Unpaid holiday pay in Ireland
annual leave rules and your WRC complaint

Section 19 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 gives you whichever is the greatest of these three:

• 4 working weeks in a leave year in which you work at least 1,365 hours (unless it is a leave year in which you change employment);
• one third of a working week for each month in which you work at least 117 hours;
• 8% of the hours you work in the leave year, up to a maximum of 4 working weeks.

A "working week" means the number of days you usually work in a week. Your contract can give you more than this, but not less.

Source: Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, section 19.

• Pay: paid in advance of taking the leave, at your normal weekly rate or a proportionate rate (section 20).
• When: your employer decides the dates, having regard to work requirements, taking into account your family responsibilities and your chances for rest, and after consulting you not later than one month before the leave starts.
• Deadline for taking it: within the leave year, or with your consent within the 6 months after it.
• Illness: a day that would be annual leave does not count as annual leave if you are ill and give your employer a registered medical practitioner's certificate (section 19(2)).

Source: section 20.

When your employment ends and some annual leave has not been granted, section 23 requires your employer to pay you compensation equal to the pay you would have received had you taken that leave, calculated at your normal weekly rate. It covers the current leave year and, if you leave in the first half of the leave year, the previous leave year too. If you die in employment, it is paid to your personal representative.

Source: section 23. Public holidays have their own rule: see public holiday pay.

1. Check the numbers. Payslips, contract, a record of the hours you worked and the leave you took.
2. Ask in writing, quoting the sections above, and keep a copy.
3. Watch the clock. A complaint to the WRC must be made within 6 months of the contravention; it can be extended by up to a further 6 months only if there was reasonable cause for the delay (section 41, Workplace Relations Act 2015).
4. Complain to the WRC. If the complaint is well founded the Adjudication Officer can require the employer to comply and order compensation that is just and equitable, up to 2 years' remuneration (section 27 of the 1997 Act).

Our tool turns your facts into a clear submission letter to attach to the WRC form. See how to file a WRC complaint and the WRC time limits.

Do I get paid for unused holidays when I leave my job?
Yes. Under section 23 of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 an employer must pay compensation for annual leave that has not been granted, calculated at your normal weekly rate. It covers the current leave year and, if you leave in the first half of the leave year, the previous year as well.

How long do I have to make a WRC complaint about holiday pay?
Six months from the date of the contravention, extendable by up to a further six months if there was reasonable cause for the delay (section 41 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015).

Can my employer choose when I take my annual leave?
The employer decides when leave is taken, having regard to work requirements, but must take into account your family responsibilities and chances for rest, and must consult you at least one month before the leave starts (section 20 of the 1997 Act).

How to file a WRC complaint · WRC time limits · Unpaid wages letter · Working time and rest breaks · What to expect at a hearing