Taking holidays and special days of holiday

Holidays are taken during the holiday entitlement period, which runs from 1 September to 31 December of the following year. The holiday entitlement period is 16 months.

Accrued holiday is always taken before non-accrued holiday, and holidays are taken in the order in which they have been accrued. This means that if you have not accrued the entitlement to paid holiday for all five weeks, holiday with full pay is taken before holiday without pay.

For information on how changes in working hours affect holiday pay, see the Q&A on holiday pay when working hours change.

You are always entitled to take 25 days of holiday, even if you have not accrued the holiday entitlement during your employment at DTU. If you have not accrued an entitlement to holiday with pay, DTU cannot insist that you take the holiday, except during closures (e.g. between Christmas and New Year and the day after Ascension Day).

Main holiday

You are entitled to three consecutive weeks of holiday (15 days of holiday) between 1 May and 30 September. This holiday is called the main holiday.

At DTU, the main holiday is generally taken between mid-June and mid-August.

Remaining holiday

The remaining two weeks of holiday (10 days of holiday) can be taken at any time during the holiday entitlement period—even before the main holiday. Remaining holiday can be granted in periods of five days, but it may be split up if this is necessary for work planning considerations.

However, when planning your remaining holiday, you should be aware that DTU is closed in the days between Christmas and New Year and the day after Ascension Day, where days of holiday must be used. You will receive a holiday notification for these days of holiday in accordance with DTU’s holiday guidelines.
 

Special days of holiday

Special days of holiday are taken in the period between 1 May and 30 April and must generally be taken in the period following the year of accrual (the calendar year).

However, you are only entitled to take special days of holiday if they have been accrued during your employment at DTU or transferred from a previous government position by agreement.