Unused allowance reminder
The Unused allowance reminder helps managers and admins spot employees who may not be booking enough leave during the company year.
This is useful before year end, when employees may still have unused holiday, vacation, or PTO allowance left to book.
The reminder is only a guide. It helps managers start a conversation before unused allowance becomes a problem.
Why unused allowance matters
When employees do not book enough leave during the year, it can create problems later.
For example:
- too many people may try to book leave at the same time
- employees may lose unused allowance, depending on company policy
- managers may need to approve more carry over
- teams may struggle with cover near year end
- employees may not take enough rest
The Unused allowance reminder helps you find these cases early.
How the reminder works
The feature is available from the Employees page.
Next to the employee’s name, you may see a tag that shows they are behind the expected leave booking schedule.
There are two common tags:
- Underbooked — the employee is around 20% behind the expected booking level
- Critical — the employee is around 40% behind the expected booking level
These tags are an approximate guide.
They do not mean the employee has done anything wrong. They simply show that the employee may need a reminder to plan time off.
When to use unused allowance reminders
Use this feature when you want to help employees use their allowance in good time.
It is especially useful:
- halfway through the company year
- before busy holiday periods
- before year-end carry over
- when preparing for the new company year
- when managers need to plan team cover
- when employees have booked much less leave than expected
This helps your business avoid a rush of last-minute leave requests.
Send an email reminder to an employee
To send a reminder:
- Open the Employees page.
- Find the employee with an Underbooked or Critical tag.
- Click the tag next to the employee’s name.
- You will be taken to Employee Details → Allowance.
- Expand the Unused Allowance section by clicking Show More Details.
- Review the email text.
- Click Send Email to Employee.
Review the message before sending
Before sending the reminder, review the email text.
The message should be clear and helpful.
The goal is to encourage the employee to plan leave, not to pressure them.
For example, the reminder may help an employee:
- check their remaining allowance
- book leave before year end
- avoid losing unused allowance
- speak to their manager about suitable dates
- plan time off around team cover
How this fits with allowance setup
Unused allowance reminders help you monitor allowance usage.
They do not change the employee’s allowance.
They also do not replace your allowance setup.
Employee allowance may come from:
- department allowance
- individual allowance
- accrual schedules
- carry over
- manual adjustments
- leave type limits
For a full overview of how allowance works, read: Setting up allowances
Use reminders before carry over
Unused allowance reminders are helpful before running year-end carry over.
They give managers time to speak with employees who have not booked enough leave.
This may reduce the amount of unused allowance that needs to be carried into the next year.
Read more: End-of-Year Guide: How to Manage Vacation Carry Over Efficiently
Good practice for managers
Use unused allowance reminders as a planning tool.
Before sending a reminder, check whether there is a reason the employee has not booked much leave.
For example:
- they may already be planning leave later in the year
- they may be saving leave for a long trip
- they may have a special agreement
- they may be waiting for project dates to become clear
- their allowance may need to be checked by an admin
If needed, speak to the employee before or after sending the reminder.
Best practice
Check unused allowance regularly during the year.
Do not wait until the final weeks of the company year.
A simple reminder can help employees plan leave earlier, protect team cover, and make year-end allowance management easier.