Organisation of paid leave: comply with your obligations and secure your practices

Reminder: what is the period for taking paid leave?

Not to be confused with the leave accrual period.

In the absence of a collective agreement setting a different period, the period for taking leave runs from May 1 to April 30 of the following year (with, in practice, a frequent practice extending to May 31).
In accordance with Article L.3141-15 of the French Labor Code, it is the employer’s responsibility:

• to define the leave period, after consultation with the CSE when it exists,
• to set the order of leave departures according to objective criteria.

The obligation to inform employees in advance

The employer must inform all employees of the leave period at least 2 months before its start. This deadline is mandatory and can not be changed. 

Concrete example

If your leave period starts on May 1, 2026, you must inform your employees no later than February 28, 2026.

No specific form is required (posting, internal note, intranet, email, etc.). The essential point is to be able to prove that the information has been effectively brought to the attention of all employees.

After this deadline, you can no longer impose paid leave on your employees.

Setting and communicating the order of departures

Once the leave period is defined, you must establish the order of departures taking into account:

• statutory criteria (seniority, length of service, family situation, including the right for spouses or partners in a PACS working in the same company to take leave at the same time —mandatory rule — as well as taking into account disability within families and loss of autonomy of elderly persons),
• collective agreement criteria, where applicable,
• and other objective and relevant criteria (e.g. family responsibilities, school holiday dates for employees with school-age children, custody rights dates for divorced employees, etc.).

Once determined, departures must be notified individually to employees at least 1 month before their departure date.

Risks in case of non-compliance

Failure to comply with deadlines or information obligations exposes the employer to several concrete risks:

• challenge of leave imposed outside the deadline,
• compensation for the employee in case of damage (e.g. inability to organize their holidays),
• employer liability in case of labor court disputes,
• administrative sanctions in case of widespread non-compliance.

An essential point to remember: the employee can never decide their leave dates alone. Any leave remains subject to the employer’s prior approval.

What should be initiated now

• Secure your leave period by verifying your internal dates.
• Schedule communication to employees in order to comply with the 2-month legal deadline.
• Prepare the order of departures to ensure compliance with the one-month notice period and avoid any dispute.

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To ensure the reliability of the implementation of your paid leave process and to comply with new obligations, our teams can assist you in updating your processes, formalizing your documentation, and securing your practices.

Your usual BDO contact remains at your disposal to assist you.