Truncated vacation pay in Peru: how it's calculated when you leave a job

What is truncated vacation pay?

Truncated vacation pay (“vacaciones truncas”) is the proportional payment you’re owed for time worked during a vacation period that was left incomplete because your employment ended before you reached a full year of service. Unlike the “normal” vacation rest (30 calendar days per completed year), here you’re paid only for the portion you actually accrued.

This is a different concept — though often confused with — unused vacation from a year you already completed, which is covered in more detail on bonuses, CTS and vacation in Peru. This page focuses specifically on what happens to vacation pay when you leave a job.

The formula: twelfths and thirtieths

Under the regulation of Legislative Decree N° 713 (Supreme Decree N° 012-92-TR, Article 23), the truncated record is compensated “at a rate of as many twelfths and thirtieths of pay as computable months and days worked.” In plain terms:

• For each full month worked in the incomplete period: 1/12 of your vacation pay.
• For each leftover day beyond a full month: 1/30 of that same pay.
• Minimum requirement: you must have completed at least one month of service; if you worked less than a month, this right doesn’t arise.

Many websites summarize this by saying you “accrue 2.5 vacation days per month worked” (30 days ÷ 12 months). That’s a useful way to visualize it, but the rule actually calculates the payment as a fraction of your pay, not as accumulated days later multiplied by a daily rate — in most cases the result is equivalent either way.

Truncated vacation vs. the “triple vacation payment”: the most common mix-up

Here’s the point that gets confused most often:

1. Truncated vacation: applies when you left before completing a full year of service in the current period. Only the proportional share (twelfths and thirtieths) is paid, with no additional indemnity.
2. Unused vacation record (“triple vacation payment”): applies when you did complete a full year of service and earned the right to 30 days of rest, but didn’t take it within the following year. In that case, the MTPE’s official FAQ manual states the employer must pay three items: one salary for the work performed during that period (normally already paid as regular monthly wages), another for the accrued but unused rest, and an additional indemnity equal to one salary. In practice, this usually amounts to two extra payments, since the first was already received as regular pay.

One important exception: the indemnity does not apply to managers or company representatives who voluntarily chose not to take their vacation rest.

If, when you leave, both situations apply to you — an unused, completed vacation record from a prior year, plus an incomplete current-year period — you’re owed both concepts independently.

When and how should it be paid?

According to the official MTPE guide on vacation rest, payment of the truncated record must be made within 48 hours of termination, generally together with the rest of your final settlement of labor benefits. If your employer doesn’t comply, you can claim directly and, if necessary, file a complaint with SUNAFIL. See how to file a complaint with SUNAFIL and, if you’re worried about your old employer finding out, check whether a SUNAFIL complaint is anonymous.

What if your contract ended by mutual agreement?

If you left through a mutual-agreement termination, truncated vacation and any unused vacation record still must be settled; they aren’t waived just because you signed a separation agreement. See what other clauses deserve a close look in mutual agreement termination in Peru: what to sign and what not to.