Taking your annual leave

Annual leave is time off with pay. The number of days grows with your length of service.

Who this covers

• Workers with a qualifying period of continuous service
• New starters under a year also accrue leave monthly if they meet the conditions

What to know

1. In principle you choose when to take it. The employer cannot decide unilaterally.
2. If it would seriously disrupt operations, the employer can ask you to move the date. That is adjustment, not refusal.
3. Unused leave can be paid out. This may differ if the company formally encouraged you to use it through the set procedure.
4. The number of days increases with service.

Steps

1. Check how many days you have. Ask your payslip or the HR contact.
2. Give notice of the days you want. Keep it in messages or email.
3. If refused, ask for the reason.
4. On leaving, have remaining leave settled.

What you need

• Labour contract and start date
• Records of leave taken
• Payslips

Where to go

• 1350 Ministry of Employment and Labor
• Your regional labour office · labor.moel.go.kr
• Your local support centre for foreign workers

Questions people ask

They say "foreigners don't get annual leave". Not true. It has nothing to do with nationality.

They deducted my sick day from my annual leave. Leave cannot be deducted without your consent. Keep records and get advice from 1350.

What about workplaces with fewer than five workers? Annual leave rules can apply differently by workplace size. Check with 1350.

Can I take a long block to visit home? You can take consecutive days. Give notice and agree it in advance.

Take care

Unused leave allowance is easily forgotten when you leave a job. Check that it was settled in your final pay.

Related

weekly-holiday-pay · public-holidays · severance-pay · working-hours

Source

Ministry of Employment and Labor www.moel.go.kr / As of 2026-08