Which countries have the highest amount of annual leave?

These are the European countries providing the most generous statutory holiday entitlement across the continent. Would you consider moving for more annual leave?

Global HR experts Remote believe holiday entitlement is an essential factor for assessing employee wellness across the globe, which is why statutory annual leave is among the core ranking factors for its annual European Life-Work Balance Index.

“Strong paid holiday entitlement is a vital component of life-work balance and overall wellbeing, allowing employees to take well-needed breaks away from the demands of their workplace,” says Amanda Day, Remote’s Director of People Enablement. “Annual leave is not something businesses should fear. Robust annual leave policies increase productivity and reduce the number of sick days taken throughout the year.”

The United Kingdom is something of an outlier in Europe for paid holiday entitlement. While countries such as Spain provide defined minimum annual leave entitlement in addition to regulated paid public holidays, the UK’s 28 days of statutory paid annual leave for full-time workers is inclusive of bank or public holidays. This places the UK 36th in Europe for paid holiday entitlement, among the worst on the continent according to Remote’s latest findings.

So, which European countries are providing employees with the most generous holiday entitlement? As we head toward the end-of-year holidays (the reported most popular period to take time off), Remote has adapted the data from the 2023 European Life-Work Balance Index to illustrate which countries in Europe have the largest statutory minimum holiday entitlement, basing the findings on the total available annual leave including public holidays.

Top 10 European Countries With The Best Holiday Entitlement

Source: European Life-Work Balance Index

Key Findings on Holiday Entitlement

1. Paid holiday entitlement often leads to a strong life-work balance: There is a pattern of countries with a strong overall life-work balance score also providing substantial paid holiday entitlement, with top-ranking Luxembourg, Spain, France, Denmark, and Estonia making the top 10 for holiday entitlement.
2. Surprise countries top the charts for holiday entitlement: Breaking the pattern, Andorra and Malta top the list for most paid annual leave in Europe despite rating lowly for life-work balance overall. They also have the joint most public holidays.
3. Major European countries lag behind the continent: The Netherlands and the United Kingdom provide comparably poor paid holiday entitlement compared to the rest of Europe, placing 35th and 36th on the list.
4. Time-off for the festive season: All European countries listed in the top 10 for holiday entitlement have a public holiday on Christmas Day (25th December). These are strong options for relocation if you also want to celebrate the holiday season.

Annual Leave Entitlement for the Holidays

Analysis of ‘paid holiday entitlement’ in Europe shows each country listed in the top 10 celebrates a public holiday on Christmas Day (25th December), as well as further significant regional and national events throughout December.

Finland, Iceland, and Spain celebrate the most public holidays during the traditionally festive period, each with four public holidays during December:

Finland:

• Independence Day (6th December)
• Christmas Eve (24th December)
• Christmas Day (25th December)
• 2nd Day of Christmas (26th December)

Iceland:

• Christmas Eve (24th December)
• Christmas Day (25th December)
• St. Stephen’s Day (26th December)
• New Year’s Eve (31st December)

Spain:

• Spanish Constitution Day (6th December)
• Feast of the Immaculate Conception (8th December)
• Christmas Day (25th December)
• Christmas Holiday (26th December)

Public holidays in December aren’t all about Christmas. Finland and Spain each celebrate a public holiday on December 6th, Independence Day and Constitution Day respectively. Finnish Independence Day is a national public holiday celebrating Finland’s declaration of independence from Russia, while Spain’s Constitution Day marks the anniversary of the 1978 Referendum which approved the current Spanish constitution.

Alongside significant national events, public holidays are often rooted in religious traditions. For example, La Puríssima in Spain, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception is cited as feeling like the start of the Christmas period, particularly in cities like Barcelona, where much of the public takes the opportunity to plan a long weekend.

Amelia Brand

abrand@hrreview.co.uk

Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.

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