The Leave Types section in absentify allows administrators to create, customize, and manage categories for employee absences. This enables precise tracking, calendar integration, and alignment with organizational policies.

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Overview of leave types

The Leave Types section provides an overview of all configured leave types. Each leave type can be customized with unique properties, such as:
  • Name: Displayed in the user’s calendar and reports.
  • Color and Icon: These visual identifiers can only be adjusted in the leave types list view after the leave type is created. They cannot be changed within the creation or edit dialogs.

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Adding a new leave type

  1. Navigate to Settings > Leave Types and click + Add a new leave type.
  2. Fill in the details for the leave type:

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General settings

  • Name: Specify a clear, descriptive name (e.g., “Vacation,” “Sick Leave”).
    • Translations (optional): You can add translations for leave type names by clicking the dropdown in the Name section when editing a leave type. This lets you control how the leave type is displayed in different interface languages. If no translation is provided for a user’s selected language, the default name will be used.

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Calendar synchronization

  • Enable Calendar Synchronization:
    • Synchronize upon entry creation: Adds the absence to the employee’s calendar when the request is created.
    • Synchronize upon approval only: Adds the absence only after approval.
    • Synchronization disabled: Prevents the absence from syncing to calendars.
These settings apply whether Microsoft synchronization is enabled or disabled in the Microsoft Sync settings.
  • If Microsoft Sync is enabled, the selected option will trigger an automatic sync with Outlook.
  • If Microsoft Sync is disabled, the selected option will instead control whether an iCal invite is generated.
  • An automatic sync or iCal invite will only be skipped if synchronization is explicitly set to “disabled” in the leave type settings.

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Outlook and iCal synchronization settings

The displayed synchronization options depend on the permissions granted for accessing Microsoft Outlook calendars via the Graph API:
  • If permissions are granted:
    • Outlook Calendar entry show as: Define how the entry appears in Outlook (e.g., “Out of Office,” “Busy”).
    • Event subject: Customize the event title for clarity in shared calendars.
  • If permissions are not granted:
    • The iCal Synchronization Settings are shown instead:
      • iCal event entry show as: Define how the entry appears in iCal (e.g., “Out of Office”).
      • Event’s subject: Optionally customize the subject of the calendar entry.
For private leave types, consider using neutral event subjects such as “Absent” to maintain confidentiality in shared calendars.

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Allowance and tracking

When creating a leave type, you define whether it deducts from an allowance, requires approval, and if the absence is visible to others.
  • Deduct from allowance:
    Enable to link the leave type to an allowance for automatic tracking and deduction. Configure additional options:
    • Ignore public holidays: Treat public holidays as regular workdays for deductions.
    • Ignore schedule: Deduct only for scheduled working days; excludes non-working days automatically.
  • Duration unit: Specify the smallest unit for leave requests:
    • Days
    • Half days
    • Hours
    • 30, 15, 10, or 5-minute increments.
Absence unit restrictions: If you selected an allowance from which the new leave type should deduct, the only absence units available will be those in which the allowance was originally created. Ensure that the selected unit matches the allowance configuration.Changing the absence unit: Once a request has been made using this leave type, the absence unit cannot be changed. Before saving the leave type and allowing your team to submit requests, verify that the selected unit is correct.

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Advanced settings

This section allows you to configure all key settings for this leave type. You can define which information is required, how the request and approval process works, and how the leave type is displayed to others.

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Requires approval

Decide whether requests for this leave type require approval from an approver.
  • Enabled: Requests require approval by an assigned approver.
  • Disabled: Requests are automatically approved.

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Leave type privacy

This setting controls who can see the absence type.
  • Enabled: The leave type is hidden from regular employees. They will only see “Absent” in the team view and in the calendar. Only the requester, representatives, approvers, department managers, and admins can see the leave type.
  • Disabled: All users who can view the absence will also see the specific leave type.
Please note: If you keep this setting enabled, we recommend also setting the Outlook sync “Event subject” to “Absent” to ensure consistent privacy settings across all platforms.

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Reason mandatory

This section allows you to configure whether employees must provide a reason when submitting a request for this leave type.
  • Enabled: Employees must enter a reason before they can submit their absence request.
  • Disabled: Providing a reason is optional.
The Hint text is the placeholder text shown in the reason input field when users are submitting a request. Admins can customize this text to guide users.

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Reason visibility

Defines who can view the reason provided in an absence request. These settings apply independently of whether the reason is mandatory or not.
  • Enabled: Only the requester, approvers, department managers, and admins can see the reason.
  • Disabled: Everyone who can view the absence can also see the reason.

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Include in maximum absent

Decide whether this leave type should be included in department absence calculations.
You can configure department limits in Department settings.
  • Enabled: This leave type counts towards department absence limits.
  • Disabled: This leave type does not count towards department absence limits.

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Representative requirement

Decide whether a representative is needed for this leave type. Representatives can be assigned in the employee’s profile under User Settings.
  • Required: A representative must be selected before the absence request can be submitted.
  • Optional: A representative can be selected, but it is not mandatory.
  • Not required: The representative field will be hidden when submitting a request. No representative selection is possible.

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File upload enabled

Allows employees to upload documents to leave requests.
  • In the Essentials plan, one document can be uploaded per request (max. 2 MB).
  • In the Plus plan, multiple documents can be uploaded per request (max. 15 MB per document).

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Editing a leave type

  1. Navigate to Settings > Leave Types.
  2. Click the pencil icon next to the leave type you wish to edit.
  3. Update the settings (e.g., name, linked allowances, or approval requirements).
  4. Save your changes.
Changes to leave types apply retroactively to existing records. Review potential impacts before making updates.

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Editing leave type order

To update the display order of leave types in absentify:
  1. Go to Settings > Leave types and click the grid icon next to the leave type.
  2. Drag and drop the leave type to the desired position. Changes are saved automatically.

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What this affects:

  • The order in which leave types appear when users create a new leave request.

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What this does not affect:

  • The order of both deductible and non-deductible leave types displayed in the user’s calendar.
The order of deductible leave in the calendar is determined by the order specified under Allowances. For more details, refer to our guide on managing allowance order.

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Deleting a leave type

To remove a leave type:
  1. Navigate to Settings > Leave Types.
  2. Click the archive icon next to the leave type.
  3. Switch to the Archived leave types tab.
  4. Click the trash icon next to the archived leave type.
  5. Confirm the deletion.
Deleting a leave type prevents new requests but does not affect existing records. Ensure the leave type is no longer in use before deleting.

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Archived leave types

Archiving a leave type is the recommended first step before deletion. This ensures that the leave type is no longer available for new requests but remains intact for reporting and record-keeping.
Archiving is ideal when a leave type is not actively used but may still be referenced in the future. This is especially useful for temporary leave types (e.g., “Corona Sick Leave”) or discontinued policies.

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Best practices

  • Archive first: Always archive a leave type before deleting it. This allows you to monitor if it is still being referenced.
  • Review reports: Check usage reports or exports to confirm no employees are actively using the leave type.
  • Schedule deletions: Consider waiting until the end of a fiscal year to delete archived leave types for better traceability.
Use archiving when:
  • The leave type is no longer relevant for new requests but may appear in historical data.
  • You are phasing out a policy but want to retain its traceability.
Use deletion only when:
  • The leave type is completely obsolete.
  • You have verified that no active or archived users reference the leave type.

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Best practices for leave type management

  • Align leave types with policies: Ensure leave types match company guidelines and legal requirements.
  • Regularly review configurations: Keep settings up-to-date as organizational needs evolve.
  • Use clear naming conventions: Descriptive names help employees and managers understand their options.
  • Link allowances carefully: Avoid overlapping allowances unless intentional.
  • Maintain confidentiality: When configuring private leave types, use neutral terms like “Absent” for event subjects in calendar synchronization.

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FAQ

The following FAQs show how to use absentify’s built-in features to ensure consistent, privacy-conscious absence tracking and visibility across your organization.