This annual leave calculator applies Article 109 of the Saudi Labor Law. Enter the employee's start date, the calculation date and the days already taken, and you see the annual leave balance accrued today and its cash value at the wage you enter. Entitlement is 21 days for each year, then 30 days for each year after five continuous years, and a part year accrues in proportion to its days. The balance is laid out on a calendar from the first day of leave, so you can see the date the employee is back at work.
Annual leave in Saudi Arabia: 21 days, then 30
Article 109 of the Labor Law in the Kingdom gives a worker paid annual leave of at least 21 days for each year, rising to at least 30 days once they have spent five continuous years with the same employer, with the leave wage paid in advance. Both figures are minimums: if the contract gives more, enter the contract days in advanced mode.
The calculator counts full years from the start date to the day after the calculation date, because the last working day is part of the service. Each of the first five years earns 21 days and each year after that 30, and the current year accrues in proportion to the days already served.
Accrued = 21 × years up to 5 + 30 × later years + current year's entitlement × (days served ÷ days in that year)
Leave balance in the private sector with a carried balance
Many companies do not know every day an employee has taken since day one, but they do know the balance on a given date, such as the year-end close. In advanced mode, enter that date and the balance on it: the calculator then counts only what was accrued afterwards, at the right rate for the years of service, adds it to the carried figure and takes off the leave taken after the same date.
Carrying leave forward has limits under Article 110: the worker may defer some or all of the leave to the following year with the employer's agreement, and the employer may defer it for up to ninety days after the year it is due if work requires; anything longer needs the worker's written consent and cannot run past the end of the following year.
Leave pay and unused leave at the end of employment (Article 111)
Leave pay, sometimes called leave encashment or vacation pay, is the wage for balance days the employee has not taken. Article 111 entitles a worker who leaves before using the leave to the wage for the days due, and to leave pay for part years in proportion to the time worked. During employment, Article 109 forbids giving up the leave or taking cash instead of it, so the place for leave pay is the final settlement.
For the leave salary calculation, the tool divides the monthly wage by 30 to get the daily wage, then multiplies it by the balance. Which wage applies, basic alone or with fixed allowances, is set by the contract and the company's work regulations, so enter the wage your company uses and state it in the settlement.
Leave in the end of service settlement
An employee's last month brings three amounts together: the wage for days worked that month, leave pay for the balance, and the end of service award. Enter the last working day as the calculation date to get the leave balance and its value, then download the result as a PDF and attach it to the settlement. For the award itself, use the end of service calculator.
The leave provision in the company's books
An unused leave balance is a liability for the company, because it will be paid either as paid leave or as leave pay on exit. The accountant therefore books a monthly provision for the leave earned in the month: daily wage × (annual leave days ÷ 12). An employee on SAR 9,000.00 with 21 days a year adds a monthly provision of 300.00 × 1.75 = 525.00. In advanced mode this provision appears under the result, and Download Excel for all employees gives a sheet with real formulas: a row per employee, one cell for the calculation date, and the total leave liability and monthly provision at the bottom.
Common mistakes in leave balance calculations
- Giving 30 days to an employee with five years of broken service, when the law requires five continuous years with the same employer.
- Counting the first year in full for an employee who has not completed it, instead of the share served.
- Paying cash for leave every year instead of the employee taking it, which Article 109 does not allow during employment.
- Dividing the wage by 22 working days for the daily rate, then multiplying by a balance counted in calendar days, which inflates the leave pay.
- Carrying balances forward for years with no written consent from the employee and no plan for the leave.
What to do with the result
If the balance is large, plan the leave with the employee: the calendar under the result shows the return date from any start you choose, in calendar or working days. If the balance is negative, the employee took leave before earning it, so document that before any settlement. Download the result as a PDF for the employee file, or copy it with Copy result.
When every employee's balance becomes its own spreadsheet
One employee's balance takes a minute. With dozens of staff, each with their own start date, leave taken and carried days, the annual leave calculation turns into a sheet you update by hand every month, and the HR balance drifts away from the finance provision by year end. At Microtec we build an ERP accounting system for companies in Saudi Arabia in which human resources sits on the same data as finance, sales, purchasing and inventory. Try it with your current leave balances.