Annual Leave Request Form Mexico (Solicitud de Vacaciones)

An Annual Leave Request Form Mexico (Solicitud de Vacaciones or Solicitud de Periodo Vacacional) is a formal written document through which a trabajador (worker) requests authorization from their patron (employer) to take their legally accrued paid vacation (vacaciones) under the Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT) — published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 1 April 1970 and substantially reformed through 2022. The Solicitud de Vacaciones records the worker's requested vacation period, the number of days being applied, the accrued entitlement based on seniority (antigüedad), the applicable prima vacacional (vacation premium), and the employer's authorization — creating the written record required for payroll, IMSS, and STPS compliance.

The constitutional foundation for paid vacation rights in Mexico is Article 123, Apartado A, Fracción XI of the Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos of 5 February 1917, which guarantees workers a minimum annual paid vacation. The detailed statutory framework is established by Articles 76 through 81 of the Ley Federal del Trabajo. Following the significant Decreto por el que se reforman los artículos 76 y 78 de la Ley Federal del Trabajo published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 27 December 2022 and effective 1 January 2023, the minimum vacation entitlement was substantially increased. Under the reformed Article 76 LFT, workers are now entitled to a minimum of 12 working days (días hábiles) of paid vacation after completing their first full year of service — up from the previous minimum of 6 days. Vacation entitlement increases by two additional working days for each subsequent year of service, following the schedule established in Article 76 LFT: 14 days in the second year, 16 in the third, 18 in the fourth, 20 in the fifth, and from the sixth year onward, 2 additional days for each group of five years of service.

The vacation premium (prima vacacional) of at least 25% of the salary corresponding to the vacation days is mandatory under Article 80 LFT and must be paid to the worker before or at the beginning of the vacation period. The prima vacacional constitutes part of the Salario Diario Integrado (SDI) under Article 84 LFT, meaning that employers who grant prima vacacional also increase their IMSS bimonthly quota obligations calculated on the SDI through the Sistema Único de Autodeterminación (SUA).

Article 78 LFT, as reformed in 2022, requires that vacation be taken continuously — at least twelve working days in a single uninterrupted period — unless the worker expressly requests to split the vacation. This requirement significantly affects how employers schedule vacation periods and underlines the importance of the Solicitud de Vacaciones as a formal document establishing when the continuous vacation period was taken and approved, in compliance with Articles 76 and 78 LFT.

Vacation must be taken within six months following the anniversary year (año de trabajo) in which it accrued, under Article 81 LFT. The Solicitud de Vacaciones serves as evidence that vacation was scheduled and taken within the legal deadline. Employers who fail to grant vacation within the six-month period — or who pay cash in lieu of vacation (vacaciones en efectivo) rather than granting actual rest days — violate Article 79 LFT, which prohibits the replacement of vacation days with compensation in money (no podrán compensarse con una remuneración). Workers who are denied vacation may file a complaint with the STPS Inspección del Trabajo, which may impose fines under Articles 992 through 1002 LFT.

The Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social (STPS) enforces vacation compliance through its Inspección del Trabajo program. Employers must retain vacation authorization records as part of the employment documentation obligations of Article 804 LFT for at least one year after the employment relationship ends. The IMSS also cross-references vacation payment records with CFDI de Nómina (payroll digital tax receipts issued under the SAT's electronic invoicing system) to verify that prima vacacional was paid and correctly integrated into the SDI.

An Annual Leave Request Form Mexico is needed in every employment relationship governed by the Ley Federal del Trabajo whenever a worker wishes to exercise their accrued vacation entitlement under Article 76 LFT.

The form is most routinely used on an annual basis following each anniversary of the worker's original start date (fecha de ingreso). Under Article 81 LFT, vacation must be taken within six months of the anniversary date on which it accrued — so a worker who completed their first year of service on 15 March must take their vacation by 15 September of the same year. The Solicitud de Vacaciones initiates the scheduling process, allowing the employer to coordinate coverage, approve the requested dates, and prepare the payroll for the prima vacacional payment under Article 80 LFT before the vacation begins.

The form is also needed for partial vacation requests — where a worker with accumulated multi-year entitlements (for example, a worker in their fifth year with 20 days accrued) requests only a portion of the total entitlement in a given period, with the remainder scheduled for a separate block in accordance with Article 78 LFT's continuity requirement. Each block must be documented separately so that the employer's records demonstrate that the minimum continuous period of 12 working days was taken in at least one block annually.

A vacation request form is needed for workers who are required to coordinate their vacation with department schedules or seasonal business cycles. In industries subject to the prohibition of vacation during peak periods — such as retail during Navidad (December), agricultural employers during harvest, or tourism operators during Semana Santa and summer — employers must document when vacation periods were offered and taken to demonstrate compliance with Article 81 LFT's six-month scheduling obligation. Employers in these industries often issue collective vacation schedules (calendarios de vacaciones) that workers must accept and sign.

The form is needed for public-sector workers and those covered by the Ley Federal de los Trabajadores al Servicio del Estado (LFTSE, Apartado B of Article 123) and the Ley del ISSSTE, whose vacation rights are governed by separate statutory schemes but who also require documented approval processes. Workers in the healthcare sector regulated by the IMSS or the Secretaría de Salud, and teachers governed by the Ley General de Educación, have specific vacation frameworks that require written authorization forms consistent with their governing statutes.

The Solicitud de Vacaciones is also needed for IMSS and SAT compliance. The prima vacacional paid before vacation must be reflected in the CFDI de Nómina for the relevant payroll period, tagged with the correct payment concept code under the SAT's Anexo 20 technical specifications for CFDI de Nómina. The approved vacation request form provides the documentation linking the prima vacacional payment in the payroll system to the specific vacation period authorized by the employer — protecting the employer in any IMSS or SAT audit that questions the timing or amount of prima vacacional payments.

A valid Annual Leave Request Form Mexico under the Ley Federal del Trabajo must include the following elements to create a complete and defensible vacation authorization record for STPS, IMSS, and SAT compliance purposes.

Worker Identification: Full legal name of the worker (trabajador), their job title (puesto), department (área o departamento), IMSS Social Security Number (NSS), and RFC. The NSS enables cross-referencing with IMSS records to verify that the worker is registered and actively contributing. The RFC is needed for CFDI de Nómina payroll records associated with the prima vacacional payment.

Employment Seniority and Accrual Year: The worker's original start date (fecha de ingreso) in DD/MM/YYYY format and the current seniority anniversary year (año de antigüedad) for which vacation is being requested. For example, a worker who started on 01/04/2020 and is requesting vacation in 2024 is in their fourth year of service (año de antigüedad: 4), entitling them to 18 working days under the Article 76 LFT table. Seniority must be consistent with IMSS alta records.

Vacation Entitlement Calculation: The total number of vacation days (días de vacaciones) accrued in the current anniversary year according to the Article 76 LFT progressive schedule, and the number of days being requested in the current form. Where the worker has previously taken a partial vacation block in the same anniversary year, the remaining balance should also be stated. The form should reference the reformed Article 76 LFT scale: Year 1 = 12 days, Year 2 = 14, Year 3 = 16, Year 4 = 18, Year 5 = 20, Years 6–10 = 22, Years 11–15 = 24, Years 16–20 = 26.

Requested Vacation Dates: The specific start date (fecha de inicio de vacaciones) and end date (fecha de regreso al trabajo) in DD/MM/YYYY format, and the total number of working days (días hábiles) in the period — excluding weekends and mandatory public holidays (días de descanso obligatorio) listed in Article 74 LFT: 1 January, 5 February, 21 March, 1 May, 16 September, 20 November, 1 December (presidential transition years), 25 December, and electoral days as declared by the INE. The Article 78 LFT continuity requirement demands that at least 12 working days be taken in one uninterrupted block.

Prima Vacacional Calculation: The prima vacacional amount payable under Article 80 LFT — calculated as 25% of the daily salary multiplied by the number of vacation days requested. For example, a worker earning $650 MXN per day requesting 12 days receives a prima vacacional of 12 × $650 × 0.25 = $1,950 MXN. This amount must be paid before or at the start of the vacation period. Employers granting prima vacacional above the 25% legal minimum should state the actual percentage and resulting amount in the form.

Payment Confirmation: The date on which the prima vacacional will be paid and the payroll period in which it will appear on the CFDI de Nómina. This section ensures the timing of payment complies with Article 80 LFT and that the CFDI is issued with the correct payment date and concept code under the SAT's Anexo 20 specifications.

Employer Authorization: Signature of the authorized employer representative (supervisor directo, jefe de área, or gerente de recursos humanos) approving the vacation request, confirming that operational coverage has been arranged, and specifying any conditions — such as availability for emergency contact during the first or last day of the period. The authorization date must be documented so that the employer can demonstrate proactive scheduling compliance under Article 81 LFT.

Worker Acknowledgment: The worker's signature confirming they received the prima vacacional payment, understand the scheduled vacation period, and agree that these vacation days satisfy their entitlement for the stated anniversary year. This acknowledgment is critical for the employer's defense in any IMSS or STPS audit questioning whether vacation was granted and prima vacacional was paid.

Forms-legal.com provides this Annual Leave Request Form Mexico template as a practical tool for managing vacation entitlements under the reformed Ley Federal del Trabajo. Employers should maintain signed vacation request forms in each worker's personnel file (expediente laboral) for at least one year after the employment relationship ends under Article 804 LFT, and should update their vacation schedules promptly after the 2022 reform to ensure compliance with the new 12-day minimum.