Annual Leave and Sick Leave Entitlements in Mauritius

The Workers' Rights Act 2019 gives covered workers in Mauritius paid annual leave and sick leave after specified periods of continuous employment. For a full-time worker who has completed 12 consecutive months with the same employer, the statutory baseline is normally 22 working days of annual leave—20 days under section 45(1), plus two additional days—and 15 working days of sick leave on full pay. A wage regulation, collective agreement, award or employment contract may provide a better entitlement or alter which rule governs.

Annual leave entitlement and how it accrues

The Ministry of Labour's consolidated Act as at 9 August 2025 states that 20 days arise in each subsequent 12-month period once the first 12 months of continuous employment are complete, with the extra two days applying every year. Part-time workers receive a proportion calculated by reference to their weekly working days and a comparable full-time worker's week. A person whose pay puts them outside the Act's definition of “worker” for these sections must look to the contract, applicable regulations or another source of entitlement.

There is a transitional entitlement between months six and twelve for a full-time worker who was present on every working day during the first six consecutive months: one day of annual leave in each following month up to month twelve. That is not the same as accruing the complete 22-day annual allowance from the first day of employment. The start date, breaks between agreements and any better sector rule must be checked before calculating a balance.

Taking leave: notice and employer refusal

Annual leave dates should first be agreed. If employer and worker cannot agree, section 45(6) assigns half of the leave period to dates fixed by the employer and half to dates fixed by the worker. A request for more than one consecutive day normally requires at least 48 hours' advance written notice, unless reasonable cause explains shorter notice. The employer may not withhold statutory annual leave without reasonable cause.

“I have leave left” does not by itself authorise an unannounced absence. Equally, operational inconvenience is not a licence to refuse every request indefinitely. A sound record shows the dates requested, the notice given, the written response and any alternative dates proposed. Where shift patterns matter, attach the roster rather than asking a later decision-maker to reconstruct it.

Sick leave and certification requirements

After 12 consecutive months, a covered full-time worker is entitled to 15 working days' sick leave on full pay in each subsequent 12-month period, and unused sick leave accumulates. A similar proportional formula applies to part-time workers. Between months six and twelve, a full-time worker with complete attendance during the first six months obtains one sick day during each following month up to month twelve.

The worker should notify the employer on the first day of illness unless there is reasonable cause or the employer already knows the nature of the illness. If illness continues for more than three consecutive working days, the medical certificate must normally reach the employer on the fourth day; after hospital admission it may be sent within three days of discharge. A certificate cannot validate more than three days before its issue date. These precise rules are easy to miss when a workplace policy simply says “bring a sick note”.

An employer may arrange an examination by its chosen medical practitioner at its own expense. If attendance is required, the employer pays for transport; a bedridden worker may only be examined at home with consent. Keep the certificate, notice message and any examination request together, because the dispute may concern notification rather than whether the person was genuinely ill.

Accumulating and refunding untaken leave

At the end of the relevant 12-month period, section 45 normally requires payment of a normal day's wage for each statutory annual-leave day not taken or not granted. Instead, where leave was not requested or a request was refused, the worker may choose accumulation and must inform the employer in writing. Silence is a poor substitute for that written election, particularly when payroll assumes cash payment while the worker assumes carry-forward.

Sick leave operates differently: the Act says the outstanding statutory sick balance accumulates. It does not create a routine annual cash refund for unused sick days. Accumulated sick leave is used on full pay for additional certified hospital time or post-discharge convalescence after the current entitlement is exhausted. Annual leave and sick leave should therefore appear as separate ledger categories.

Leave on termination of employment

When employment ends, the employer must refund accumulated annual leave that was not taken or granted, using a normal day's wage for each day. The final statement should identify the period covered, days taken, days already refunded and remaining accumulation. That figure is separate from final salary, notice, bonus or any dispute about unpaid wages and deductions.

Do not wait until access to the staff portal ends. Before the last day, download leave approvals, payslips and the ledger, and save the employment agreement and relevant policy. Suppose a shop employee in Rose-Hill resigns after payroll paid several untaken days the previous year: those paid days should not also appear as accumulated leave. A period-by-period table usually exposes that double-counting question immediately.

Special leave for family events

After 12 months' continuous employment, section 48 provides six paid working days for the worker's first civil or religious marriage, three for the first civil or religious marriage of a son or daughter, and three following the death of a spouse, child, parent, brother or sister. These are event-specific entitlements; they are not deducted from annual leave merely because both involve absence from work.

Section 47A also lets a worker choose to use available paid annual, sick or vacation leave to care for a child, adopted child, parent, grandparent or spouse with healthcare-related issues, subject to notification and documentary requirements. Since its wording was amended in August 2025, older HR handbooks may not describe the current relatives or evidence accurately. For childbirth and adoption entitlements, see the separate explanation of maternity and paternity leave.

Disputes about leave records

Employers must keep employment records under the Act, and the practical starting point is a written request for the leave ledger and calculation. Compare it with rosters, requests, approvals, payslips and medical certificates. Identify one concrete correction at a time—for example, “two days approved on 6 and 7 April were deducted as four”—instead of alleging that the entire record is wrong without a reconciliation.

The Ministry responsible for labour receives complaints and may investigate compliance; a statutory claim may ultimately fall within the Industrial Court's jurisdiction. The Employment Relations Tribunal deals with different employment-relations functions and should not be named as a generic forum for every leave dispute. Wider explanations of starting court proceedings and minimum employment standards provide context, while the chambers' employment practice covers advice on the applicable route.

This article is general legal information for Mauritius, not legal advice. For advice on your situation, consult a barrister.