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Annual leave, vacation bonus and year end bonus in Uruguay: how much, when and how to calculate them

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

Every private sector worker earns at least 20 days of paid annual leave, plus one day per four years of seniority once past five years, taken in one continuous block within the following year and never paid out in cash while employed. Before leave starts the employer pays a vacation bonus of at least 100 percent of the net leave pay, and once a year a year end bonus (aguinaldo) of one twelfth of the pay earned in the twelve months to 1 December, which the law lets the Executive split into June and December installments. On exit, unused leave, the vacation bonus and the proportional year end bonus are always due, even after a resignation.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026, retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 27 October 2026; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Minimum paid annual leave	20 daysLey Nº 12.590 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum length of the shorter period when leave is split by collective agreement	10 daysLey Nº 12.590 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Extra leave after more than 5 years of seniority	1 day per 4 years of seniority daysLey Nº 12.590 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Vacation bonus, share of net leave pay	100 %Ley Nº 16.101 art. 4, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Year end bonus	One twelfth of cash remuneration paid in the 12 months before 1 December Ley Nº 12.840 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Year end bonus payment window	Within the 10 days before 24 December (June installment possible) Ley Nº 12.840 art. 1; Decreto Ley Nº 14.525 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Fine for not paying the year end bonus	Double the bonus owed per worker Ley Nº 12.840 art. 7, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Every worker hired by a private employer is entitled to at least 20 days of paid annual leave, taken in one continuous period that does not count holidays. Collective agreements may allow splitting into two periods (the shorter at least ten days), counting holidays, or adding compensatory rest for shift workers. Workers with more than five years in the same company add one day for every four years of seniority.
Example: A worker with 8 years of seniority gets 22 days (20 plus two days for two four year periods).Ley Nº 12.590 (Annual Leave), Art. 1 and 2, 1958-12-23 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. Leave is earned after 12 months, 24 fortnights or 52 weeks of work; workers who do not complete that time in the calendar year get proportional days up to 31 December. Leave must be enjoyed within the year after the period that generated it. Absences for holidays, sickness of up to 30 days a year, stoppages not attributable to the worker and strikes are not deducted. The right cannot be waived or replaced by money, except for unused days on termination, which the employer must pay directly.Ley Nº 12.590, Art. 4, 7, 8, 9 and 15, 1958-12-23 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. Daily leave pay is one thirtieth of the monthly salary for monthly workers, the current daily wage for day workers, and for variable pay the total earned in the previous calendar year divided by the days worked; average overtime of the year is added. Time lost to work accidents or occupational illness cannot be counted as leave.
Example: On UYU 60,000 a month, a day of leave pays UYU 2,000, so 20 days pay UYU 40,000. / UYU 40,000 is about US$995.Ley Nº 12.590; Ley Nº 15.996; Ley Nº 16.074, Ley 12.590 art. 10; Ley 15.996 art. 4; Ley 16.074 art. 70, 1958-12-23 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. All private sector workers receive a vacation bonus (salario vacacional) of at least 100 percent of the net daily leave pay for each day of leave, paid before leave starts and in proportion to the days taken.
Example: If the 20 days of leave pay UYU 40,000 gross and the worker's net after the 15 percent pension and 4.5 percent FONASA contributions is UYU 32,200.00 (before any income tax), the bonus is at least that net amount. / About US$801.Ley Nº 16.101, Art. 4 and 5, 1989-11-10 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. Employers must pay a year end bonus (sueldo anual complementario or aguinaldo) equal to one twelfth of all remuneration in money paid in the 12 months before 1 December, within the ten days before 24 December; profit shares are excluded. On termination by resignation, retirement or dismissal (except for notorious misconduct) the proportional bonus is due. Breach is fined at double the bonus owed to each worker.
Cost to do it: One twelfth of annual cash pay, about 8.33 percent of payroll, plus contributions.
Example: A worker paid UYU 60,000 every month from December to November earns a bonus of UYU 60,000. / About US$1,492.Ley Nº 12.840 (Year End Bonus), Art. 1, 2, 3 and 7, 1960-12-22 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. The Executive may order the year end bonus to be paid in two stages: the part generated up to 31 May within June, and the remainder before 24 December, and may let the contributions on the first stage be paid with the second.
Example: For a worker on UYU 60,000 a month, the June installment covering December to May is UYU 30,000 and the December installment covering June to November is UYU 30,000. / Each installment is about US$746.Decreto Ley Nº 14.525, Art. 1 and 2, 1976-05-27 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. Before each worker's leave starts, the employer enters in the Labor Record Book a leave list signed by the worker with start and end dates; employers must not keep at work staff who should be on leave.Decreto Nº 278/017; Ley Nº 12.590, Decreto 278/017 art. 24; Ley 12.590 art. 5 and 15, 2017-10-02 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Item	Basis	UYU	USD	Norm
Leave pay (20 days)	1/30 of monthly salary per day	40,000	995	Ley 12.590 art. 10
Vacation bonus	100% of net leave pay (after 15% and 4.5% withheld)	32,200.00	801	Ley 16.101 art. 4
Year end bonus	1/12 of 12 months' pay	60,000	1,492	Ley 12.840 art. 2

Annual cost of leave and bonuses for a worker on UYU 60,000 a month with 2 years of seniority (illustrative; excludes employer contributions and income tax)

Worked example

A worker hired on 1 March 2026 on UYU 60,000 a month leaves on 31 October 2026. The employer pays the proportional year end bonus for June to October (UYU 25,000 if the June installment covered March to May), the leave earned in 2026 that was not taken (8 months of 20 days, about 13.3 days, about UYU 26,667) and the matching vacation bonus.
For a worker on a fixed salary plus commissions, the leave pay adds the average daily commissions of the previous calendar year to the daily salary.

Step by step

1. Plan leave dates and enter the signed leave list in the Labor Record Book before leave starts.
2. Compute leave pay at one thirtieth of salary per day (or the variable pay average) plus average overtime.
3. Pay the vacation bonus before leave starts.
4. Pay the June installment of the year end bonus and the December installment before 24 December, or the full bonus in December if no split applies.
5. On exit, settle unused leave, the vacation bonus and the proportional year end bonus with the final pay.

Common traps

Paying cash instead of leave while the worker stays employed is void; the worker can still claim the leave.
Leave not taken within the following year does not disappear; it becomes an infraction and a claim.
The year end bonus is due even on resignation, except for dismissal for notorious misconduct.
Variable pay and overtime must be averaged into leave pay; using base salary only underpays.
A late year end bonus can cost a fine of double the amount, plus the 10 percent surcharge on unpaid labor credits.

Sources

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