Open data · CC BY 4.0 · reviewed 15 Sep 2026
Paid leave, by the numbers
Every statistic on this site in one place, with the data behind it available to download and reuse. Free to cite for journalism, research and reference, with attribution.
The United States is the only major developed economy that guarantees zero paid leave days by law. Every one of the 30 other countries in this dataset guarantees at least four weeks, and all of them require unused leave to be paid out when a job ends — something only 12 of 51 US jurisdictions require.
Key facts, ready to quote
- The United States is the only country in this dataset — and the only major developed economy — with no statutory paid annual leave at all: 0 days at federal level.
- Every one of the 30 other countries covered guarantees at least 20 working days. The average statutory minimum is 21.6 days.
- Luxembourg has the highest statutory minimum in the EU at 26 working days. The United Kingdom's 28 is higher on paper but employers may count public holidays within it.
- 19 of the 30 countries sit exactly at the EU floor of 20 days. Austria, Denmark, Finland, France and Sweden set 25.
- In every country covered outside the US, unused statutory leave must be paid out when employment ends. In the US, 12 jurisdictions require it, 5 pay out by default unless a written forfeiture policy reached the employee, and 34 leave it to the employer's policy.
- Four US states — California, Colorado, Montana, Nebraska — prohibit "use it or lose it" outright.
Statutory minimum paid annual leave, by country
Working days on a five-day week, so figures expressed in Werktage, calendar days or weeks are comparable. Contracts and collective agreements frequently exceed the minimum.
| # | Country | Min. days | Legal basis | Payout at exit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Kingdom * | 28 | Working Time Regulations 1998 | Required |
| 2 | Luxembourg | 26 | Code du travail luxembourgeois | Required |
| 3 | Austria | 25 | Urlaubsgesetz | Required |
| 4 | Denmark | 25 | Ferieloven | Required |
| 5 | Finland | 25 | Annual Holidays Act (162/2005) | Required |
| 6 | France | 25 | Code du travail, Art. L3141-3 | Required |
| 7 | Sweden | 25 | Semesterlagen (1977:480) | Required |
| 8 | Malta | 24 | Organisation of Working Time Regulations (S.L. 452.87) | Required |
| 9 | Portugal | 22 | Código do Trabalho | Required |
| 10 | Spain | 22 | Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Art. 38 | Required |
| 11 | Norway | 21 | Holiday Act (ferieloven) | Required |
| 12 | Australia | 20 | Fair Work Act 2009, National Employment Standards | Required |
| 13 | Belgium | 20 | Belgian annual holiday legislation | Required |
| 14 | Bulgaria | 20 | Кодекс на труда, Art. 155 | Required |
| 15 | Croatia | 20 | Labour Act (Zakon o radu) | Required |
| 16 | Czechia | 20 | Zákoník práce | Required |
| 17 | Estonia | 20 | Employment Contracts Act §55 | Required |
| 18 | Germany | 20 | Bundesurlaubsgesetz (BUrlG) §3 | Required |
| 19 | Greece | 20 | Greek labour code | Required |
| 20 | Hungary | 20 | Labour Code (Act I of 2012) §§116–117 | Required |
| 21 | Ireland | 20 | Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 | Required |
| 22 | Italy | 20 | Decreto Legislativo 66/2003 | Required |
| 23 | Latvia | 20 | Labour Law §149 | Required |
| 24 | Lithuania | 20 | Labour Code Article 126 | Required |
| 25 | Netherlands | 20 | Burgerlijk Wetboek, Book 7 | Required |
| 26 | New Zealand | 20 | Holidays Act 2003 | Required |
| 27 | Poland | 20 | Kodeks pracy, Art. 154 | Required |
| 28 | Romania | 20 | Codul muncii, Art. 145 | Required |
| 29 | Slovakia | 20 | Labour Code (Zákonník práce) §103 | Required |
| 30 | Switzerland | 20 | Swiss Code of Obligations, Art. 329a | Required |
| — | United States | 0 | No federal statute | 12 of 51 require |
* UK employers may count public holidays within the 28 days.
US PTO payout, by class
| Class | Count | Jurisdictions |
|---|---|---|
| Payout required — accrued PTO is earned wages | 12 | California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Rhode Island |
| Paid by default unless a written forfeiture policy reached the employee | 5 | Kansas, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Wyoming |
| Policy dependent — no statute; written policy decides | 34 | Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin |
| "Use it or lose it" prohibited | 4 | California, Colorado, Montana, Nebraska |
Download CSV — US jurisdictions
How the numbers were produced
Each country figure is the statutory minimum in the national law named in the table, converted to working days on a five-day week (24 Werktage → 20; 30 calendar days → 22; 25 virkedager → 21). Each US classification is drawn from the state statute, regulation or leading case, or from the absence of one, with the enforcing agency linked on the state page. Everything was reviewed on the date shown and is re-checked twice a year. Full methodology.
Licence and citation
The data and tables are published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Use them in articles, reports, slides or software; the only condition is attribution with a link.
Cite as
Leave Atlas (2026). Statutory paid annual leave by country and US PTO payout by jurisdiction. https://leaveatlas.com/data. CC BY 4.0.
For journalists and researchers
Custom cuts of the data, comment on a specific country or state rule, or a check of a figure you have from elsewhere: email editor@leaveatlas.com. Charts and tables can be reproduced freely under the licence above; we ask only for a link.