Your paid holiday in Croatia: four weeks a year, and what happens to unused days

The Labour Act gives every worker at least four weeks of paid annual leave (godišnji odmor): 20 working days on a five-day week. New workers earn the full right after six months, and unused days must be paid out if the job ends. Cash instead of leave while you still work is not allowed.

Published 2026-10-14 · Source checked 2026-05-27

With the year nearing its end, many workers ask the same question: how many days off do I have, and do I lose them? In Croatia, annual leave is a legal right, not a favour from the employer. Under the Labour Act (Zakon o radu, Article 77), every worker has the right to at least four weeks of paid leave for each calendar year. Your contract, work rules or a collective agreement can give more, never less.

The law counts leave in working days according to your weekly schedule, so four weeks means 20 days on a five-day week and 24 on a six-day week, as 24sata and other outlets explain. Public holidays and days certified as sick leave are not counted as leave days (Article 79). That means a holiday that falls inside your leave does not use up a day.

Also read:Work & Salary · GUIDEChristmas bonus, meal money, tips: what your employer can pay you tax-free in Croatia

If you started a new job, the full right comes after six months of unbroken work with that employer (Article 77). Before that you still earn a share: one twelfth of the yearly leave for each month worked (Article 78). The same share applies in the year your job ends. Example from our own arithmetic: at 20 days a year, each month gives about 1.7 days, so five months means roughly 8 days, with half days rounded up.

Your pay during leave must be at least your average monthly pay of the last three months, counting all payments for work (Article 81). The law also says an agreement in which you give up your leave, or take money instead of days off, is void (Article 80). The one exception is when the job ends: then the employer must pay for each unused day (Article 82), in proportion to the days left.

The calendar matters. You should take at least two weeks in one block during the year, unless you and the employer agree otherwise (Article 83). The part above that can be carried over and used by 30 June of the next year (Article 84). The employer must set the leave schedule by 30 June and tell you at least 15 days before your leave begins (Article 85).

What to do: ask your employer or accountant how many leave days you have left for 2026 and get the answer in writing or by message. Plan your two-week block before December, and do not sign anything giving up your leave. Check your payslip for the leave pay line. If your employer refuses, you can ask the State Inspectorate (Državni inspektorat) for a labour inspection.

Read next

Work & Salary · GUIDEOvertime, night shifts and Sundays: the extra pay Croatian law gives you, and how to check itImmigration & ResidenceRenewing your stay? Nepali workers now need a health check first: €261, paid by the employer