How many days of annual leave are mandatory in Myanmar?

What Myanmar law says

The Leave and Holidays Act sets the statutory floor for paid annual leave in Myanmar at 10 days per year, available to an employee after 12 months of continuous service. The Act is overlaid by two sub-statutes that govern the workplace itself: the Factories Act 1951 applies to factory workers, while the Shops and Establishments Act applies to office, retail, restaurant, and hospitality staff. Both sub-statutes incorporate the Leave and Holidays Act minimum and add sector-specific record-keeping duties.

Annual leave is paid at the employee's full ordinary salary, accrues on a service-year basis, can be carried forward subject to a cap, and is encashable on resignation or termination. Employers may grant more than 10 days as a matter of policy, but cannot grant fewer than the statutory floor without breaching the Act.

Entitlement table

How to apply and approval process

• Advance written request. The employee submits a written annual-leave request — typically 7 to 14 days before the intended start date, depending on company policy.
• Employer's duty to respond. The employer must approve or reasonably refuse the request, and cannot withhold leave indefinitely. Refusal must be on operational grounds and the leave must be rescheduled to a mutually agreed date.
• Block bookings. Annual leave can be taken in a single block or in parts; some employers require at least one continuous block of 5 days.
• Notice period overlap. Annual leave may be taken during a notice period only with employer agreement; otherwise unused balance is encashed at final settlement. See leave during the notice period for the rules.

Edge cases and exceptions

• Probationary employees. Annual leave eligibility begins at 12 months — most probationers (typically 3 months) have not accrued statutory annual leave but commonly receive pro-rated leave under company policy.
• Daily-wage workers. Eligible if continuously engaged for 12 months by the same employer; the daily wage is used as the encashment base.
• Shift workers (factory). Annual leave is computed on calendar days, not on rostered shifts — 10 days means 10 calendar days of release from duty.
• Part-time employees. Receive pro-rated leave based on contracted days per week or month.
• Factory vs office. The 10-day floor is identical, but factory employers must additionally produce the leave register on inspection by the township labour office under the Factories Act 1951.
• Foreign workers. Subject to the same statutory leave entitlements as Myanmar nationals when employed by a Myanmar-registered employer.

Encashment on exit — the formula

Unused annual leave is encashed at final settlement using the standard Myanmar formula:

Example: An employee earning MMK 600,000/month with 6 unused leave days at exit receives (600,000 ÷ 30) × 6 = MMK 120,000 as leave encashment. Cross-reference the calculation rules in leave encashment on resignation and the general annual-leave encashment page.

Frequently asked questions

Does this entitlement apply to employees on fixed-term contracts?

Yes. Fixed-term contract employees in Myanmar receive the same statutory leave floor as permanent employees once they meet the relevant service-tenure thresholds. The Leave and Holidays Act, the Factories Act 1951, and the Shops and Establishments Act do not distinguish between fixed-term and indefinite contracts for leave purposes — eligibility is set by months of continuous service. Contract expiry is not termination, so unused annual-leave balance is encashed at the end of the contract using (monthly salary ÷ 30) × unused-days. See the bucket E pages on fixed-term contracts for the contract-side rules.

How does this interact with payroll and SSB?

All paid leave is treated as ordinary salary income for Myanmar payroll purposes. PIT is withheld through PAYE on every payslip that includes leave pay. SSB contributions (2% employee + 3% employer, capped on a wage base of MMK 300,000/month) continue during paid leave because the employee is still earning wages. SSB contributions pause only during unpaid leave. Encashment of accrued annual leave at exit is part of taxable salary for PIT but practitioners differ on SSB treatment of the lump sum — confirm with the township SSB office on filing.

What records does the township labour office expect?

Inspectors typically request the leave register for the past 12 months, medical certificates for sick leave over 3 days, maternity / paternity SSB filings, final settlement worksheets for recent leavers, and the public-holiday gazette for the current year. Records must be retained for at least 7 years under both the Factories Act 1951 and the Shops and Establishments Act. Keeping a clean per-employee leave file with tagged entries makes inspections quick and defensible. Digital records from a payroll system are acceptable provided they can be printed on demand.

Common leave-law mistakes

• Denying leave to employees with under 12 months of service while company policy promises pro-rated accrual — once promised in writing, it becomes contractually enforceable.
• Refusing encashment on resignation. Encashment is statutorily owed for unused balance at exit, not a discretionary bonus.
• Applying office (S&E Act) rules to factory workers. The leave floor is the same, but factory employers face stricter inspection duties under the Factories Act 1951.
• Letting balances accumulate without a cap. Most employers cap carry-forward at 30 days to control liability; codify the cap in writing.
• Not capturing leave in the payslip. Each payslip should show leave-balance opening, used, and closing figures to avoid disputes.