How to Calculate Annual Leave Entitlement in Poland

Managing employee leave correctly is a crucial part of staying compliant with Polish labour law. Whether you’re hiring your first employee in Poland or expanding your international team, understanding how annual leave is calculated can help you plan resources more effectively and avoid legal pitfalls.

In Poland, annual leave entitlements depend on several factors, including an employee’s work experience and educational background. While the rules are well-defined in the Polish Labour Code, there are nuances that can be easily overlooked, especially when employees start mid-year or switch from part-time to full-time roles.

In this blog, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know to accurately calculate annual leave for your employees in Poland, including legal entitlements, proportional leave, special cases, and employer obligations.

The legal basis for annual leave in Poland

Annual leave in Poland is governed by the Polish Labour Code (Kodeks Pracy), which sets clear rules for how much leave employees are entitled to and how it should be managed. According to the law, paid annual leave is a statutory right for anyone employed under a labour contract (umowa o pracę).

This entitlement does not apply to individuals working under civil law contracts, such as contracts of mandate (umowa zlecenie) or contracts for specific work (umowa o dzieło), unless additional agreements are made. Employers are legally required to grant and track annual leave for all eligible employees, making compliance an essential part of HR administration in Poland.

How annual leave is calculated

In Poland, the amount of paid annual leave an employee is entitled to depends on their total work experience, which includes both previous employment and completed education. The Polish Labour Code sets two thresholds:

• 20 days of annual leave per year for employees with less than 10 years of qualifying work experience
• 26 days per year for employees with 10 years or more of qualifying work experience

What counts towards work experience?

To calculate the total years of experience, employers must consider more than just the employee’s time in the workforce. The following elements are taken into account:

• Formal education: Completed education adds a predefined number of years to the total experience. Only the highest level of completed education is counted, not the cumulative years of different levels:
  • Basic vocational school: 3 years
  • Secondary school: 4 or 5 years
  • University degree: 8 years
• Previous employment: All previous jobs under employment contracts count toward the total, including those held abroad, as long as they are properly documented.
• Internships and apprenticeships: These may also be included, depending on the nature and duration of the program, especially if they were part of vocational training.

Employers are responsible for verifying the employee’s background and calculating the correct leave entitlement. This is typically done during the onboarding process, based on documents submitted by the employee. Accurate calculation ensures both legal compliance and fair treatment of the employee.

Proportional leave calculation

Not all employees will work a full calendar year, so it’s important to understand how to calculate proportional annual leave in specific situations. In Poland, annual leave is accrued monthly and is calculated proportionally when:

• An employee starts mid-year: If an employee joins the company during the calendar year, they are entitled to 1/12 of their annual leave for each month of employment. Example: An employee entitled to 26 days of annual leave starts on 1 July. They work for 6 months that year:26 × 1/12 × 6 = 13 days of leave.
• An employee works part-time: Part-time employees are entitled to leave proportional to their working hours. Example: An employee with a 20-day entitlement works 50% of full-time hours. Their leave is adjusted accordingly: 20 × 0.5 = 10 days of leave per year.
• A fixed-term contract ends before a full year: If an employee is hired under a fixed-term or temporary contract, and does not complete a full year, they are still entitled to proportional leave. In these cases, the employee earns 2 days of paid annual leave for each month worked, regardless of their total work experience. Any unused leave must be paid out at the end of the contract.

Annual leave in special situations

While the general rules for annual leave in Poland are straightforward, there are specific situations that require special attention. Here are a few common cases employers should be aware of:

• Employees returning from parental leave: When an employee returns from parental leave, they retain the same annual leave entitlement as before their absence. The leave continues to accrue during parental leave, meaning the employee may return with unused days still available from the previous year. Employers are required to allow the employee to use this leave, ideally by 30 September of the following year, as per the carry-over rule.
• Employees changing employers mid-year: If an employee changes jobs during the year, both the previous and current employer are responsible for granting proportional leave based on the months worked. The previous employer should issue a certificate of employment (świadectwo pracy) confirming how much leave was used. The new employer then calculates the remaining entitlement for the rest of the year.
• Transition from civil law contract to labour contract: Time worked under a civil law contract (such as umowa zlecenie or umowa o dzieło) does not count towards annual leave entitlement, as these are not employment contracts. However, once the individual signs a labour contract (umowa o pracę), they begin to accrue leave based on that date. Any previous time under civil contracts is not included when calculating total work experience for leave purposes.

Getting annual leave right in Poland

Annual leave entitlements in Poland are determined by the employee’s total work experience, including education and previous employment. Standard entitlements are 20 or 26 days per year, depending on whether the employee has less than or more than 10 years of qualifying experience. Employers must also consider proportional calculations for part-time work, mid-year starts, and fixed-term contracts, as well as special cases like parental leave and employment transitions.

Ensuring accurate leave calculations isn’t just good practice, it’s a legal obligation. At Parakar, we help international companies stay fully compliant with Polish labour law while managing HR processes with confidence.

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