Qatar
Qatar Labour Law, Article 79: annual leave
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Qatar's Ministry of Labourmol.gov.qa
What your unused balance is worth in QAR, on the basic wage under Article 81.
Work out your annual leave balance and its cash value under Article 79 of the Qatar Labour Law: three weeks a year under five years of service and four weeks from five on, cashed out on the basic wage under Article 81.
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How is leave salary calculated?
- Nothing is payable before 12 months of service
- first 5 years: 21 days a year · after 5 years: 28 days a year
- Unused balance = accrued − taken
- Daily wage = basic wage ÷ 30
- Leave salary = unused balance × daily wage
Symbols
- accrued
- Leave days built up over your service, including fractions
- taken
- Days you have actually used from the balance
- daily wage
- Worked out on the basic wage divided by 30 days
What is the leave balance worth on 10,000?
An employee with a monthly wage of 10,000 QAR has 7 years of service and has taken 20 days of leave.
- First five years: 60 months × 1.75 = 105 days
- The next two years: 24 months × 2.3333 = 56 days, giving 161 days accrued in total
- Unused balance: 161 − 20 = 141 days
- Daily rate: 10,000 ÷ 30 = 333.33 QAR, so the pay is 141 × 333.33 = 47,000 QAR
The employee is owed 47,000 QAR for the unused balance on leaving, and the current entitlement is 28 days a year because service has passed five years.
How does leave accrue, and which wage pays it out?
Under Article 79 of Qatar Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, a worker earns paid annual leave of not less than three weeks (21 days) for each year while service is under five years, and four weeks (28 days) a year once service reaches five years. The leave is earned only after one complete year of service, so nothing accrues before that.
Leave is paid at the wage defined in Article 72, and that article puts annual leave, sick leave and the end-of-service gratuity on the basic wage in one sentence. So allowances do not count towards leave pay and do not count towards the gratuity, under the same law.
The calculator counts completed months only: 1.75 days for each month during the first five years, then 2.3333 days for each month after that, and it divides the monthly wage by 30 to get the daily rate. Whatever balance is left unused is paid out in cash when you leave.
- Service under five years: 21 days (three weeks) per year, that is 1.75 days per completed month
- Service of five years or more: 28 days (four weeks) per year, that is 2.3333 days per completed month
- Nothing accrues before one complete year of service (Article 79)
- Daily rate = monthly basic wage ÷ 30, and the unused balance is paid on leaving under Article 81
Questions about leave balance and cashing it out
Do allowances count towards annual leave pay in Qatar?
No. Article 72 puts annual leave, sick leave and the end-of-service gratuity on the basic wage in a single sentence, so allowances are left out of all three. Your contract may promise more, and a contract that does is what governs.
When does my leave rise from 21 days to 28 days?
Once your service reaches five years or more, under Article 79; below that it is three weeks (21 days) a year. These are minimums, so your contract or your employer's policy may grant more.
I have worked less than a year. Do I have a leave balance?
No. Article 79 requires one complete year of service before annual leave is earned, so nothing accrues before then, and the calculator flags this case for you.
I left the job without using my leave. Is it paid out?
Yes, the balance of unused leave is paid when you leave. The calculator counts completed months only, so a month that has not finished does not add to your balance.
How is the balance worked out for part of a year?
By completed months: 1.75 days for each month during the first five years and 2.3333 days for each month after that. One year and six months therefore earns 18 months × 1.75 = 31.5 days.
How is the daily rate calculated for leave pay?
The calculator divides your full monthly wage by 30 to get the daily rate, then multiplies it by the unused days. If your employer reaches a different figure, check your contract and your payslip.
Sources
Read against the statuteReviewed September 2026- Article 79 (annual leave), Qatar Labour Law No. 14 of 2004: Al Meezan legal portal
- Qatar Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, full text (PDF, English): ILO NATLEX
- Ministry of Labour: State of Qatar
Statutory articles this calculator applies
- Qatar Labour Law, Article 79: annual leave
- Qatar Labour Law, Article 81: cash allowance for untaken leave
Qatar Labour Law: Law No. 14 of 2004, as amended (notably by Decree-Law No. 18 of 2020 and Law No. 13 of 2017)