A general refusal of more than two weeks’ vacation is not permitted

A general restriction of annual leave to a maximum of two consecutive weeks violates Section 7(2), sentence 1 of the Federal Vacation Act (BUrlG). Splitting the leave is permissible only for specific, urgent operational or personal reasons; a general shortage of staff is not sufficient. Vacation may also be granted in summary proceedings if there is otherwise a risk that the leave entitlement will be frustrated. This was decided by the Thuringia Regional Labor Court in its decision of March 2, 2026 (Case No. 4 Ta 15/26).

Facts of the case

On January 23, 2026, the Labor Court ordered the respondent to grant leave from March 1 to March 25, 2026. Service was effected on February 16, 2026 (plaintiff) and February 17, 2026 (respondent). In a letter dated February 10, 2026, the plaintiff demanded that the defendant comply by February 13, 2026, and announced that it would seek interim relief if the demand was not met. After the demand went unheeded, the plaintiff filed a motion for a preliminary injunction on February 16, 2026. The respondent moved to dismiss the application and announced that it would appeal.

The Labor Court dismissed the motions on the grounds that there was no urgency. In its reasoning, the court stated that the employee herself had refuted the required urgency, as she had waited too long to file the motion. The employee immediately filed an appeal against this decision. She argued that she was entitled to wait for the outcome of the main proceedings and had no control over the delays in the proceedings. Furthermore, she argued that effective legal protection could only be guaranteed by issuing the preliminary injunction. The employer, in turn, relied on an alleged incapacity to work at the beginning of the vacation period.

Reasons for the decision

In response to the applicant’s immediate appeal, the Thuringia Regional Labor Court partially amended the decision of the Labor Court. The court upheld the employee’s claim for leave by way of a preliminary injunction, but only for the period from March 3 to March 25, 2026.

According to the Thuringia Regional Labor Court’s decision, a right to leave existed for this period because the employee had asserted her specific leave request in a timely manner and the employer could not demonstrate sufficient operational reasons to the contrary. The restriction to a maximum of two consecutive weeks of leave violated Section 7(2), sentence 1 BUrlG and was based on a misunderstanding of this provision. The requirement to grant at least two consecutive weeks (12 working days) of leave presupposes divisibility, which is generally not the case and requires special justification based on urgent operational reasons or reasons specific to the employee. Such reasons were not present in this case. General staffing shortages are insufficient, and no specific conflicting vacation requests from other employees were presented.

However, there was no entitlement to vacation on March 1, 2026, as there was no apparent obligation to work on Sunday, nor on March 2, 2026, due to a lack of sufficient evidence of the employee’s ability to work.

The requirements for an injunction were met. Without a preliminary injunction, the employee’s right to vacation would effectively have been thwarted, as a final decision in the main proceedings was not expected in time before the start of the vacation. In such cases, it is exceptionally permissible to preempt the main proceedings. Nor was the employee herself responsible for any lack of urgency. It is permissible to first await the outcome of the main proceedings and to apply for urgent legal protection only if the opposing party fails to respond. The motion to impose a fine, however, was denied, as there is no legal basis for this; the vacation entitlement takes effect upon the decision becoming final.

Practical advice

There remains a widespread belief among employers that it is permissible to generally refuse to grant employees more than two weeks of vacation at a time. However, this is incorrect and stems from a misunderstanding of the applicable vacation laws in Germany. Employees are permitted to request vacation for a period longer than two weeks. If an employee requests more than two weeks of vacation, the employer must still have specific, urgent operational reasons to deny the request. In the event of a dispute, the employer must also set out these reasons in detail, such as conflicting vacation requests from other employees or other urgent operational requirements.