Leave accrual is the way an employee's leave balance builds up over time. Instead of granting the full year's entitlement up front, many employers accrue it gradually — for example, a proportion for each month or for hours worked. It is often the most complex part of leave management, particularly for teams spread across several countries.

Accrual rules differ widely: some countries and companies front-load the entire allowance at the start of the year, while others accrue it monthly or in line with hours worked. On top of that sit carry-over and forfeiture rules, which decide what happens to unused days at year-end and also have to be modelled correctly.

Tracking all of this manually in spreadsheets quickly leads to errors. Calamari's leave policy automation applies the right accrual rules for each employee and country, keeping every balance correct.