Canadian vacation entitlement calculator

How many weeks of vacation you are legally entitled to depends on where you work. Canada has no single formula: each province and territory sets its own minimum, and federally regulated work follows the Canada Labour Code. Choose your jurisdiction and the calculator uses that law and nothing else.

Canada. There is no single Canadian formula. Each province and territory sets its own minimum vacation time and vacation pay, and federally regulated work follows the Canada Labour Code — so you choose your jurisdiction. Rules checked 16 September 2026.

Which employment standards law covers your job? (required)

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

Employment start date

The first day of this period of continuous employment with the same employer.

Work out the entitlement at this date

Usually the end of the entitlement or reference year you are asking about.

Days you normally work each week (optional)

Only used to convert weeks into days. A week of vacation means a week of your own schedule.

Hours you normally work each week (optional)

Only used to convert weeks into hours.

My contract or collective agreement gives more vacation time than the minimum

Choose your jurisdiction and enter your dates to see your vacation entitlement in weeks, with the workings.

Are you federally regulated? Most people are not

About nine in ten employees in Canada are covered by the employment standards law of the province or territory where they work. A smaller group works in industries Parliament regulates instead, and those jobs follow the Canada Labour Code no matter which province they are in: banks; airlines, railways, shipping and interprovincial trucking and bus lines; telephone, internet and broadcasting companies; ports and grain elevators; the postal service; First Nations band councils; and federal Crown corporations.

Federal rules are not a national default. If your work is not on that list, your province or territory sets your vacation minimums, and the figures can be very different.

Government of Canada — Federal labour standards: who is covered

Worked examples

These are our own worked examples using the published rules, not official government examples.

Ontario, seven years' service: Started 1 June 2019, assessed at 31 May 2026: six completed years. Ontario gives three weeks from five completed years, so the entitlement is 3 weeks. On a five-day week that is 15 working days.
Quebec, eight months' service: Under one year of continuous service, Quebec gives one working day for each completed month, capped at two weeks. Eight completed months is 8 days, about 1.6 weeks on a five-day week.
Yukon, twelve years' service: Still 2 weeks. Yukon's statutory minimum does not rise with service, so a third week there comes from a contract or collective agreement rather than the law.

The rules, jurisdiction by jurisdiction

Minimum vacation time and minimum vacation pay are two separate legal minimums, and they do not always rise at the same time. Every figure below is checked against that jurisdiction's own official source, listed in the last column. Rules checked 16 September 2026.

Minimum vacation time and vacation pay by Canadian jurisdiction
Jurisdiction	Vacation time	Vacation pay	Entitlement year	Source
Federally regulated employment (Canada Labour Code)	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years; 4 weeks from 10 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years; 8% from 10 years	A “year of employment” — 12 months of continuous employment with the same employer, running from your hire date. Vacation must begin no later than 10 months after the year it was earned in ends.	Canada Labour Code, s.184 (vacation) Canada Labour Code, s.185 (when vacation is taken) Government of Canada — Vacations and holidays Labour Program interpretation IPG-012 — Vacation pay
Alberta	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	Years of employment counted from your start date: two weeks after each of the first four years, three weeks after five consecutive years.	Alberta — Vacations and vacation pay Alberta — Employment standards tool kit, Module 7 Employment Standards Code (Alberta), consolidated
British Columbia	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	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.	BC — Annual vacation BC — ESA s.57 interpretation (vacation entitlement) BC — ESA s.58 interpretation (vacation pay)
Manitoba	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	Years of employment from your start date, though an employer may set a common anniversary date. Vacation pay is calculated on the gross earnings of the year the vacation was earned in.	Manitoba — Vacations and vacation pay factsheet
New Brunswick	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 8 years	4% from the start; 6% from 8 years	A 12-month period of employment from your start date. Vacation must be given no later than four months after it is earned.	New Brunswick — Paid public holidays and vacation Employment Standards Act (NB), consolidated
Newfoundland and Labrador	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 15 years	4% from the start; 6% from 15 years	A 12-month period of employment. Vacation time also requires that you worked at least 90% of your regular hours in that period.	NL — Your Rights at Work Labour Standards Act (NL)
Northwest Territories	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	Completed years of employment, counted from your hire date.	NWT — Employment Standards FAQ NWT — Employment Standards
Nova Scotia	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 8 years	4% from the start; 6% from 7 years	A rolling 12-month period of work. Vacation must be given within 10 months after the end of the period it was earned in.	Nova Scotia — Vacation time and vacation pay Nova Scotia — Guide to the Labour Standards Code
Nunavut	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	Years of employment with the same employer, counted from your hire date.	Nunavut Labour Standards Compliance Office — vacation fact sheet Labour Standards Act (Nunavut)
Ontario	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	A 12-month “vacation entitlement year”. By default it runs from your hire date; an employer may instead set an alternative vacation entitlement year, in which case a shorter “stub period” bridges your hire date and the start of it.	Ontario — Your guide to the ESA: Vacation Ontario — ESA Policy and Interpretation Manual, Part XI Employment Standards Act, 2000
Prince Edward Island	2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 5 years	4% from the start; 6% from 5 years	Each year of continuous employment, counted from your start date.	PEI — Vacation and vacation pay Employment Standards Act (PEI), consolidated
Quebec	Under 1 year: 1 day per completed month, max 2 weeks. 2 weeks from 1 year; 3 weeks from 3 years	4% from the start; 6% from 3 years	A “reference year” (année de référence) of 12 consecutive months, which in most cases runs from 1 May to 30 April unless the employer, a decree or a collective agreement fixes a different one.	CNESST — Vacances annuelles LNT art. 74 (indemnité de congé annuel), LégisQuébec
Saskatchewan	3 weeks from 1 year; 4 weeks from 10 years	5.7692% from the start; 7.6923% from 10 years	An “anniversary year” running from your start date to the day before the next anniversary, unless your employer uses a common date that does not reduce your rights.	Saskatchewan — Vacations and vacation pay Saskatchewan — Calculating and paying vacation pay The Saskatchewan Employment Act, consolidated
Yukon	2 weeks from 1 year (no statutory increase with service)	4% from the start	Every completed year of employment. Vacation must be granted within 10 months after that year ends, and vacation pay is paid at least one day before the vacation starts.	Yukon — Annual vacation pay and vacation time Yukon — Employment Standards Act

Eligible earnings, first years and exemptions

Federally regulated employment (Canada Labour Code): Eligible earnings: Wages, meaning every form of remuneration for work performed. Tips and gratuities are excluded from the Code's definition of wages. First and partial years: The two-week vacation time entitlement arises once you complete a year of employment. Vacation pay is a percentage of the wages you earned in that year. Exemptions and limits: Only federally regulated workplaces are covered: banks, airlines and other interprovincial transport, telecommunications and broadcasting, ports, postal service, First Nations band councils and federal Crown corporations, among others. Everyone else is covered by their province or territory. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Alberta: Eligible earnings: Wages paid for work, together with the previous year's vacation pay. Overtime pay, general holiday pay, termination pay and expense reimbursements are treated separately — check Alberta's guidance for your pay type. First and partial years: Employees must work one year before the vacation time entitlement applies. An employee may take paid vacation earlier if the employer agrees. Exemptions and limits: Excluded from the vacation rules: licensed or registered real estate and securities salespeople; commission salespeople who solicit orders principally away from the employer's place of business (route salespeople are not exempt); extras in film or video production; commission-only licensed insurance salespeople; and teachers. Farm and ranch employers with five or fewer waged, non-family workers are exempt from employment standards generally. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less. Where we are less certain: Alberta's public guidance page states the two-week and three-week tiers but does not print the 4% and 6% figures on that page. We use 4% and 6% because that is what Alberta's own employer toolkit and the Employment Standards Code produce; if the exact figure matters to you, confirm it with Alberta Employment Standards.
British Columbia: Eligible earnings: 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. 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.
Manitoba: Eligible earnings: Gross wages earned in the year. Manitoba sets the rate as 2% of that year's wages for each week of vacation entitlement. First and partial years: Two weeks of vacation is earned after each of the first four years. If employment ends part-way through the fifth year, vacation pay is paid at 4%, not 6%. Exemptions and limits: Some workers, including certain agricultural, construction and professional roles, are entitled to some but not all employment standards. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less. Where we are less certain: Manitoba's factsheet answers “when do employees start earning vacation time and pay?” in more detail than we reproduce here. If you are within your first year, read that answer directly.
New Brunswick: Eligible earnings: Gross wages earned during the year of employment that gives rise to the vacation pay. First and partial years: Vacation can also be expressed monthly: one day for each month worked below eight years of service, and 1.25 days a month from eight years. Exemptions and limits: Domestic workers employed in a private home by the homeowner are outside the Act. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Newfoundland and Labrador: Eligible earnings: Gross income, including commissions and overtime. First and partial years: Vacation pay is earned once you have been employed for five working days, well before the 12-month point at which the time entitlement arises. Exemptions and limits: Vacation time requires having worked at least 90% of your regular hours in the 12-month period. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Northwest Territories: Eligible earnings: Regular pay, overtime pay, commission and bonuses that form part of the employment agreement, recall pay, termination pay, profit sharing, shift premiums and statutory holiday pay. First and partial years: Vacation pay accumulates from the first hour worked. Any outstanding vacation pay must be included in final pay, due within 10 days of the last day worked. Exemptions and limits: Federal and territorial government employees and federally regulated industries are outside the Act. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less. Where we are less certain: The most recent official Northwest Territories guidance we could locate is the Employment Standards FAQ dated October 2021. We could not confirm from a newer official publication that the tiers are unchanged.
Nova Scotia: Eligible earnings: Wages, which include salary, commission and most other forms of compensation, but not vacation pay itself. First and partial years: Vacation pay is earned during the first 12 months of work and every 12 months after that. An employee who works less than 90% of their regular hours in the period may agree in writing to take vacation pay instead of the time. Exemptions and limits: Excluded from the vacation rules: real estate and car salespeople, certain commissioned salespeople who work outside the employer's place of business (other than on an established route), mobile-home salespeople, fishing-boat crew, and athletes while engaged in athletic activity. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Nunavut: Eligible earnings: Total gross wages from your start date. First and partial years: All employees are entitled to vacation pay however long they have been employed. On quitting, layoff or termination you are owed the vacation pay accumulated but not yet paid. Exemptions and limits: Trappers, people engaged in commercial fisheries and certain professions are excluded by regulation. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less. Where we are less certain: The consolidated Nunavut Labour Standards Act we could locate is current to 2014, and the tiers above come from the Labour Standards Compliance Office's own plain-language fact sheet, which describes itself as a guide. They match the parallel Northwest Territories rules, but confirm with the Compliance Office before relying on them.
Ontario: Eligible earnings: Gross wages earned in the vacation entitlement year or stub period, excluding any vacation pay itself. First and partial years: If you do not complete the full vacation entitlement year or stub period you do not qualify for vacation time, but you still earn vacation pay on the wages you did earn. A stub period is pro-rated. Exemptions and limits: Some jobs are exempt from the vacation standard in Part XI, including certain commission salespeople and some information-technology professionals. Check the ESA exemptions guide for your role. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Prince Edward Island: Eligible earnings: Total earnings for the period. The Act's definition of wages excludes holiday pay, vacation pay itself, leave pay, tips and gratuities, and benefits; the cash value of meals and lodging is included. First and partial years: If employment ends with less than 12 continuous months since you last qualified, you are paid 4% (or 6% above five years) of your earnings by the end of the next regular pay period. A part-time employee working under 90% of normal hours in the year may elect vacation pay instead of time. Exemptions and limits: Seasonal employment has its own provisions — check the PEI guidance page if your work is seasonal. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Quebec: Eligible earnings: Gross salary (salaire brut) earned during the reference year. First and partial years: With less than one year of continuous service at the end of the reference year, you earn one working day of vacation per completed month of service, up to a maximum of two weeks. Exemptions and limits: Certain absences — illness, an accident, organ or tissue donation, domestic or sexual violence, and parental leaves — can trigger a substitute vacation indemnity so that the leave does not reduce your vacation pay. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Saskatchewan: Eligible earnings: All salary, commission, earned bonuses and other monetary compensation for work, including overtime, public holiday pay and the previous year's vacation pay. First and partial years: Everyone earns vacation pay, including employees who have not worked a full year, and part-time, casual, temporary and seasonal staff. Exemptions and limits: Vacation must be taken within 12 months of becoming entitled to it; if it is not taken, the vacation pay is due within 11 months. On termination, unpaid vacation pay is due within 14 days. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.
Yukon: Eligible earnings: Gross wages. Vacation pay is itself deemed to be wages under s.21(2). First and partial years: An employer must begin paying vacation pay once you have been continuously employed for 14 days, before the one-year time entitlement arises. Exemptions and limits: Yukon sets no statutory third week: the minimum stays at two weeks and 4% however long you stay. Anything more comes from your contract or collective agreement. Members of the employer's family are excluded, as are territorial, First Nations and federal government employees and federally regulated industries. A collective agreement or an employment contract can give more than the minimum, and the better term applies. It can never give less.

Common questions

Why does this ask for my province instead of detecting it?: Because your rules follow your employment, not your location on a map, and guessing would silently apply the wrong law. Nothing here is inferred from your IP address, language or currency.
Do statutory holidays come out of my vacation?: No. General and statutory holidays are a separate entitlement with their own pay rules, and they are not part of any calculation on this page.
I have not finished my first year yet.: In most jurisdictions the vacation time entitlement arrives when you complete a year of employment, so there is nothing to show before then — but vacation pay usually builds up from much earlier. Quebec is different: it credits one day per completed month from the start.
Why are weeks shown first?: Because the law is written in weeks. A week of vacation means a week of your own schedule, so days and hours only make sense once you tell us the schedule — which is why those fields are optional and the conversion is shown in full.