What are the annual leave entitlements in Romania?

Modified on: Fri, 20 Feb, 2026 at 5:32 PM

Employees in Romania are entitled to annual paid leave under the Labour Code. This right is protected by law and must be respected by employers.

Minimum Annual Leave

Employee Category	Annual Leave Entitlement
Standard employees (all sectors)	20 working days (minimum)
Employees under 18 years of age	23 working days (minimum)
Employees with disabilities	23 working days (minimum)
Employees in hazardous/dangerous conditions	23 working days (minimum)
Women undergoing in vitro procedures	23 working days (minimum)

The statutory minimum annual leave entitlement is 20 working days per year, based on a full-time schedule.
Employers may offer more generous leave entitlements through internal policies or collective agreements, but never fewer than 20 days.
Note: Public holidays are not counted within annual leave days.

Accrual and Eligibility

During the first year of employment, leave is accrued on a pro-rata basis.
From the second year onward, employees are entitled to the full annual leave entitlement, regardless of when in the year they began working.
Employees are legally required to take their annual leave, it cannot be waived.
Employers must ensure each employee takes at least 10 consecutive working days of leave per year.
An employee cannot be dismissed during a period of annual leave.

Leave Pay

During annual leave, employees receive a leave allowance that must not be lower than their basic salary plus any permanent allowances specified in their employment contract. The employer must pay this allowance at least 5 working days before the leave begins.

Carry-Over of Unused Leave

Employees are encouraged to take their annual leave within the calendar year. However, Romanian labor law allows unused leave to be carried over, under the following conditions:

Scenario	Carry-Over Rule
Employer-related reasons (e.g., business needs)	Unused days carried to the following year; must be taken within 18 months from end of accrual year
Employee unable to take leave due to illness	All untaken days transfer to the following year (no 18-month cap applies while illness continues)
18-month window expires	Unused leave may expire. The Employer should proactively schedule leave to avoid this

Employers are required to make a reasonable effort to ensure employees can take their leave, balancing employee requests with operational needs.

Monetary Compensation for Unused Leave

Annual leave cannot be replaced by cash payment during active employment. The only exception is upon termination of employment:

Any unused vacation days remaining in the employee’s balance at the time of termination (resignation or dismissal) must be paid out as part of the final settlement.

Mandatory Leave Tracking & Reporting

All vacation days must be accurately recorded in the Remote People platform.

Unrecorded leave creates legal and financial risk for both the employee and the employer.

Why Leave Tracking Is a Legal Obligation

Under Romanian law, Remote People as the Legal Employer (Employer of Record) is responsible for:

reporting all vacation days taken to national authorities;
ensuring that leave is paid according to statutory calculations;
maintaining accurate Time and Attendance records used for payroll declarations and audits.

What Happens If Leave Is Not Recorded

Days taken but not recorded remain as a balance in the employee's account.

At termination, ALL unused days in the system must be paid out in the final settlement.

Responsibilities

Party	Obligation
Employees	Request and log every day of leave through the Remote People platform before or at the time of absence.
Client companies	Ensure your team members are logging leave to avoid unexpected financial settlements at contract end.
Remote People	Process and report leave to authorities; flag any discrepancies.

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