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Free tools › Annual leave by country

Annual leave: Singapore vs United States

Statutory annual leave in Singapore and the US, side by side, with the primary source for every figure.

How does annual leave compare between Singapore and US?

Singapore: 7 days in year one, rising a day per year to 14 days from year eight, plus 11 paid public holidays. United States: No statutory paid vacation and no statutory paid public holidays. Typical practice is about 11 days after a year, by employer choice. At five years' service that means 11 days in Singapore and None required (typical practice: 15 days) in the US.

Singapore vs United States, side by side

SingaporeUnited States
The rule7 days in year one, rising a day per year to 14 days from year eight, plus 11 paid public holidays.No statutory paid vacation and no statutory paid public holidays. Typical practice is about 11 days after a year, by employer choice.
At 1 year7 daysNone required (typical practice: 11 days)
At 5 years11 daysNone required (typical practice: 15 days)
At 10 years14 daysNone required (typical practice: 18 days)
Key numbersYear one: 7 days; From year eight: 14 days; Public holidays: 11Statutory paid vacation: None; Statutory paid public holidays: None (11 federal holidays bind federal employers); Typical practice (BLS): 11 days after 1 year, 15 after 5, 18 after 10

Singapore

Singapore has the leanest statutory leave scale of the six markets: the Employment Act minimum starts at 7 days and adds one per year of service, capping at 14 from the eighth year. Contracts commonly provide more. All Employment Act employees are covered, managers and executives included, after 3 months' service. Public holidays add 11 paid days.

  • Year one7 days
  • From year eight14 days
  • Public holidays11
  • Qualifying service3 months
Length of serviceEntitlement
1st year7 days
2nd year8 days
3rd year9 days
4th year10 days
5th year11 days
6th year12 days
7th year13 days
8th year onwards14 days
  • Don't tie leave to the S$2,600 salary threshold; that gates hours-of-work protections, not leave.

Source: Ministry of Manpower (Employment Act s.88A). Checked July 2026.

United States

The US mandates zero paid vacation days and zero paid public holidays for private-sector employees; the 11 federal holidays bind federal employers only. What employees actually get is set by the market: BLS data has private-industry workers with paid vacation averaging 11 days after one year, 15 after five and 18 after ten.

  • Statutory paid vacationNone
  • Statutory paid public holidaysNone (11 federal holidays bind federal employers)
  • Typical practice (BLS)11 days after 1 year, 15 after 5, 18 after 10
Length of serviceEntitlement
After 1 year (typical, not law)11 days
After 5 years15 days
After 10 years18 days
After 20 years20 days
  • Several states treat accrued vacation as wages that must be paid out at termination, California most prominently.

Source: US Department of Labor / BLS (FLSA position; BLS March 2025 benefits data). Checked July 2026.

Hiring in both markets?

Put a full number on each side with the true-cost calculators: True cost of an employee (Singapore) and True cost of an employee (US). The complete six-market picture is on the Annual leave by country page.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from the government source for its market.

MarketSourceRule / effectiveVerified
SingaporeMinistry of ManpowerEmployment Act s.88AChecked July 2026
United StatesUS Department of Labor / BLSFLSA position; BLS March 2025 benefits dataChecked July 2026
Where Compono fits

Comparing entitlements is the easy half of hiring across markets. The hard half is whether the person you hire in Sydney, Singapore or Seattle will actually work out, and that risk looks the same in every jurisdiction. Compono matches candidates on how they work, not just what the CV claims, so the hires behind these numbers hold up wherever you make them.

See how it works

Common questions

What is the rule on annual leave in Singapore?

7 days in year one, rising a day per year to 14 days from year eight, plus 11 paid public holidays. Singapore has the leanest statutory leave scale of the six markets: the Employment Act minimum starts at 7 days and adds one per year of service, capping at 14 from the eighth year.

What is the rule on annual leave in the US?

No statutory paid vacation and no statutory paid public holidays. Typical practice is about 11 days after a year, by employer choice. The US mandates zero paid vacation days and zero paid public holidays for private-sector employees; the 11 federal holidays bind federal employers only.

Where can I check the source figures?

The sources section below links the Singapore and the US government pages every figure on this page was verified against in July 2026.

This page is general information, not legal advice. We check figures annually and update them on a best-efforts basis, but employment rules change and we cannot promise everything here is current or complete. Before you act on it, confirm the detail with the Ministry of Manpower, the US Department of Labor or your own adviser. Last reviewed July 2026.