workers (§ 19 JArbSchG), educational leave under state law, the possible leave reduction during parental leave (§ 17 BEEG, only by declaration of the employer), and special collective-agreement rules (e.g. construction). Illness, by the way, does not reduce the entitlement. The tool also applies only to Germany — Austria and Switzerland have their own leave rules.

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All figures are guidance values under the German Federal Leave Act (BUrlG) — different rules apply for Austria (UrlG) and Switzerland (Art. 329a OR). Under § 13 BUrlG, collective agreements may also deviate from the qualifying period, twelfths and rounding; only the minimum leave is mandatory. Not taken into account: additional leave for people with severe disabilities and young workers, educational leave, parental-leave reduction, crediting on a change of employer (§ 6 BUrlG). For special cases, a lawyer specializing in employment law can help.

Calculate leave entitlement: part-time, 4-day week & Minijob | Shiftdesk