EuGH ruling on leave expiry
German rules used to expire unused leave at year-end. The EuGH has shifted the duty to inform onto the employer — without that, leave doesn't expire.
Leave expiry and transfer
Under §7(3) BUrlG, unused leave expired at year-end in Germany. Under certain conditions (sickness, parental leave, business reasons) it could be transferred to 31 March of the following year.
Leave can no longer expire automatically
The EuGH ruled in 2018 that leave doesn’t expire automatically. The employer must:
- Inform the employee that leave is about to expire
- Prompt them to take it
- Give them the opportunity to do so
No statutory limitation without the employer playing their part
The duty to inform also applies to the limitation period. Statutory expiry after three years (§195 BGB) is still valid in principle — but only if the employer met its information obligations.
Keep leave balances visible
In many companies leave requests are still on paper. That makes it hard for employees to track their balance. The EuGH shifts that duty to the employer. A digital portal where employees see their balance is the simplest answer.
Online leave balance and digital request
teamspace gives employees access to their leave balance — viewable any time, with digital leave requests. Managers and HR see the entire team’s balances at a glance and can warn before expiry. Incoming requests are reviewed and approved digitally. Overtime tracking works the same way.
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