New York law does not require private employers to provide any vacation days. There is no legal minimum, no accrual formula, and no tenure threshold that triggers a right to paid time off for vacation. That said, if you’re asking how many vacation days are required by law in NY because you want to know what paid time off you’re entitled to, the fuller answer matters: New York does mandate several other categories of leave, including paid sick and safe leave, paid prenatal leave, and Paid Family Leave.
Why Vacation Is Not Required
Neither federal law nor New York State law forces a private employer to offer vacation. The U.S. Department of Labor states that the Fair Labor Standards Act does not require payment for time not worked, including vacations, holidays, or sick leave, and that those benefits exist only through agreements between employers and employees.1U.S. Department of Labor. Vacation Leave The New York State Department of Labor takes the same position: payment for time not actually worked (other than sick time) is not required unless the employer has established a policy granting it.2Department of Labor. Wages and Hours Frequently Asked Questions
Any vacation you get comes from your employment agreement, an employee handbook, or a union contract. The employer sets the terms: who qualifies, how days accrue, how requests are approved, and what happens to unused time. If the handbook promises two weeks after one year, that promise is contractual, not statutory.
Rules When Your Employer Does Offer Vacation
Once vacation is promised, the promise has legal weight. New York Labor Law classifies vacation pay as a “benefit or wage supplement,” alongside holiday pay and separation pay. An employer that agrees to provide vacation and then fails to pay what’s owed can face misdemeanor charges, and individual corporate officers can be held personally liable under the same statute.3New York State Senate. New York Labor Law LAB 198-C – Benefits or Wage Supplements The New York Attorney General’s office puts it plainly: the law can require your employer to keep any promise it made to provide vacations, holidays, or sick days.4Office of the New York State Attorney General. Family, Medical, and Other Types of Leave
Payout of Unused Vacation When You Leave
Whether you get paid for leftover vacation at separation depends on the written policy. If the policy clearly states unused vacation is forfeited when you leave, the employer can follow that rule. If the policy is silent, the picture is murkier. Because New York treats accrued vacation as a wage supplement, an employer that promised the time without a clear forfeiture rule risks owing those days as unpaid wages.
Use-It-or-Lose-It Policies
New York allows use-it-or-lose-it policies that require you to take vacation within a set period or lose it. The state Department of Labor notes that when an employer creates a benefit policy, it is free to impose any conditions it chooses.2Department of Labor. Wages and Hours Frequently Asked Questions Forfeiture provisions have to be communicated in writing and given to employees before they take effect. If you were never told about a forfeiture policy, the employer will struggle to enforce it and may owe you the accrued time as wages.
Read your handbook. If it addresses payout and forfeiture in writing, those terms govern. If it doesn’t, your claim to payment for unused time is stronger.
Paid Sick and Safe Leave Is Required
Since January 2021, every private-sector employer in New York must provide sick leave to all employees, regardless of industry, part-time status, or overtime exemption. Leave accrues at a minimum rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked.5The State of New York. New York Paid Sick Leave
The annual amount depends on employer size:
- 100 or more employees: up to 56 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year.
- 5 to 99 employees: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year.
- 4 or fewer employees with net income over $1 million: up to 40 hours of paid sick leave per calendar year.
- 4 or fewer employees with net income of $1 million or less: up to 40 hours of unpaid sick leave per calendar year.
These thresholds are based on the employer’s headcount and, for the smallest businesses, the previous tax year’s net income.5The State of New York. New York Paid Sick Leave
The leave covers your own mental or physical illness, diagnosis, and preventive care, as well as care for a family member with a health need. The “safe” portion covers situations where you or a family member is a victim of domestic violence, a sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking, including time to meet with an attorney, relocate, file a police report, or enroll children in a new school.5The State of New York. New York Paid Sick Leave
Accrual starts on your first day of work. You can carry over unused hours to the next year, up to 40 or 56 depending on employer size, though your employer is only required to let you use up to 40 or 56 hours per calendar year.6NYC Consumer and Worker Protection. Protected Time Off Law FAQs Your employer cannot retaliate against you for using leave you’re entitled to. Complaints go to the Department of Labor’s Anti-Retaliation Unit.5The State of New York. New York Paid Sick Leave
Paid Prenatal Leave
As of January 1, 2025, every private-sector employee in New York is entitled to 20 hours of paid prenatal leave per 52-week period, in addition to regular sick leave.7New York State Senate. New York Labor Law LAB 196-B – Sick Leave Requirements It covers health care services received during pregnancy: physical examinations, medical procedures, monitoring, testing, and discussions with a health care provider related to the pregnancy.8New York State Department of Labor. Paid Prenatal Leave Law – Employee Fact Sheet
Prenatal leave can be taken in hourly increments and is paid at your regular rate or the applicable minimum wage, whichever is higher. Employers are not required to pay out unused prenatal leave when you leave the job.7New York State Senate. New York Labor Law LAB 196-B – Sick Leave Requirements
New York Paid Family Leave
Paid Family Leave is the largest source of mandated paid time off in New York. It provides up to 12 weeks of job-protected, partially paid leave per year, funded through small employee payroll deductions rather than out of the employer’s pocket.9New York Paid Family Leave. New York Paid Family Leave Updates for 2026
Full-time employees working 20 or more hours per week qualify after 26 consecutive weeks of employment. Part-time employees working fewer than 20 hours per week qualify after 175 days worked, which do not need to be consecutive.10New York Paid Family Leave. Eligibility – Paid Family Leave
You can use Paid Family Leave for three categories of events:
- Bonding with a new child after birth, adoption, or foster placement.
- Caring for a family member with a serious health condition.
- Supporting family when a spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent is deployed abroad on active military duty.
Paid Family Leave does not cover your own serious health condition. That gap is filled by short-term disability.
Short-Term Disability Benefits
Virtually all employers in New York must carry disability benefits coverage under the Workers’ Compensation Law.11New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. Disability Benefits Coverage Requirements This provides partial wage replacement for up to 26 weeks when you can’t work because of an off-the-job injury or illness, filling the gap that Paid Family Leave and sick leave don’t reach.
Jury Duty and Voting Leave
Employers with more than 10 employees must pay at least $72 per day for the first three days of jury service. After three days, if the employer doesn’t continue paying your regular salary, the state pays $72 per day for the remainder. If your employer has 10 or fewer employees and doesn’t pay your salary during service, the state covers the $72 daily rate from day one.12NYCOURTS.GOV. Payment for Jury Service
For elections, New York’s Election Law gives you up to two hours of paid leave to vote if you lack four consecutive hours either before your shift starts while polls are open, or between the end of your shift and when polls close. Notify your employer two to ten working days before the election to use this leave.
How FMLA Fits In
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act is separate from state law and provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. It applies to public agencies, public and private schools, and companies with 50 or more employees.13U.S. Department of Labor. Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) To qualify, you must have worked for the employer for at least 12 months, logged at least 1,250 hours during those 12 months, and work at a location where the employer has 50 or more employees within a 75-mile radius.14U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 28 – The Family and Medical Leave Act Unlike New York Paid Family Leave, FMLA covers your own serious health condition.15U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 28F – Reasons That Workers May Take Leave Under the Family and Medical Leave Act
When both apply, the 12 weeks typically run at the same time, so you get 12 weeks total rather than 24. Having both is still an advantage, because state Paid Family Leave provides wage replacement during what would otherwise be unpaid FMLA time.
The Bottom Line
The number of vacation days required by New York law is zero. What New York does require, added together, is substantial: paid sick and safe leave of 40 to 56 hours, 20 hours of paid prenatal leave, up to 12 weeks of Paid Family Leave, disability coverage of up to 26 weeks, paid jury duty for larger employers, and up to two hours of paid voting leave. None of it is labeled vacation, but it addresses most of the life events that send workers looking for their leave rights in the first place.