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Leave Entitlement Calculator

British Columbia vacation pay calculator

In British Columbia vacation pay is at least 4% of your total wages, and 6% once you have completed five years with the same employer. Enter your earnings and service below; BC is pre-selected, and you can change it if another jurisdiction covers your job.

Most jobs are covered by the province or territory you work in. Federally regulated work is the exception — see below.

Employment Standards Act (BC), Part 7. Rules checked 16 September 2026.

The earnings your jurisdiction counts for vacation pay. What counts and what is excluded is explained with the result.

Whole years finished with this employer by the end of the year you are asking about. Enter 0 if you are still in your first year.

Many employers pay vacation pay on every cheque. Enter what has already been paid to see what is left.

Choose your jurisdiction, then enter your eligible earnings and service to see your gross vacation pay, with the workings.

Worked examples

Our own worked examples using the published BC rates, not official government examples.

Three years' service, CA$45,000 total wages
Under five years, so 4%: 45,000 × 4% = CA$1,800 of vacation pay.
Six years' service, CA$58,000 total wages
Five years complete, so 6%: 58,000 × 6% = CA$3,480. With CA$1,200 already paid on your cheques, roughly CA$2,280 remains.
Left after four months
There is no right to vacation time before a year of employment, but vacation pay is still owed on the wages earned — in BC it begins after five calendar days of employment.

British Columbia rules the calculator applies

Employment Standards Act (BC), Part 7

Vacation pay rate
4% of eligible earnings from the start, then 6% after 5 completed years.
Vacation time
2 weeks after 1 completed year, then 3 weeks after 5 completed years.
Entitlement year
A “year of employment” from your start date, unless your employer sets a common anniversary date — which it may only do if that does not reduce your entitlement. Vacation earned in one year is taken in the following 12 months.
Which earnings count
Total wages as defined by the Act. Gratuities are dealt with separately under Part 3 and are not wages for this purpose.
First and partial years
Vacation time does not arise until 12 consecutive months are complete. Vacation pay at 4% starts after just 5 calendar days of employment.
Does pay build up before time vests?
In British Columbia vacation pay at 4% begins after 5 calendar days of employment, long before the 12-month vacation time entitlement vests.
Exemptions and limits
  • Industry and occupation exclusions exist under the Employment Standards Regulation. Statutory holidays are not counted as vacation.
  • A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.

Official sources for British Columbia

Rules checked 16 September 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Common BC questions

When does vacation pay start in BC?
After five calendar days of employment. Vacation time is different: two weeks after one year of employment, three weeks after five.
When do I have to take the vacation?
Vacation earned in one year of employment is taken in the following 12 months. An employer may set a common anniversary date, but only if that does not reduce your entitlement.
Does vacation pay include statutory holiday pay?
No. BC statutory holiday pay is a separate entitlement with its own calculation, and it is not part of this tool.

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