Introduction to Annual Vacation Accrual
This article explains how to set up a vacation policy with annual accrual in BitaBIZ.
The article covers:
how to set up the policy
how accrual works
which rules can affect vacation planning
how vacation is managed in the calendar and integrations
This article describes the general functionality in BitaBIZ.
If your company follows specific national vacation rules, you should also refer to the relevant country-specific article.
Other time off, which is managed via an additional balance (e.g. other vacation, 6th vacation week, and care days), is set up separately from vacation. Read more about additional balances here.
Annual Accrual
With annual accrual, all vacation days are granted at the start of the vacation year.
This means:
Employees receive their full vacation balance at once
There is no ongoing accrual throughout the year
The balance decreases as vacation is taken
Example:
If the policy grants 25 vacation days per year, all 25 days are given at the start of the vacation year.
Set Up Annual Accrual on a Policy
The accrual rule is selected on the policy and applies to all employees under it.
Go to Setup Admin
Select Modules
Click Create new policy or Edit an existing one
Open the Vacation tab
Find the earning section
Then select: Earning method → Annual earning
Note: The accrual method (annual or monthly) can only be chosen when creating a policy and cannot be changed later.
Accrual Settings
When annual accrual is selected, the following settings can be configured.
Vacation Year
Choose which vacation year the policy should follow.
The vacation year defines:
when vacation days are granted
when they can be taken
when they may expire
Vacation year rules vary from country to country. See country-specific articles for details.
Annual Number of Vacation Days
Enter the number of vacation days the employee is granted per year.
When the vacation period ends, any remaining days go to vacation left processing (carry over, delete, or pay out)
Accrual for New Employees
New employees can be handled in several ways:
Full accrual from start of employment
No accrual in the first year (accrual starts next year)
Pro-rated accrual in the first year
If the default settings don't fit, the starting balance can be adjusted manually.
Choosing a Vacation Registration Rule
BitaBIZ supports 2 methods for annual accrual, and this is set on the policy:
Go to "Setup admin"
Select "Modules"
Click "Edit" next to the desired policy, or press "Create new policy"
Open the "Vacation" section
Open the "Rules" subsection
The two methods you can choose are:
Max policy → employees can only schedule accrued days.
No max policy → employees can also request non-accrued days.
Under Vacation Rules, you can also control:
Whether approval is required for vacation registrations
Whether half vacation days are allowed
Find user guides for the two vacation registration rules here:
User guide for vacation with Max rule
User guide for vacation without Max rule
Click the image to see the 2 vacation methods:
Optional Settings for the Vacation Policy
Once the basic setup for annual accrual is in place, you can add a range of optional settings to help manage calendar rules, notifications, and integrations.
Public Holidays
Fixed Official HolidaysBitaBIZ supports official holidays for 40+ countries.
Vacation days that fall on holidays are not deducted from the vacation balance.
Add holidays under “Holidays” in the policy – they are automatically added to employees' calendars. | 
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Floating HolidaysFloating holidays can be chosen freely by the employee.
They are created via an additional balance or day bank, which can be renamed to “Floating Holidays” and supports accrual.
Gives employees flexibility to choose their own days off, e.g. for religious reasons. |
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Approver Notification
Reminder to ApproverYou can send an automatic reminder to approvers if vacation or absence requests are not approved by a chosen date.
Activate under Modules → Notifications & rules → Payroll administration |
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Integrations
Payroll ExportVacation can be transferred to the company's payroll system.
Once vacation is processed in payroll, the registration is locked and cannot be changed by the employee.
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Outlook ExchangeVacation is automatically synced to employees' Outlook calendars when the integration is enabled.
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Policies With or Without Paid Vacation
Payroll Codes for VacationDifferent payroll codes for vacation can be linked to the policies.
Payroll codes can be customized per staff group (e.g. with or without paid vacation) and ensure that vacation is transferred correctly to the payroll system. |
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Special Employee Groups
If the company has employees with special terms, such as part-time employment, there may be a need for a special setup for their policy.
Read more about vacation policies for part time employees here.
Employee Statistics for Annual Accrual
The vacation statistics show the number of vacation days left (vacation left).
Vacation left is the accrued vacation days for the vacation year minus the vacation days used.
FAQ
What does annual vacation accrual mean?
What does annual vacation accrual mean?
Annual vacation accrual means that all vacation days for the year are granted at once at the start of the vacation year.
How are new employees handled?
How are new employees handled?
New employees can be handled in three ways:
Full accrual from the start of employment
No accrual in the first vacation year
Pro-rated accrual based on the employment start date
Your choice determines how many vacation days the employee has available in their first vacation year.
If the standard settings don't fit your needs, choose the option that's closest and adjust the employee's starting balance manually via Payroll Admin → Calendar Access in the first vacation year.
What happens to unused vacation days at the end of the vacation year?
What happens to unused vacation days at the end of the vacation year?
Depending on how your policy is set up, unused vacation days can:
be carried over
be paid out
be deleted
See more in the article about vacation left.
When is a vacation policy with annual accrual used?
When is a vacation policy with annual accrual used?
Annual accrual is used in countries or setups where vacation days are granted all at once at the start of the vacation year—not gradually.
The vacation year and the country's rules determine which accrual method should be used.
See the country-specific articles for correct setup
Can employees take vacation that hasn't been granted yet?
Can employees take vacation that hasn't been granted yet?
Whether employees can use vacation that hasn't been granted yet depends on the vacation rule:
Max → only granted vacation days can be used
No max → employees can request vacation before the days are granted
If employees can't register vacation, it's usually because the Max rule is selected.
Why can't an employee register vacation?
Why can't an employee register vacation?
If an employee can't register vacation, it could be due to several reasons, for example:
The Max rule is enabled (only accrued days can be used)
There aren't enough vacation days left
Another registration type is blocking it
The selected period only includes public holidays
Can we change the accrual method on an existing vacation policy?
Can we change the accrual method on an existing vacation policy?
No. The accrual method (e.g., annual or monthly) can't be changed on an existing vacation policy after it's been created.
This means that:
You can't edit an existing policy to change the accrual method
Instead, you need to create a new policy with the desired setup
If you want to change the accrual method, you should:
Note the employees' current vacation balances
Create a new vacation policy
Assign employees to the new policy
Adjust balances manually as needed