Vacation Leave in 2026
How Many Days and How to Calculate?

As of January 1, 2026, changes to the Polish Labor Code significantly affect how vacation leave is calculated for employees. Education, engagement agreements, and business operation now count toward seniority. This article explains how many vacation days employees receive in 2026, how to calculate proportional leave, and what happens with unused days.

How Many Vacation Days Does an Employee Receive in 2026?

The answer depends on one factor: how long the employee has worked. The Labor Code distinguishes two thresholds:

Seniority	Annual Vacation Days	Notes
Less than 10 years	20 days annually	Entry-level or less experienced employees
10 years or more	26 days annually	Employees with at least 10 years seniority

Important: These are legal minimums. Employers may offer additional days at their discretion.

What Changed in 2026? New Seniority Rules

Effective January 1, 2026, the Labor Code expands seniority definition. No longer is only employment contract work counted. Seniority now includes:

• Engagement agreements and work-for-hire contracts — if worked for at least part of the year
• Business operation — self-employed or partnership operation
• School and university education — periods of academic study
• Social insurance periods — documented by ZUS, including past periods

This means many employees previously receiving 20 days now qualify for 26 days. The change applies retroactively — employees can claim past engagement agreement and business operation periods if documented by ZUS.

Practical example: Ms. Anna worked 7 years on an employment contract. She also operated a business for 4 years previously. Total seniority = 11 years. Starting January 1, 2026, she receives 26 days vacation instead of 20.

How to Calculate Seniority

Seniority is calculated from the date of first employment (or business start) to today. Count complete calendar years.

Example: An employee hired July 15, 2016 has seniority:

• July 15, 2016 — July 14, 2017 = 1 year
• July 15, 2017 — July 14, 2018 = 2 years
• ... and so on
• July 15, 2025 — July 14, 2026 = 10 years (receives 26 days starting July 15, 2026)

When an employee reaches 10 years seniority mid-year, they gain the right to 26 days from that specific date, not from January.

Proportional Vacation Leave — For Shorter Employment

If an employee has not worked a complete calendar year, they receive proportional vacation. Calculate by dividing annual allowance by 12 months, then multiply by months worked.

Formula:

Proportional leave = (Annual allowance / 12) × Complete months worked

Calculation examples:

Scenario	Calculation	Result
Employee under 10 years (20 days), employed 6 months	(20 / 12) × 6 = 1.67 × 6	~10 days
Employee over 10 years (26 days), employed 3 months	(26 / 12) × 3 = 2.17 × 3	~6.5 days
Employee under 10 years (20 days), employed 8 months	(20 / 12) × 8 = 1.67 × 8	~13 days
Employee over 10 years (26 days), employed 11 months	(26 / 12) × 11 = 2.17 × 11	~24 days

Important rules:

• Incomplete months round upward to complete months
• If an employee worked even one day in a month, the entire month counts
• Fractional vacation days round upward to complete days

Special Vacation — Discretionary and Emergency Leave

Beyond main vacation leave, employees receive:

• Discretionary leave — 4 days annually — employee can take any time with employer approval
• Emergency leave — without pay, for specific occasions (wedding, funeral, relocation) — exactly 2 days

These do not count toward the 20 or 26-day allowance. They are additional days.

Carryover — Moving Vacation to Next Year

Employees may carry unused vacation to the next year. However, there is an important deadline: all carried vacation must be used by September 30 of the following year.

Example: If an employee in 2026 does not use 5 days, they can use those days in 2027, but only until September 30, 2027. After that date, vacation expires.

What happens to unused vacation? The employee receives monetary equivalence for expired days.

Vacation Equivalence Payment — How to Calculate

Equivalence is monetary compensation for unused vacation. It applies when:

• Vacation expires (not used by September 30 following year)
• Employee terminates employment with unused vacation days
• Employer cannot grant vacation due to exceptional circumstances

Formula for equivalence:

Equivalence = Vacation days × Daily wage rate

How to calculate daily wage rate:

Daily rate = Monthly salary / Equivalence coefficient

The equivalence coefficient for 2026 is 20.92 (average working days monthly for full-time employees).

Practical example: Employee earns 3,000 PLN gross monthly with 5 unused vacation days.

Daily rate = 3,000 / 20.92 = ~143.40 PLN
Equivalence = 5 days × 143.40 PLN = 717 PLN

Important: Equivalence is subject to income tax and ZUS contributions. The employee receives it net, not gross.

Part-Time Employees — Does Vacation Change?

Yes, vacation may be proportional to work hours. If an employee works 50% time (half-time), they receive half vacation days:

• 50% work time = 10 days vacation (instead of 20)
• 75% work time = 15 days vacation (instead of 20)

This is individual per employee and follows their specific employment contract terms.

Vacation Planning — Employer Obligations

Employers must:

• Create a vacation schedule — typically for the following year by year-end
• Plan employee vacations — balancing employee preference with organizational needs
• Confirm vacation in writing — employees need to know their scheduled dates
• Track vacation — maintain records of days taken and remaining

Employees may request vacation dates, but employers make final scheduling decisions based on business needs.

Vacation and Employment Termination

If an employee is terminated with unused vacation days:

• Employer should enable vacation use — preferably before the final work day
• If impossible, employee receives monetary equivalence for all unused days
• Equivalence is paid with final compensation

This is mandatory, and employees have the right to this compensation.

Quick Summary — Key Rules

• ✓ Less than 10 years seniority = 20 vacation days annually
• ✓ 10 years or more seniority = 26 vacation days annually
• ✓ Starting 2026, engagement agreements, business operation, and education count toward seniority
• ✓ Proportional leave = (annual allowance / 12) × months worked
• ✓ Unused vacation carries to next year
• ✓ All carryover leave must be used by September 30 following year
• ✓ After September 30, equivalence payment applies for remaining days
• ✓ Equivalence = days × daily rate (monthly salary / 20.92)