Paid and unpaid leave in Germany

Annual leave, sick leave, Sonderurlaub, Elternzeit and sabbaticals

Congratulations - you just accepted a job offer in Germany. Your contract mentions vacation days, sick leave, public holidays, probation period, and maybe even Sonderurlaub, but you are not fully sure what any of it means.

That is completely normal - the leave system can feel confusing when you are new here. Understanding all of the above matter whether you are a full-time employee, part-time worker, mini-jobber, working student, or a student preparing for your first job after graduation.

Germany is employee-friendly compared to many countries. But the system only protects you properly when you understand what is your legal right, what depends on your contract, and what must be mutually agreed with your employer.

How much paid vacation do employees get in Germany?

Employees in Germany are legally entitled to paid annual vacation. According to the German Federal Leave Act, the minimum is 24 working days per year if you work a 6-day week. For a normal 5-day week, this usually means 20 paid vacation days per year.

In practice, many full-time jobs offer more than the legal minimum. A common package in office jobs is 25 to 30 vacation days per year, especially in larger companies, public institutions, and companies with collective agreements.

Vacation days are paid. If your employer approves your annual leave, your salary continues during that time. If you are comparing two job offers, do not only compare the gross salary. A job with 30 vacation days, clear overtime rules, and flexible working hours can be much better than an offer with a slightly higher salary but worse work-life balance. You can check the real value of your offer with our salary after tax guide for Germany.

Do students, working students and mini-jobbers get paid vacation?

Yes, if you are employed in Germany, you generally have a right to paid vacation.

Mini-jobbers also have a legal right to paid holiday. The number of vacation days depends on how many days per week you work, not only how many hours. The formula used by Minijob-Zentrale is: working days per week × 24 ÷ 6.

For example:

This is very important for international students. Many students think mini-jobs are informal, so they do not ask about vacation. But if you have a proper employment relationship, you should check your holiday entitlement.

The practical challenge is that student jobs are often shift-based. So you should ask your employer early how vacation requests work, who approves them, and whether you need to request leave through an app, email, or HR system.

Can your employer reject your vacation request?

Yes, your employer can reject a specific vacation period if there are strong business reasons or if other employees have priority at that time. But your employer cannot simply remove your legal vacation right for the whole year.

German law says vacation should generally be granted according to the employee’s wishes, unless urgent operational reasons or the already approved vacation wishes of other employees stand against it. This means your employer may say no to the exact dates you are requesting, but they should offer another realistic time window.

In practice, this is common during:

What happens if you are sick during your vacation?

Sick leave is not the same as vacation in Germany. If you become sick during approved vacation and you get a medical certificate from a doctor, those sick days usually do not count as vacation days. This surprises many international workers because in some countries, once your holiday starts, it is simply gone. In Germany, illness and recovery are treated differently from holiday and rest.

The practical rule is: inform your employer asap and follow the company’s sick leave process. If you are abroad, ask what kind of medical certificate is accepted and whether you need to send it immediately.

How does sick leave work in Germany?

If you are sick in Germany, you stay home. Showing up to the office with a contagious cold to “prove your worth” is considered highly irresponsible, not dedicated. By law, your employer must pay 100% of your salary for up to 6 weeks of illness. After those 6 weeks, your health insurance provider takes over, paying roughly 70% of your gross wage.

You usually need to inform your employer immediately when you are sick. If the illness lasts longer than three calendar days, you normally need a medical certificate no later than the following working day. However, your employer can require it earlier, depending on the contract or company policy.

Here is a good overview of the different types of leave and how they compare:

What are public holidays in Germany, and do you have to work?

In Germany, public holidays are usually rest days. Many international people are surprised by this because in some countries, holidays are treated more flexibly. The Working Hours Act has a general rest principle for Sundays and public holidays. This means that employees may not be employed on Sundays or public holidays, except in specific sectors such as hospitals, emergency services, transport, restaurants, and other necessary services.

This is one of the biggest misunderstandings for newcomers. In Germany, you should not assume that you can work normally on a holiday just because you want to earn extra money or because your previous country allowed it. If your job requires public holiday work, it should be clearly planned. You may also receive a replacement rest day.

If you are new to the German job market, also read our guide to working hours in Germany, because public holidays, Sunday work, breaks, and overtime are all part of the same work-life system.

What is Sonderurlaub in Germany?

Sonderurlaub is a short, fully paid release from work granted for important personal situations that prevent you from coming to work. This can include your own wedding, the birth of a child, the death of a close family member, a work-related move, or an urgent family situation.

The law states that you are legally entitled to keep receiving your salary if you are temporarily prevented from working due to a reason that is personal to you, not your fault, and lasts for a relatively short time (usually 1 to 3 days). However, there is no one fixed national package of “extra paid days.” The exact number of days often depends on your employment contract, collective agreement, company policy, or how Section 616 of the German Civil Code is applied in your case.

A practical expectation looks like this:

Do not assume you are entitled to all or any of the above. Check your contract, employee handbook, collective agreement, or just ask HR directly. This is especially important for international workers because personal events often involve travel abroad. Your company may approve one paid Sonderurlaub day, but if you need one week to travel home, the remaining days may need to come from annual vacation or unpaid leave.

What is unpaid vacation in Germany?

Unpaid vacation means you take time off with your employer’s agreement, but you do not receive salary during that period. There is usually no general right to unpaid vacation for any private reason. In most cases, your employer must agree. Some exceptions exist for specific legal leave types, such as Elternzeit or care leave.

This is important for international workers because unpaid leave can affect salary, social insurance, health insurance, visa planning, and sometimes even residence status if your income changes for a longer period.

The health insurance point is especially important. If unpaid leave lasts only a short time, your social insurance relationship can usually continue for up to one month while the employment relationship still exists without salary. But if unpaid leave goes beyond that, your employer may need to deregister you from social insurance, and you may need to arrange coverage by yourself, for example through voluntary statutory health insurance or family insurance if you qualify.

This can become expensive because you may lose the normal employer contribution (which is normally half of the insurance premium you pay) during longer unpaid leave. Instead of sharing health insurance contributions with your employer, you may need to pay the required contributions yourself. So before you take unpaid leave, ask your health insurance provider directly:

“What happens to my health insurance if I take unpaid leave from this date to this date?”

Before taking unpaid leave, ask yourself & your employer these questions:

If you are on a work visa, EU Blue Card, or still changing from student to work residence, do not take long unpaid leave without checking the immigration impact with the Foreigners office or the relevant German embassy.

How does parental leave work in Germany?

Elternzeit is parental leave. It is an unpaid break from work for mothers and fathers who care for their child. The official German family portal explains that Elternzeit is unpaid time off from work for parents, and that your employer must release you from work for up to 3 years per child. During this time, you do not work and do not receive salary from your employer.

However, parents may be able to receive Elterngeld, a state parental allowance, if they meet the requirements. In most cases, basic parental allowance is 65% to 67% of your net income from the last 12 months, with a minimum of €300 and a maximum of €1,800 per month.

Simple explanation:

For international workers, Elternzeit can be a very good protection. But you should plan early with HR, understand deadlines, and check how it affects your net income, visa, insurance, and overall household budget.

What is care leave in Germany?

Care leave is for employees who need time to care for a close relative. Germany has different rules for short urgent care situations and longer care periods. In an acute care situation, employees can stay away from work for up to 10 working days to organize or secure care for a close relative. Care support allowance may be available through the care insurance system.

For longer care needs, employees may be able to take Pflegezeit for up to 6 months or Familienpflegezeit with reduced working hours for up to 24 months, depending on the situation and employer size rules. An interest-free loan may be available to reduce income loss.

Here is the simple overview:

This area can be complex. If your close family member lives outside Germany, you should check the official rules carefully because some rights may still apply if you are employed in Germany and personally provide care.

How do sabbaticals work in Germany?

A sabbatical is a longer career break. People use it for travel, family, study, recovery, personal projects, or simply to pause after years of work.

In private-sector jobs, a sabbatical is usually not a general legal entitlement. It normally depends on your employer’s approval, company policy, collective agreement, or an individual written agreement. Some companies do in fact offer structured sabbatical models. One common model is a salary-saving model. You work for a period with reduced salary, and the unpaid part is saved so you can still receive salary during your time off. This is where the “half salary” idea comes from. It does not mean your employer simply gifts you half your salary while you travel. It usually means you finance your own sabbatical through a planned salary reduction.

Here is a simple example:

In this example, you worked full-time for 6 months but accepted a reduced monthly salary. The saved amount is then used to pay you during the 3-month sabbatical. This kind of model can help with cash flow and social insurance continuity, but it must be carefully written in the agreement with your employer.

A sabbatical can also be completely unpaid. That is simpler on paper, but it can be harder financially because you may need to handle health insurance and social security yourself after the protected period. Before taking a sabbatical, get everything in writing: start date, end date, salary model, insurance handling, job position upon return, and whether your role is protected.

How do paid and unpaid leave affect your real salary?

Leave is not only a work-life topic. It is also a monetary topic. Paid vacation and paid sick leave usually protect your income. Unpaid leave, Elternzeit, long care leave, and unpaid sabbaticals can reduce your salary for weeks or months.

This is why international workers should always calculate their real monthly budget before taking unpaid time off.

If your income changes, your net salary, tax position, social insurance, and residence planning may also change. This is why it is smart to compare your situation with the salary after tax guide for Germany before making a longer leave decision.

Common mistakes international employees make with leave in Germany

Many leave problems happen because people bring expectations from their home country into the German system. The most common mistakes are:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)