This guide is for Admin, HR users and Line Managers.

With the Holiday approval automation feature, you can set up departmental rules to automatically approve holiday leave requests.

Start by setting departmental rules to specify the maximum number of people within a department who can be on holiday simultaneously.

If an employee's leave request falls below the set limit, Breathe automatically approves the request. Both the employee and the holiday approver receive email notifications confirming the automated approval. If no holiday approver is assigned, notifications are sent to all HR users.

If a leave request exceeds the departmental cap, it's sent to the employee's holiday approver for manual approval or rejection.

The Holiday approval automation feature is enabled by default in your Breathe account. However, you have the flexibility to turn it on or off. Here's how:

Navigate to Configure > Settings > Modules > Included modules and ensure the 'Holiday approval automation' module is ticked.

If the Holiday approval automation feature is enabled, you can set up a rule for each department to specify the number of employees that can be on holiday at once.

A rule can be set by navigating to Configure > Settings > Absence settings > Holiday approval automation > Select Departmental > Click + to add a new rule.

When creating the rule, select a department along with setting the maximum number of employees allowed on holiday simultaneously.

On the Departmental rules page, use the edit and delete icons to manage and remove existing rules.

This Leave overview report displays approved leave records, including holidays approved through automation.

This report can be accessed by HR users and Line Managers (if permissions are enabled) by going to Reports > Absence reports > Leave overview.

For any holiday that is automatically approved via a holiday automation rule, the Admin on the account will show as having approved the holiday request.

The Automated approval column will show as 'Yes' if the holiday has been automatically approved by a set automation rule.

Q: When are holiday approval automation rules excluded?

A: Rules are not applied if the HR setting 'HR leave needs approval' is unticked, if leave is added on behalf of an employee, or if leave is added via API.

Q: Do holiday automation rules also apply to Other leave?

A: Other leave is not subject to automation rules.

Q: Can holiday automation rules automatically reject holidays?

A: Employee leave requests will not be rejected if an employee submits a leave request which exceeds a limit within an automation rule. The holiday will instead be sent to the employee's holiday approver to manually approve or reject.

Q: Will historical leave be impacted by a holiday automation rule?

A: If a new rule is created, existing leave is not affected by automation rules.

Q: Can automation rules be set for half-day holidays?

A: Automation rules will apply to employees who book half-day holiday requests.

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