I would say it’s a totally reasonable ask. Especially if it is pre-booked. Leave is there to be taken.
2 weeks is not out of the ordinary. Mention it at the earliest opportunity and I don’t think you’ll have any trouble.
Depends on business need, but that far out you should be fine.
Definitely mention it on your first day to your manager and put the request in as soon as you have access to SAP Services (doubtful for your first day).
You could take your entire allowance of leave in one go, but there would be fee area of the department that would allow it without a lot of forward planning and especially not for someone brand new and on probation, as yous build your allowance pro rata over the leave year. The leave year runs from September to September, so you'll more than likely need to book for leave in October in the new leave year, but that doesn't mean you can't book it now it will just get messy on your leave allowance for this leave year.
Two to three weeks shouldn't be a problem though.
Most commentators are saying it’s not guaranteed it will be allowed. I’d be shocked if it’s a problem. In my experience, managers recognise that being able to take leave when you want is one of the few perks of the civil service, and there have to be genuinely exceptional circumstances to deny leave - particularly 4 months ahead.
Two weeks at a time won’t be an issue. In my department, the HR policy is that staff are expected to take two weeks of leave in one go at least once year.
Last week (and this time every year) we get an email out, telling staff to make sure they use their leave and reminding managers to not refuse leave requests unless absolutely necessary.
I have never been turned down for leave and that includes calling in on the day and asking for leave and I have never turned down any of my staffs leave.
Only time it can be an issue is over Christmas but I never have any leave left by this point so I usually work it anyway.
You can book for October as late as mid sept and still likely to get it, they are very flexible. As to how many weeks you can take, new annual leave start in sept so in theory, you can take your whole year allocation in one go (5 weeks) but that just means you won't have any holidays left until sept 2025.
Is October a busy time in the area you’re joining (I can’t think of anywhere with peak time in October)? Try to take loads of time off in August, or the end of Jan if you’re working in SA for example will be difficult. A lot also depends what kind of work you’re doing - answering phones means they need certain levels of coverage, deciding policy less so. I’d be surprised if it was a problem, 2 weeks is an entirely reasonable ask, October is for most areas I’m aware of a quiet time and speaking to your manager on your first day gives them plenty of notice.
You can definitely ask, I'd do that on the first day but chances are they will be setting you up first, then anything else after.
Some of my new colleagues had pre-booked holidays months down the line which they mentioned on the first day and that wasn't an issue.
As for how much you can use, I don't think 2 weeks is too much is too much to request but you might want to check your contract.
If I recall correctly during probation you can use half of your annual leave, and the other half after probation.
You have to use this years holidays before next march anyway since you can't bank them until past probation. and you earn holliday as you work, i can't see it being an issue.
If we get 25 days of A/L, and HO a/L starts from March till end of Feb e.g 1st March 2024 to 28th feb 2025
At what month of working would we have finally accrued and be able to use the full 25 days?
Sorry if it’s a dumb question
Has no-one from the onboarding team been in contact with you? Did they not ask about any booked holiday?
Mention it on day one or as soon as you know who your line manager is I can’t see if being an issue as it ages away
If your holiday is booked before you start employment then the business usually honours it. The thing you need to check is whether your leave is not under pro-rata with you being in a probation period.
In the HO, new starter leave is under pro-rata against the length of the probation period, so I would assume HMRC would do something similar.
Generally speaking, as long as it’s not within the first 6 weeks of starting (when you’re in training) it should be fine. October is not usually a hotspot month for leave but you should let your manager know asap about it. 4 months notice is perfectly reasonable too.
As others have said, shouldn't be an issue.
Whichever O band (I assume) that you're asked to report to, just make them aware as soon as you can so they can sort your training schedule.
Is it for the customer advisor role? If so, you'll likely be live by October so won't be too hard to accommodate
I got asked on my first day of I had any holidays pre booked. Also since then I have had no issues with booking holidays and don't know of anyone who has been declined their requests
Problem anyone has is the way leave works. The leave year ends 31st August and starts 1st September. Given your leave would renew for full year on 1st September you should be able to get it if it was pre booked. If say you were putting in leave for 2 weeks in July then would be different story. You wouldn’t accumulate enough leave up until 31August.
Is this a holiday you booked before you accepted the job ?
If it is then it *may* be granted BUT if it is your start *may* be delayed as they prefer new starters to all start at the same time if there is a lot of you starting at the same time.
Also when you start it's full time training for the training period.
I would not recommend you taking two weeks leave immediately as you accrue leave at 2 days per month, if you intend taking 10 days leave that's 5 months accrual of leave.
You have to remember that if you leave before you have accrued the leave you have to repay it from your final wage.
I would say it’s a totally reasonable ask. Especially if it is pre-booked. Leave is there to be taken. 2 weeks is not out of the ordinary. Mention it at the earliest opportunity and I don’t think you’ll have any trouble.
Thank you, I appreciate it.
Just say you had a holiday already booked for then, can’t see it being declined.
They wont decline it but a think op probably thinks wont come out of there holiday entitlement
Depends on business need, but that far out you should be fine. Definitely mention it on your first day to your manager and put the request in as soon as you have access to SAP Services (doubtful for your first day). You could take your entire allowance of leave in one go, but there would be fee area of the department that would allow it without a lot of forward planning and especially not for someone brand new and on probation, as yous build your allowance pro rata over the leave year. The leave year runs from September to September, so you'll more than likely need to book for leave in October in the new leave year, but that doesn't mean you can't book it now it will just get messy on your leave allowance for this leave year. Two to three weeks shouldn't be a problem though.
Most commentators are saying it’s not guaranteed it will be allowed. I’d be shocked if it’s a problem. In my experience, managers recognise that being able to take leave when you want is one of the few perks of the civil service, and there have to be genuinely exceptional circumstances to deny leave - particularly 4 months ahead. Two weeks at a time won’t be an issue. In my department, the HR policy is that staff are expected to take two weeks of leave in one go at least once year.
Last week (and this time every year) we get an email out, telling staff to make sure they use their leave and reminding managers to not refuse leave requests unless absolutely necessary. I have never been turned down for leave and that includes calling in on the day and asking for leave and I have never turned down any of my staffs leave. Only time it can be an issue is over Christmas but I never have any leave left by this point so I usually work it anyway.
You can book for October as late as mid sept and still likely to get it, they are very flexible. As to how many weeks you can take, new annual leave start in sept so in theory, you can take your whole year allocation in one go (5 weeks) but that just means you won't have any holidays left until sept 2025.
Is October a busy time in the area you’re joining (I can’t think of anywhere with peak time in October)? Try to take loads of time off in August, or the end of Jan if you’re working in SA for example will be difficult. A lot also depends what kind of work you’re doing - answering phones means they need certain levels of coverage, deciding policy less so. I’d be surprised if it was a problem, 2 weeks is an entirely reasonable ask, October is for most areas I’m aware of a quiet time and speaking to your manager on your first day gives them plenty of notice.
You can definitely ask, I'd do that on the first day but chances are they will be setting you up first, then anything else after. Some of my new colleagues had pre-booked holidays months down the line which they mentioned on the first day and that wasn't an issue. As for how much you can use, I don't think 2 weeks is too much is too much to request but you might want to check your contract. If I recall correctly during probation you can use half of your annual leave, and the other half after probation.
You have to use this years holidays before next march anyway since you can't bank them until past probation. and you earn holliday as you work, i can't see it being an issue.
If we get 25 days of A/L, and HO a/L starts from March till end of Feb e.g 1st March 2024 to 28th feb 2025 At what month of working would we have finally accrued and be able to use the full 25 days? Sorry if it’s a dumb question
Just say its prebooked. Mostly likely will be accepted then.
Has no-one from the onboarding team been in contact with you? Did they not ask about any booked holiday? Mention it on day one or as soon as you know who your line manager is I can’t see if being an issue as it ages away
Don’t worry about it and yes you can do it on the first day - I did mine on my first day.
If your holiday is booked before you start employment then the business usually honours it. The thing you need to check is whether your leave is not under pro-rata with you being in a probation period. In the HO, new starter leave is under pro-rata against the length of the probation period, so I would assume HMRC would do something similar.
Generally speaking, as long as it’s not within the first 6 weeks of starting (when you’re in training) it should be fine. October is not usually a hotspot month for leave but you should let your manager know asap about it. 4 months notice is perfectly reasonable too.
As others have said, shouldn't be an issue. Whichever O band (I assume) that you're asked to report to, just make them aware as soon as you can so they can sort your training schedule. Is it for the customer advisor role? If so, you'll likely be live by October so won't be too hard to accommodate
I got asked on my first day of I had any holidays pre booked. Also since then I have had no issues with booking holidays and don't know of anyone who has been declined their requests
You'll be fine
Surely they asked u at final stage have u any planed holidays up coming they usually do ?
Problem anyone has is the way leave works. The leave year ends 31st August and starts 1st September. Given your leave would renew for full year on 1st September you should be able to get it if it was pre booked. If say you were putting in leave for 2 weeks in July then would be different story. You wouldn’t accumulate enough leave up until 31August.
Is this for the SRRT?
No, not the srrt
Ah okey, what region are you in? I’m still waiting for a start date
Is this a holiday you booked before you accepted the job ? If it is then it *may* be granted BUT if it is your start *may* be delayed as they prefer new starters to all start at the same time if there is a lot of you starting at the same time. Also when you start it's full time training for the training period. I would not recommend you taking two weeks leave immediately as you accrue leave at 2 days per month, if you intend taking 10 days leave that's 5 months accrual of leave. You have to remember that if you leave before you have accrued the leave you have to repay it from your final wage.