Estonian holiday entitlement calculator (põhipuhkus)

How põhipuhkus in Estonia is calculated

*"The duration of annual holiday is at least 28 calendar days per year."* Calendar days, so 28 is exactly four weeks and about **20 working days** on a five-day week — the same real entitlement as Poland’s 20 days, Latvia’s four calendar weeks, Italy’s four weeks and Germany’s 24 Werktage. Five countries at one real figure, published as five different numbers.

**Thirty-five days for two groups.** *"The annual holiday of a minor and an employee with partial or no capacity for work is at least 35 calendar days per year"* — the latter under § 57 of the Employment Contracts Act. Educational staff have their own range of 35 to 56 calendar days, which this calculator does not model.

**The pro-rata is by calendar days over the year, and Estonia is the only country here that does it that way.** Everyone else divides by twelve months. The Tööinspektsioon prints the arithmetic: *"28 (duration of annual holiday from 1 January to 30 June) ÷ 365 (number of calendar days in 2023) × 181 (number of calendar days worked)"*.

**And the extended entitlement is pro-rated from the moment it arises, not applied to the whole year.** The authority’s example splits a year at 1 July: 28 ÷ 365 × 181 for the first half, then 35 ÷ 365 × 184 for the second, summing to 31,53 calendar days. If your status changed mid-year, run this calculator once per period and add the results, exactly as the Tööinspektsioon does.

**Three rules on using it.** Where the leave is divided, at least one part must be 14 consecutive calendar days. The claim expires one year after the end of the calendar year it was earned for — so 2026’s leave can be used in 2026 and 2027. And unused holiday is paid in money only when the employment contract ends.