Key takeaways
- Posted workers accrue 2.08 holiday days per month in Denmark, whether they work full-time or part-time.
- Hourly and temporary employees are entitled to a holiday allowance of 12.5% of their qualifying gross salary.
- Employers must report holiday entitlements via eIndkomst and pay contributions to the FerieKonto fund.
- Unearned holiday taken by an employee results in a salary reduction of 4.8% of their monthly salary per day.
Introduction to Danish Posting Regulations
Foreign companies posting workers to Denmark must submit a posting declaration on the Register of Foreign Service Providers (RUT) website before starting operations. This registration is a critical first step. Under the Danish Act on Posting of Workers, posted workers have the same rights as Danish citizens regarding a safe and healthy working environment, equal pay, and certain working hours regulations.
These equal rights extend directly to holiday entitlements. Under the Danish Act on Posting of Workers, posted workers are covered by the holiday rules of their home country, but they are guaranteed the minimum rights provided by the Danish Holiday Act (Ferieloven) if those are more favorable. If the holiday scheme in the posted worker's home country is less favorable than the Danish Holiday Act, the worker accumulates additional paid leave during their posting in Denmark.
The Core Holiday Accrual Rules under Ferieloven
To manage these guaranteed minimum rights, employers must understand how the Danish Holiday Act structures time off. Under the Danish Holiday Act, employees accrue 2.08 days of paid leave per month of employment, which equals 25 days (five weeks) of holiday for a full year. Whether a posted worker is employed full-time or part-time has no influence on the number of holiday days they accumulate; part-time workers still accumulate 2.08 days per month.
This monthly accrual is tied to a specific timeline. In September 2020, Denmark implemented a concurrent holiday system (simultaneous accrual), meaning employees can take holiday as soon as the month after they have earned it. This allows newly posted staff to take paid time off quickly.
When a posted worker accumulates additional paid leave because the Danish minimum standards are more favorable than their home country rules, a specific administrative distinction applies. Any additional paid leave accumulated due to Danish minimum standards must be taken in accordance with the holiday rules of the home country, not the Danish Holiday Act.
Sources & further reading
- 01Workplace Denmark vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com
- 02Workindenmark vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com
