Annual leave is one of the few HR areas where improvisation can get expensive. The rules in the Croatian Labour Act (Zakon o radu) are not complicated, but it pays to know them before someone checks them for you. Here are the basics every employer in Croatia should keep in mind.

Note: this article is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, check the current Labour Act, any collective agreement and the work regulations that apply to your company, or consult a lawyer.

The statutory minimum: four weeks

For each calendar year, an employee is entitled to annual leave of at least four weeks — with a five-day working week, that’s 20 working days. A collective agreement, work regulations or the employment contract can grant more, but never less. Public holidays, non-working days and periods of sick leave do not count as annual leave days.

An employee cannot waive the right to annual leave, and paying compensation instead of granting leave is allowed in only one case: when employment ends, for the unused days.

New employees and the proportional share

An employee starting their first job, or with a gap of more than eight days between two employments, acquires the right to full annual leave after six months of uninterrupted employment. Before that — and in any year in which employment starts or ends — the employee is entitled to a proportional share: one twelfth of the full entitlement for each completed month of work.

The leave schedule and notifying employees

The schedule of annual leave is set by the employer, as a rule no later than 30 June of the current year, taking into account the organisation of work but also the employees’ opportunity to rest. Two deadlines matter here:

  • the employee must be notified of the schedule and duration of their leave at least 15 days before it starts,
  • the employee has the right to take one day of leave whenever they choose, by notifying the employer at least three days in advance (unless a collective agreement provides otherwise).

In practice: companies that settle the schedule in spring, while wishes can still be reconciled, get through the summer without drama.

Taking leave in parts and carrying it over

Annual leave can be taken in parts, but if it is, the employee must use at least two consecutive weeks during the calendar year — unless the employee and the employer agree otherwise.

Any unused portion carries over into the next calendar year and can be used no later than 30 June. That makes November and December the right time for a check: who still has days left, and how to schedule them before they expire.

Records: tedious, but mandatory

Employers are required to keep records on employees and working time, and that includes data on the use of annual leave. In a labour inspection, the records are the first thing examined — and that’s where spreadsheets with hand-typed balances usually fall apart: duplicate entries, forgotten approvals, numbers that don’t add up.

A tool like CHRIS helps here naturally: every request and approval stays on record, balances calculate themselves, and the calendar with Croatian public holidays is always up to date. But whatever tool you use — what matters is that you know the rules, apply them consistently, and that your records always reflect reality.