Leave encashment calculator

What the leave encashment calculator does

When an employee leaves, or when a company buys back leave, unused days become money. This workbook takes each person's monthly basic pay and unused leave days, applies the cap on payable days, works out the daily rate from the days in a month and shows the leave pay for each person and in total.

Who it is for

HR officers and payroll teams preparing final pay or a year-end leave buy-back, and managers who need to budget for leave liabilities.

How to use the workbook

1. Type the maximum days you will pay and the days in a month used for the daily rate.
2. List each employee with their monthly basic pay.
3. Enter the unused leave days for each person.
4. Read the payable days, the daily rate and the leave pay, and the total at the top.
5. Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.

What is inside

• Cap on payable days
• Daily rate from monthly basic pay
• Leave pay for each employee
• Total leave pay at the top
• Rate and cap kept in cells you can change

The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Leave pay. The main table has the columns Employee; Monthly basic pay; Unused leave days; Days payable; Daily rate; Leave pay. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.

Tips for getting it right

• Use the same daily-rate rule that your contracts and policy state.
• Check the contract: some leave lapses at year end and some can be carried forward.
• Pay leave through payroll so the right deductions are applied.
• Keep the calculation with the leaver's final pay record.

Why keep this record

Staff records go wrong in small, repeated ways: a figure typed twice, a deadline forgotten, a promise that nobody wrote down. A tidy workbook that everyone uses the same way removes most of those problems. It also gives you something to show an employee, an auditor or a labour officer when a question comes up months later, and it makes the next payroll quicker because the facts are already in one place.

Questions people ask

Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.

Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.

Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.

Keeping it safe and up to date

Payroll records are personal data and tax records at once, so keep the file somewhere only the people who need it can open, and keep each month's copy for at least five years. Statutory rates such as NSSF limits and the Housing Levy change, so check the Rates sheet against the official source before you rely on a figure.

Read how to run payroll for a small business for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Terminal dues tax calculator, Severance pay calculator. See more payroll templates or ask us for a custom one.

The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.

Related guides, calculators and templates

• Free calculator: Terminal Dues Tax Calculator
• Free calculator: Severance, Notice and Leave Pay Calculator
• Guide: What to do when you change jobs: final pay, tax records and benefits
• Guide: Sick, maternity and paternity leave in Kenya: your rights and pay
• Guide: Probation, employment contracts and notice periods in Kenya
• Another template: Employee exit clearance and final dues tracker
• Another template: Gratuity and service pay calculator
• Another template: Severance and terminal dues workbook

Need something different? Request a custom template, browse all guides or see every Excel template.