Most frequently asked questions regarding payroll in Sweden
Frequently asked questions
While the legal minimum for vacation days is 25, white-collar workers commonly receive 30 days. As a result, overtime is frequently negotiated and excluded from the collective agreement. The law is always the minimum requirement that companies must follow. But many non-union companies often follow it anyway. The purpose of this is to remain competitive in the labor market and not offer less than other similar companies. Depending on the type of employment, such as hourly or project-based, different holiday contracts apply, which are calculated accordingly.
You may save the paid days that exceed 20. This is because Swedish law says that you must make up these 20 days during the summer. Preferably then coinciding.
An agreement can be made with the employee about savings days, when for some reason he wants to save for a longer trip or has an upcoming parental leave where the person does not earn vacation.
Keep in mind that the insurance company will not take kindly to this if the person is on sick leave due to exhaustion.
These 10 days that you may save, may be saved for a maximum of 5 years. These days should then be used. If not, they must be paid out after the next vacataion year change. It is the employer's responsibility to ensure that the employee uses the vacation days that they are not allowed to save.
April to March is the most common holiday year. But among white collars, it is becoming increasingly common to use January to December.
You normally earn your vacation until the second year. This means that in year one you will not receive paid holiday.
As a policy, companies can then offer, if desired, advance vacation to the new employees.
Normally, you earn days in year one and they are then paid in year two. But overlapping rules are becoming more common.
This means that the employees receive a full pot of paid days in year one.
The problem is that the person who has a debt to the company, if he quits, has not earned enough to cover the debt. Then he becomes liable for repayment.
The number of days varies and differs from company to company. Some give 30 full days in advance, others maybe only 10 each.
Remaining days up to 30 will then be unpaid.
Keep in mind that if the person is hired after the summer, they probably already had holidays at their previous job and do not need to get as many as those who start their employment before the summer.
Absence due to illness gives the right to paid vacation and is the basis of vacation pay for a maximum of 180 sick days (calendar days) per accrual calendar year or if the absence is due to a work-related injury.
The right to paid holiday for sick days ends when the employee has been absent in whole or in part due to illness during an entire earning year, without a longer break in the absence than fourteen consecutive days, Section 17 of the Holidays Act.
In short: Yes, you can take vacation while you are on sick leave. If you are on sick leave part-time, you apply for a semester just as usual. If you are on full-time sick leave, you cannot use the leave in the same way, but it may be possible to come to an agreement with the employer on the matter.
In detail:
If you are on sick leave part-time
If you are on sick leave part-time and work part-time, you can take the holiday in the same way as full-time employees. You then apply for the semester as usual with your employer. How many paid vacation days you are entitled to depends on how much you earned in the previous year.
The term can only be taken out for whole days. This also applies if you only work half days. If you take a week's vacation, you use five vacation days. But you also receive sickness benefit from Försäkringskassan for the time you are on sick leave.
Since holiday pay counts as already earned pay, the payment of sickness benefit is not affected. You can therefore receive both holiday pay for the holiday days you take and sickness benefit for the time you are on sick leave, for the same period.
Example: Tina is on sick leave at 50%. She takes a week's vacation, which is five full vacation days that she earns in the previous year. Therefore, Tina receives holiday pay for five full days and sick pay as usual at 50% for that period.
If you are on full-time sick leave
If you are on full-time sick leave, it works a little differently. There do not appear to be any legal barriers to taking accrued holiday pay while you are on full-time sick leave. However, you do not benefit as much from taking vacation when you are not working.
Consider whether it is really worth withdrawing earned semester during sick leave. The holiday is for recreation and for employees to have time to rest. Those who are on sick leave full-time and for a long time do not have the same opportunity to do so. Therefore, it may be wise to save your earned leave until you actually have a use for it.
If you still want to take holiday pay during the sick leave, you must talk to your employer about whether it is possible to do so. You can also contact your trade union and ask for advice on how to manage your semester in connection with sick leave.
For your sickness benefit, it should make no difference whether you take the holiday or not. According to The Social Security Office (Försäkringskassan), you can still receive sickness benefit at the same time as you receive holiday pay.
The sick leave is based on holiday pay
All employees are entitled to 25 vacation days each year. Whether it is a paid semester depends on how much you worked during the earning year, i.e. the year before you take your semester. The accrual year and the holiday year start on 1 April and end on 31 March.
When you are on sick leave and receive sickness benefit from The Social Security Office (Försäkringskassan), you still earn certain holiday days until the next holiday year.
The sick leave is holiday pay for 180 days. This means that if you have been on full-time sick leave and then come back to work, you have earned paid vacation days even if you have not worked for a while. If you are on sick leave for longer than 180 days, you will receive fewer earned vacation days.
Think of! If you are on sick leave due to a work-related injury, there is no time limit of 180 days. Then the entire earning year is holiday pay-based.
If you are continuously on sick leave for an entire earning year, you no longer earn any vacation days if you continue to be sick. As the earning year applies from 1 April, the sick leave must have lasted from 1 April one year to 31 March of the year after you lose the right to holiday earnings.
Example: Frida was on sick leave in September 2019. Until March 31, 2020, she earns paid vacation days just as usual. Between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021, she earns holiday pay for 180 days if she is still on sick leave.
After that, Frida has been on full-time sick leave for a full earnings year. Therefore, she loses her right to holiday earnings from 1 April 2021.
Absence due to illness gives the right to paid vacation and is the basis of vacation pay for a maximum of 180 sick days (calendar days) per accrual calendar year or if the absence is due to a work-related injury. The right to paid holiday for sick days ends when the employee has been absent in whole or in part due to illness during an entire earning year, without a longer break in the absence than fourteen consecutive days, Section 17 of the Holidays Act.
If you are on holiday, you may be forced to cancel it if the employer calls. In order for the employer to be allowed to do this, special reasons are required, for example that the entire business falls if you do not work.
The interrupted vacation will be paid out at a later date and the employer is obliged to compensate you for the financial damage that has occurred. For example, it could be rebooking costs for a trip you were forced to cancel.
Yes, an employer has the right to deny you holiday. However, you as an employee are always entitled to at least 25 vacation days. According to the main rule of the Holiday Act, you have the right to take four of these five weeks during a continuous period between June and August.
An employer can refuse holidays as long as the main rule is followed
An employer has the right to deny you holiday as long as the employer follows the main rule and gives you leave for at least four consecutive weeks during the summer.
If you and your employer cannot agree on when you can take vacation, the employer has the final say. The employer must notify whether the holiday is granted or not at least two months before the holiday begins.
If the employer denies your vacation without a valid reason, you may have grounds to file a complaint or take legal action.
An employer can require you to take vacation, provided you get at least four consecutive vacation weeks during the summer.
Examples of cases when the employer can demand that vacation be taken are if the business closes again for a certain period.
Nor can an employer require you as an employee to take unpaid leave. The employer must always be able to offer work within the company's operations.
Holiday pay liability refers to the total amount of earned holiday pay by employees, which companies must continually record. As employees earn vacation days, the holiday pay debt increases, but it decreases for each day that an employee takes as paid holiday.
Allowing employees to save vacation days for an extended period can lead to an increase in vacation pay costs for the company. As most employees receive wage increases over time, the holiday pay debt accumulates and becomes more expensive when the holiday pay is eventually paid out based on their current salary.
In short:
Vacation in advance means that you may keep your regular salary during unpaid vacation days (when you take vacation in advance), even though you have not earned vacation pay, but at the same time incur a debt to the employer. Normally, you will not receive holiday pay for these days.
In detail: You cannot demand to receive or be forced to take advance vacation
Advance vacation is not something you can demand, nor is it something you have to agree to, if you don't want to. There is no obligation for you to either take unpaid leave or accept advance leave if you do not wish to.
If you accept, you and your employer need to agree on the number of days. It is rarely more than the number of unpaid vacation days to which you are entitled. The agreed advance holiday days are not something you can save.
In the case of unpaid leave, you have an obligation to notify the employer how many of these days you intend to take during your leave.
About debt in case of early vacation
Vacation in advance means that you do not receive a salary deduction if you take your unpaid vacation days. Instead, a debt arises to your employer that corresponds to the deduction that your employer would have made if you had taken unpaid vacation days. You are obliged to pay that debt again, should you resign yourself. That's why it might be good to think twice before you say yes.
The debt is written off after five years. If you are covered by a collective agreement, the five years are counted from your first day of employment. Otherwise, the five years are counted from the time you took the advance holiday. The debt remains in its entirety until it is written off.
Deductions are not made if your employment ends due to lack of work, illness or if the employer grossly disregards its obligations towards you.
The debt you incurred by taking advance vacation is often reported on the salary statement either in the form of the number of advance vacation days or as the total debt in kroner. If the debt is expressed in the number of days, you calculate the amount in the same way as you calculate the deduction for unpaid vacation days with the monthly salary you had when you took the advance vacation.
Repayment of advance holiday debt
If you resign before the debt for the advance holiday is written off, the entire debt must be paid back to your employer. Normally, the debt is deducted (set off) from your final salary. Please note, however, that settlement of advance holiday may only be made against holiday compensation and not against salary, unless otherwise stated in the applicable collective agreement or you yourself agree to it. It is the actual debt in kroner for advance holiday that must be settled against the holiday allowance, that is, it is not a day-to-day settlement.
The daily allowance on vacation is 4.6% of your monthly salary.
It comes from working 2080 hours per year spread over 12 months = 173.33 hours per month.
A working day is 8 hours / 173.33=4.6% This sum equals your salary.
The vacation allowance is 0.43% per day. It is an extra allowance that traditionally exists so you get some extra pocket money for the vacation.
Normally among white collars, this allowance is 0.8%.
There are deviating ways of calculating daily compensation in some collective agreements, but this is normal for white-collar workers.
Denmark introduced a new Holiday Act in September 2020, allowing employees to use their vacation days in the same year they earn them, no matter how long they've been working. Even new employees can take paid leave in their first year, instead of waiting until the next. Holidays are earned from September 1st to August 31st, totaling 25 days per year, which is equivalent to 2.08 days per month.
These vacation days can be used once they're earned but must be used by December 31st of the same year they were earned.
Employees can transfer or receive payment for up to 5 unused vacation days in January if they've already used 20 days.
The Danish Holiday Act counts working days from Monday to Friday.
Employees also earn a holiday allowance of 1%, which can be paid out either in installments in May and August or in the month the holiday is taken.
Additionally, companies have the option to offer "Feriefri" days, care days, or a sixth vacation week, which are governed by internal rules and not regulated by the Holiday Act.
Full-time employees receive their regular salary during paid holidays, while hourly employees need to apply for holiday pay through the "Feriekonto" system, linked to their specific vacation days.
Employees are entitled to four weeks and one day (21 days) of holiday, along with 10.2% holiday pay. Some companies offer five weeks of holiday with 12% pay.
Employees can carry over 10 vacation days to the next year.
Holidays are counted from Monday to Friday, meaning one holiday week equals 5 working days.
May 1st and 17th are paid holidays, as well as other standard international public holidays.
Employees not in full employment for the year can opt out of holiday time if the pay doesn't cover the loss.
During the main holiday period from June 1st to September 30th, employees can take three consecutive weeks off. The employer decides the timing, but discussion is allowed.
Remaining 6 vacation days can also be taken consecutively, with timing decided by the employer.
Holiday pay is typically given out at once, usually in June.
Employers must ensure employees take their holidays, even if they're on long-term sick leave.
The holiday credit year runs from April 1st to March 31st of the next year.
Employees earn holidays by working, based on either the 14 days rule or 35 hours rule.
Depending on how long they've been employed, employees get 24-30 vacation days per year.
If an employee doesn't work enough days in a month for the 14-day rule, they still earn holidays if they work at least 35 hours.
The employer decides when employees can take their holidays, but employees can request specific timing.
Employees should be informed about holiday timing at least a month in advance, but in some cases, this can be shortened to two weeks.
Normally, 24 days are granted during the holiday season, with the rest during the winter holiday.
The number of leave days is determined by the collective agreement, which also decides if Saturdays count as vacation days, making a week either five or six days.