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Paid annual leave in Tunisia 2026: number of days and calculation
How many days of paid annual leave employees get in Tunisia, how they are calculated, rules for young workers and seniority, and what happens to untaken leave.
The Labour Code grants every employee paid annual leave, paid by the employer (art. 112). Articles 112 to 120 set its length, how months of work are counted, when leave is taken and the pay received during leave.
These rules are a minimum. Sector collective agreements, individual contracts and company practice may grant more. Any calculation therefore starts with the Code, is then compared with the collective agreement for the sector, and the rule more favourable to the employee applies.
Law No. 2025-9 on the organisation of employment contracts did not change the annual leave rules. An employee on a fixed-term contract (CDD) has the same rights as a permanent employee in the same activity (new art. 6-4), including annual leave.
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An employee who has worked for the same employer for at least one month of actual work during the reference year is entitled to leave at the rate of one day per month of work (art. 113).
Accrual: one day per month of actual work.
Maximum: total leave may not exceed fifteen days, including twelve working days.
Minimum condition: one month of actual work for the same employer in the reference year.
Reference year: it starts on 1 January each year (art. 116).
Example: an employee hired on 1 March 2026 who works without interruption until 31 December 2026, ten months, earns ten days. An employee who works the whole year earns the statutory maximum of twelve working days.
Special cases: young workers and seniority
Article 113 increases leave for young workers:
Employees under eighteen on 31 December: two days per month of work, up to thirty days including twenty-four working days.
Employees aged eighteen to twenty on 31 December: one and a half days per month of work, up to twenty-two days including eighteen working days.
These young employees may ask for the maximum leave whatever their length of service, but days taken beyond those earned are unpaid.
Seniority adds extra days (art. 115):
One extra working day for each full period of five years' service with the same employer, continuous or not.
This increase cannot take leave beyond eighteen working days.
It does not add to a similar increase from a collective agreement, individual contract or custom; the more favourable one applies.
Periods when the contract is suspended without being terminated, such as illness or work accidents, count as actual work for seniority.
Example: an employee with ten years' service in the same company is entitled to twelve days plus two, fourteen working days, unless the collective agreement provides more.
How are months of work counted?
To set the length of leave, article 114 treats any period equal to twenty-six working days as one month of actual work. Some absences count as actual work:
periods of paid leave themselves;
maternity leave under article 64 of the Labour Code;
periods of suspension due to a work accident, up to one uninterrupted year.
This rule protects employees returning from maternity leave and victims of work accidents: their annual leave is not reduced because of these absences.
When is leave taken, and can it be split?
Normal period: leave is granted between 1 June and 31 October each year (art. 117).
Other periods: it may be granted at another time under collective or individual agreements, or by the employer when work requires it, after consulting the company advisory committee or staff delegates.
Order of departures: set by the employer, taking into account work needs, family situation and seniority, and posted at least fifteen days in advance.
Splitting: leave of six working days or less is taken in one block. Longer leave may be split with the employee's consent, with one part of at least six working days (art. 118).
Public holidays and sick days are not deducted from annual leave.
How is holiday pay calculated?
During leave, the employee receives pay calculated from the number of leave days due, on the one hand, and the salary and allowances usually received during actual work, on the other (art. 119). The principle is that leave does not reduce usual income.
In jobs paid wholly or partly through tips, the pay taken into account is assessed under social security legislation. If the establishment closes for longer than the annual leave, the employer pays, for each extra working day, at least the daily holiday pay.
To estimate earned days and holiday pay, E-Tafakna's free paid leave calculator gives a first result, to be checked against the applicable collective agreement.
Untaken leave
If the contract ends before the employee has taken all the leave due, the employee receives compensation for the untaken part, calculated like holiday pay (art. 120). It is not due if the termination results from the employee's gross misconduct.
While the contract runs, the Code links leave to a reference year starting on 1 January and to a normal leave period. Carrying untaken days over to the next year, or losing them, depends on the applicable collective agreement or a written agreement with the employer. It is wise to record any carry-over in writing.
To avoid disputes, the employment contract can state the agreed leave when it exceeds the legal minimum. E-Tafakna's CDI contract template and CDD contract template include an editable annual leave clause.
Frequently asked questions
How many days of paid leave do employees get in Tunisia?
One day per month of actual work, up to fifteen days including twelve working days (art. 113), plus one working day per five years of service, up to eighteen working days (art. 115). Collective agreements may grant more.
How much leave does an employee under 18 get in Tunisia?
Two days per month of work, up to thirty days including twenty-four working days. From 18 to 20: one and a half days per month, up to twenty-two days including eighteen working days (art. 113).
Am I entitled to leave in my first year of work?
Yes, once you have one month of actual work with the same employer during the reference year, at one day per month (art. 113).
What happens to untaken leave on resignation or dismissal?
The employee receives compensation for untaken days, unless the termination results from the employee's gross misconduct (art. 120).
Does maternity leave count towards annual leave?
Yes. It counts as actual work when calculating the length of annual leave (art. 114).
Sources
Labour Code, Law No. 66-27 of 30 April 1966, as revised to 15 July 1996, arts. 112 to 120 (text published by the Tunisian Observatory for the protection of children's rights, observatoire-enfance.tn)
Law No. 2025-9 of 21 May 2025 on the organisation of employment contracts and the ban on subcontracting, Official Gazette (JORT) No. 61 of 23 May 2025, new art. 6-4 (arp.tn)
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Paid annual leave in Tunisia 2026: number of days and calculation
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