Can an employee carry forward untaken vacation days to the following year?
Verified 20 January 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
A private sector employee may carry forward paid leave not taken during the period of the leave, from 1er may to october 31 of the year, but subject to conditions. It depends on whether the employee works annualized hours or not. We present you with the information you need to know.
What applies to you ?
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General case
In principle, there is no right to defer paid leave.
Paid leave not taken before the end of the maintenance period is lost.
However, the carry-over of accrued leave not taken during the period of leave, from 1er may to october 31 of the year, is possible in the event of an agreement between the employer and the employee.
Unless agreed or company use providing for a postponement of these days, the employer is not obliged to accept the request for a postponement of leave.
If leave carry-over is not possible, untaken days are not lost if treaty provisions provide for it.
Please note
in the event of a return of maternity leave or a adoption leave, the employee shall be entitled to carry over his untaken paid leave. Deferral is also possible when leave could not be taken because of the employee's illness.
Annualized working time
If the employee has an annualized contract of employment and in the event of a change in the duration of his working time, convention or a collective company agreement or a extended branch agreement may provide for the postponement of vacation days.
In this case, leave carry-overs may be made up to December 31 the year following the year in which the period of such leave commenced.
Who can help me?
Find who can answer your questions in your region
Telephone administrative information - Allo Public Service
For more information on this topic, you can contact Allô Service Public.
Attention: the service does not have access to users' personal files and cannot therefore provide information on their status.
He does not respond questions relating to unemployment compensation and representations to France Labor (formerly Pôle emploi), the officials or contractual of the fpublic service, the amount or payment of contributions social, wage or management.
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The informants who answer you belong to the ministry responsible for labor.
Absence of employee
Working time counted to the year