FAQ - Time Off Policy Settings

This FAQ addresses time off policy settings in BambooHR, covering topics such as accrual timing, milestone transitions, policy editing, and history viewing. It provides guidance on how accruals function under various configurations, including front-loaded or retroactive accruals. The document outlines frequently asked questions, such as how to change accrual policies ahead of the new year, manage different accrual frequencies for tenure milestones, and view policy change history. Users can also learn how to duplicate or delete time off policies. Troubleshooting tips are included for common issues like incorrect accrual timing or milestone transitions. The resource aims to enhance understanding and management of time off policies effectively.

  • Mar 9, 2026
  • Knowledge

Title
FAQ - Time Off Policy Settings
Article Text
This guide addresses related to time off policy settings, which are included in the Core, Pro, and Elite packages.

What are the most frequently asked questions about time off policy settings?

FAQs

How does the "Employees receive accrued time..." setting work?
Screenshot of settings under "Some Fine-tuning" section of the policy setup that define when employees receive accrued time within a policy: (1) At the start of the accrual period – employees receive time up front, deposited on the first day; or (2) At the end of the accrual period – time is deposited after the period has been worked, similar to a paycheck. This choice determines whether accruals are front-loaded or earned retroactively.

When creating a time off policy, the Employees receive accrued time... setting will define the timing of the accrual. There are two options:

  • At the start of the accrual period:Time off will deposit on the first day of the accrual period. Employees receive the accrual up-front before the accrual period has occurred.
  • At the end of the accrual period: Time off will deposit on the day after the accrual period ends. This option essentially functions like a paycheck in that employees work for the accrual period and then are "paid" by having time added to their balances.
Examples: Employees receive accrued time at the start of the accrual period

In the examples below, the panda signifies when the employee receives the accrual and the green lines signify the period the employee works to earn that accrual.

Company A: YEARLY

Employees get their 20 PTO days on January 1st for the year.

This image shows the future accrual calculation for a yearly policy where the accrual is awarded at the beginning of the work period.

Company B: MONTHLY

Employees get their 2 PTO days at the beginning of each month.

This image shows the future accrual calculation for a monthly policy where the accrual is awarded at the beginning of the work period.
Examples: Employees receive accrued time at the end of the accrual period

Company A: YEARLY

Employees work a whole year before getting their 20 PTO days on January 1st of the next year.

This image shows the future accrual calculation for a yearly policy where the accrual is awarded at the end of the work period.

Company B: MONTHLY

Employees work for a month to earn their 2 PTO days at the beginning of the next month.

This image shows the future accrual calculation for a monthly policy where the accrual is awarded at the end of the work period.
How do milestone transitions work?
Screenshot of the policy setup with configuration steps for accruals: (1) Accrual Schedule – employees accrue 8 hours monthly on the 1st, totaling 96 hours annually; (2) Accrual Waiting Period – accruals begin immediately upon hire; (3) Balance Cap – accruals stop once a maximum balance of 96 hours is reached; (4) Carryover Amount – up to 80 hours can be carried into the next year; and (5) Tenure Milestone – a milestone is added where, after one year, accruals increase to 10 hours monthly (120 annually), capped at 120 hours, with up to 100 hours carried over. Additional sections define the carryover date (e.g., January 1), with an option to reset negative balances to zero, and fine-tuning options where first accruals are prorated, accruals deposit at the start of each period, and milestone transitions occur at the end of the accrual period. The intent of this example is to illustrate how milestone transitions function: the employee may either start accruing at the new higher rate immediately upon becoming eligible or wait until the end of the accrual period before transitioning, depending on the setting chosen.

This setting determines when an employee moves from one milestone accrual rate to the next, either immediately when they become eligible or at the end of the current accrual period.

In the example policy, employees accrue 8 hours monthly until their 1-year anniversary, after which they accrue 10 hours monthly. Because anniversaries rarely fall on the 1st of the month, this setting decides whether they increase mid-month or wait until the next month.

Example: Employee hired April 8, 2019

  • Right when they become eligible: The employee switches on April 8, 2020. They receive:
    • A partial 8-hour accrual on April 1 (1.8 hours), and
    • A partial 10-hour accrual on April 8 (7.74 hours)
    • Total for April: 9.54 hours.
    • They begin receiving the full 10 hours starting May 1.
  • At the end of the accrual period: The employee switches on May 1, 2020. They receive:
    • 8 hours on April 1
    • 10 hours on May 1
    • Despite becoming eligible mid-pay period, they switch at the end of the period, resulting in cleaner accrual rates.
Example: Transitions happen at the end of the accrual period

Scenario 1

  • Accrual: 1st Year - 20 PTO days yearly
  • Accrual: 2nd Year - 25 PTO days yearly
  • Transition Happens - End of accrual period
  • Accruals Happen - At the start of the accrual period
  • Employee Anniversary - July 18
Example: Transitions happen when eligible

Scenario 2

  • Accrual: 1st Year - 2 PTO days monthly
  • Accrual: 2nd Year - 3 PTO days monthly
  • Transition Happens - Right when they become eligible
  • Accruals Happen - At the end of the accrual period
  • Employee Anniversary - July 18
This image shows the accrual preview for a monthly time off policy with the following details: •Accrual: 1st Year - 2 PTO days monthly•Accrual: 2nd Year - 3 PTO days monthly•Transition Happens - Right when they become eligible•Accruals Happen - At the end of the accrual period•Employee Anniversary - July 18. The image shows accruals from the hire date until the first anniversary, with a partial accrual for 7/1-7/17 to account for the year 1 accrual level and a partial accrual on 8/1 to account for 7/18-7/31 to account for the year 2 level.

Scenario 3

  • Accrual: 1st Year - 20 PTO days yearly
  • Accrual: 2nd Year - 25 PTO days yearly
  • Transition Happens - Right when they become eligible
  • Accruals Happen - At the start of the accrual period
  • Employee Anniversary - July 18

Scenario 4

  • Accrual: 1st Year - 20 PTO days yearly
  • Accrual: 2nd Year - 25 PTO days yearly
  • Accruals Happen - At the end of the accrual period
  • Transition Happens - Right when they become eligible
  • Employee Anniversary - June 18
This image shows the accrual preview for a yearly time off policy with the following settings: •Accrual: 1st Year - 20 PTO days yearly•Accrual: 2nd Year - 25 PTO days yearly•Accruals Happen - At the end of the accrual period•Transition Happens - Right when they become eligible•Employee Anniversary - June 18. The image shows the employee receiving their first accrual on Jan 1, the year following their hire. It shows a prorated accrual on their first anniversary, accounting for the first part of the year. They receive a second prorated accrual on Jan 1, the year following their anniversary to account for the second part of the year on the new accrual level. They receive a full 25 day accrual amount on the January following their second anniversary.
How are partial-period accruals calculated?
A BambooHR “Calculate Time Off” modal displaying time-off calculations for employee Antonio Kruz, a Social Media Marketer. The Vacation category is selected, showing a current balance of 182.77 hours. A green callout explains that the employee reaches their third anniversary and immediately moves into a new milestone, receiving two partial accruals: one at the previous rate and one at the new rate.Below, in the Accrual Details table, three highlighted rows appear:• 05/15/2026 — “Prorated accrual for 05/03/2026 to 05/14/2026,” adding 7.14 hours, resulting in a balance of 149.45.• 05/03/2026 — “Prorated accrual for 05/01/2026 to 05/02/2026,” adding 0.95 hours, resulting in a balance of 142.31.• 05/03/2026 — “Milestone achieved!” with a balance of 141.36.A green Close button appears in the bottom-right corner.

If you choose to move your employees to the next milestone immediately upon eligibility, the system prorates each portion of the accrual period separately. BambooHR calculates partial-period accruals based on the exact number of days the employee is eligible under each rate within the accrual period.

How the calculation works:

  1. Determine the total number of days in the accrual period (for example, 30 or 31 days in a monthly schedule).
  2. Count how many days the employee accrues at the old rate.
  3. Count how many days the employee accrues at the new rate.
  4. To calculate a partial-period accrual, BambooHR prorates each portion of the accrual period separately. It divides the number of days the employee accrued at the old rate by the total number of days in the period, multiplies that by the old accrual amount, and does the same for the days at the new rate. The system then adds the two prorated amounts together and applies the policys rounding rules.
  5. The two prorated values are added together and rounded to the second decimal place.
Can I change my accrual policy ahead of the new year?
This image shows the second step of the Edit Time Off Policy workflow. The step, titled Schedule Changes, shows the four scheduling options. Future Date is selected and the date entered is 01/01/2026.

Yes. To do this:

  1. Edit your time off policy details.
  2. On the Schedule Changes step, select Future Date.
    • If you choose Today, Past Date, or Override all versions, your changes will go into affect immediately and will likely change your employee's time off balances. For more information about these scheduling options, click here.
  3. Verify your changes on the Summary page.
  4. Check an employee's profile to ensure your accruals are working as expected.

your policy's carryover date is January 1, you can edit the policy early and choose a future effective date for your changes.

After editing the policy details or schedules, select Future Date when deciding when changes should begin.

How does a future-dated policy change work with a non-January carryover?

If your carryover date is any date other than January 1, BambooHR recommends you schedule future-dated policy changes based on the later of:

  • The date you schedule the change to take effect, or
  • The next carryover event, if the change would conflict with pending carryover rules.

Key considerations for mid-year carryover:

  • Future changes scheduled before the carryover date
    • Changes take effect on the future date you select. Carryover will immediately follow the updated policy rules.
  • Future changes scheduled after the carryover date
    • Changes apply on the chosen future date, and any carryover for that year is calculated under the existing rules.
  • Changes that alter carryover limits
    • If you update carryover limits for a policy with a mid-year carryover date, the new limit applies the next time the carryover date occurs. It will not affect previous carryover.
  • Editing milestone rules near the carryover date
    • Milestone transitions do not override carryover timing. Employees may transition to a new accrual rate mid-period (if they transition immediately when eligible) while their carryover still follows the scheduled carryover date.

Example:

A policy with a July 1 carryover date is edited in April, with updates scheduled to take effect May 1.

  • Accrual changes begin May 1.
  • Carryover on July 1 still uses the previous carryover rules unless you explicitly modified them in the policy update.
What if tenure milestones use different accrual frequencies?
A side-by-side comparison of two BambooHR Time Off Policy screens.The left side is labeled “New Policy” and shows the accrual schedule setup for creating a new time-off policy. The starting schedule has employees accruing 8 hours twice a month on the 1st and 15th, totaling 192 hours per year. A green callout at the top indicates this is a new policy. An orange callout notes that during initial setup, milestone frequencies must match the starting schedule. Below, Milestone 1 is set for employees after 1 year, accruing 10 hours twice a month on the 1st and 15th, totaling 240 hours per year.The right side is labeled “Edit Time Off Policy.” It displays the same policy but in edit mode. The starting schedule again shows employees accruing 8 hours twice a month on the 1st and 15th, totaling 192 hours per year. An orange callout highlights that when editing a policy, the accrual frequency for each milestone can be changed. In Milestone 1, the accrual rate is set to 250 hours yearly on January 1st. Green callouts note that the user is editing the same policy.The image visually contrasts the restriction during initial creation versus the flexibility when editing milestones later.

If you add multiple tenure milestones to your policy, you cannot change the accrual frequency during initial setup. You must save the policy, then go back in and edit it.

For example, if the starting schedule accrues monthly but the first milestone accrues yearly, you cannot change the frequency during initial setup. However, if you saved your policy and then clicked the edit button, you would be able to change the frequency.

Can I view a history of changes to a time off policy?
A split-screen image showing how to access and view policy edit history in BambooHR Time Off.On the left, the Time Off dashboard lists various vacation policies. The “Vacation+ (6)” policy is selected, displaying six employees with their names, status, and hour balances. A gear icon menu is open, and “Policy Edit History” is highlighted with an orange outline and arrow pointing right.On the right, the Policy Edit History page for “Vacation+” is shown. Two rows appear:• The first row shows an edit scheduled for 01/01/2026 with details including “8.33 hours, twice a month on the 1st and 15th,” a 300-hour balance cap, and additional settings. Status is “Scheduled,” edited by Olivia Sterling on 11/20/2025.• The second row shows the original version from “Dawn of Time,” with 12 hours twice a month on the 1st and 15th, also with a 300-hour balance cap. Status is “Active,” edited by Olivia Sterling on 11/19/2025.A toggle labeled “Show Removed Rows” appears at the top right of the history list.

Yes. Go to Settings > Time Off, select the policy, and open the gear icon > Policy Edit History.

You can view:

  • Full details of each version
  • Summaries
  • Who made edits
  • Edit dates
  • Status of each version (Active, Scheduled, Inactive)
How do I duplicate a time off policy?
Screenshot of the Policy Edit History page for a time off policy. A table displays previous, current, and scheduled versions of the policy with columns for Effective Date, Summary, Edited By, Edited Date, and Status. Status indicators are labeled Scheduled, Active, and Inactive, showing the history of the policy.

Go to Settings > Time Off, select the policy, open the gear menu, and choose Duplicate Policy.

This creates a new, editable copy of the existing policy.

How do I delete a time off policy?
Screenshot of a selected time off policy within Time Off section of BambooHR settings. The selected policy shows a list of employees assigned to the policy along with their employment status and balance. A gear icon menu is expanded, and the option Delete Policy is highlighted, demonstrating where administrators can begin the process of deleting a time off policy.

Go to Settings > Time Off, select the policy, open the gear menu, and choose Delete Policy. Type DELETE to verify you understand that deleting the policy will remove the policy from assigned employee's view.

How should I edit my time off accural policy if it accrues on employee anniversaries?

Keep in mind, this workflow is not for those attempting to edit time off milestones (editing accrual amounts based on tenure), unless their accruals happen on their work anniversary.

If you edit an existing time off policy that accrues based on an employee's anniversary, you risk making a change that will result in prorated accruals. To ensure the transition to your new policy is as clean as possible, we recommend the following:

  1. Create a new policy, do not update the current anniversary policy as this will results in prorated accruals.
  2. Create a custom report with employee names and hire dates.
  3. Create a Time off Policy Assignment Import.
  4. Use the hire date report to find the month and day of the Accrual Start date for each employee. Replace the year with the current year (or the year of the next accrual).
    • If your employee's anniversary has already passed this year, and their most recent accrual does not need to be adjusted, then be sure to set the accrual date for next year.
  5. Process the time off policy assignment import to assign the employees to the new correct policy.
  6. Verify that your employees are assigned to the correct policy using a custom report with the following fields:
    • [Time Off Category Name] - Policy Assigned
    • [Time Off Category Name] - Effective Date

Troubleshooting

SymptomCauseFix
Accrual timing seems incorrect.The policy is set to deposit time either at the start or end of the accrual period.Review the Employees receive accrued time… setting and confirm it matches your intended behavior.
Milestone transition happened earlier or later than expected.The milestone setting determines whether employees move right when they become eligible or at the end of the accrual period.Check the Transition employees to new milestones… setting and update if needed.
Employee who hit a milestone received a prorated accrual.The milestone setting is set to “Right when they become eligible”.Change the milestone setting to “At the end of the accrual period” and back-date the policy change to happen before the employee’s milestone.
Unable to change accrual frequency during setup.Policies with multiple milestones cannot change the accrual frequency until after the initial save.Save the policy, click Edit Policy, then update the accrual frequency for your milestones.
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