🗓️ For employees and employers in Morocco
🗓️ Paid leave and notice in Morocco
Work out your paid annual leave (1.5 days per month, seniority bonus, 30-day ceiling), pay for untaken leave, your return-to-work date and the notice period under the Moroccan Labour Code, article by article.
An estimate, not legal advice. Your contract, the collective agreement, the internal rules or company practice may be more favourable than the Code. Nothing is sent: the calculation runs in your browser.
Paid annual leave
Do not count as absences the periods treated as actual work (article 239): last year's paid leave, notice of dismissal, illness or accident, maternity, work accident, short-time layoff, authorised absences of up to 10 days a year, closure ordered by a court or the authorities, force majeure.
Estimate
Notice and trial period
Estimate
Dismissal: also work out the severance pay →
Minimum statutory notice (decree no. 2-04-469, article 43)
| Category | Under 1 year | 1 to 5 years | Over 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Executive or equivalent | 1 month | 2 months | 3 months |
| Employee or worker | 8 days | 1 month | 2 months |
Trial period (articles 13 and 14)
| Contract | Maximum length |
|---|---|
| Permanent, executive or equivalent (renewable once) | 3 months |
| Permanent, employee (renewable once) | 1.5 months |
| Permanent, worker (renewable once) | 15 days |
| Fixed-term contract under 6 months | 1 day per week, 2 weeks at most |
| Fixed-term contract over 6 months | 1 month |
During the trial period: no notice in the first week; after that, 2 days for an employee paid by the day, week or fortnight and 8 days for an employee paid monthly, except for serious misconduct (article 13). A fixed-term contract has no notice: ending it early without serious misconduct or force majeure gives a right to the wages left until its end date (article 33).
Other leave provided by the Labour Code
| Event | Length | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Birth (to be taken within the following month, refunded to the employer by the CNSS) | 3 days | 269-270 |
| Employee's marriage | 4 days | 274 |
| Marriage of a child | 2 days | 274 |
| Death of the spouse, a child, a grandchild or an ascendant | 3 days | 274 |
| Death of a brother, a sister or an ascendant of the spouse | 2 days | 274 |
| Circumcision; surgery of the spouse or a dependent child | 2 days | 274 |
| Maternity (benefits paid by the CNSS) | 14 weeks | 152-156 |
These family absences are paid for employees paid monthly; for the others, the Code only guarantees pay for 2 days for their own marriage and 1 day for the death of the spouse, a parent or a child (article 276). The 15-day paternity leave only applies to the civil service: in the private sector, birth leave is still 3 days.
What the Labour Code says
Articles 231 and 232: after six months of continuous service with the same employer, the employee is entitled to paid annual leave of 1.5 days of actual work per month of service, or 2 days if under 18. It increases by 1.5 days for each full five-year period of service, continuous or not, up to 30 days of actual work.
Articles 235 to 239: leave is counted in days of actual work, leaving out the weekly rest and paid public holidays; a public holiday within the leave extends it accordingly, and illness during the leave is not deducted. One month of work equals 26 days of actual work. Some absences are treated as actual work and do not reduce the entitlement (article 239).
Articles 240 and 242: leave may be split or carried over two consecutive years by agreement, with no part shorter than 12 working days; it cannot be waived, even for payment.
Articles 249 to 258: during leave, the employee receives the pay they would have earned while working, bonuses and benefits included, no later than the day before leaving. When the contract ends, untaken leave is paid as a payment in lieu (articles 251 and 252), whatever the reason for termination (article 254). The Code leaves the calculation details to an implementing text (article 258) that we could not find: dividing the monthly salary by 26 as done here is common practice, not a legal rule.
Articles 43 to 51 and decree no. 2-04-469: ending a permanent contract, by either party, requires notice, except for serious misconduct or force majeure. It runs from the day after notification. During notice, the employee may take time off to look for a job (articles 48 and 49). If notice is not respected, the party at fault pays the corresponding pay (article 51). A resignation must bear a certified signature (article 34).
Limits of this tool
The Code's articles were read in the text published in Official Bulletin no. 5210; the decrees on notice and public holidays were checked against consistent secondary sources, not the official text. The number of paid days for religious holidays varies between sources. For an incomplete period, the seniority bonus is spread pro rata over the months: this is an estimate. Travelling sales representatives have their own basis (average of the last 12 months, article 264).
Official sources: Labour Code (law no. 65-99), consolidated version, Ministry of Justice · Decrees no. 2-04-469 (notice) and no. 2-04-426 (public holidays), Adala portal · CNSS
Updated: October 2026. An estimate, not legal advice: collective agreements and contracts may be more favourable. In a dispute, contact the labour inspectorate.
Frequently asked questions
How many days of paid leave per year in Morocco?
18 working days for a full year (1.5 days per month of service), 24 days for an employee under 18 (2 days per month). Add 1.5 days for each full five-year period of service, up to 30 days (articles 231 and 232).
When can I take my first leave?
The right to leave opens after six months of continuous service in the same company (article 231). The employer sets the dates after consultation, and the order of departures is announced at least 30 days in advance (articles 245 and 246).
Do Sundays and public holidays count as leave days?
No. Leave is counted in days of actual work: the weekly rest and paid public holidays are not deducted (article 236), and a public holiday falling during the leave extends it accordingly (article 235).
Is untaken leave paid on resignation or dismissal?
Yes. The payment in lieu of leave is due whatever the reason for termination, including resignation or serious misconduct (article 254). It covers the current year and the two previous years, every month started counting as a full month after six months of service (article 251), and 1.5 days per full month from one month of work (article 252).
How is holiday pay calculated?
The Code says it equals the pay the employee would have earned while working, salary and extras included (articles 249 and 250), and leaves the details to an implementing text (article 258). In practice, the monthly salary is often divided by 26 working days, then multiplied by the number of days: this is common practice, not a legal rule.
What notice applies to a resignation?
The same as for a dismissal: for an executive, 1 month under one year of service, 2 months from 1 to 5 years and 3 months beyond; for an employee or a worker, 8 days, 1 month and 2 months (article 43 and decree no. 2-04-469). An employee who leaves without working it owes the employer the matching amount (article 51), which may be deducted from the holiday pay (article 255).
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