Our MCP is live! Try it!

Leave Policies

How Do I Set a Brought Forward Policy?

Last updated on January 27, 2026

How Do I Set a Brought Forward Policy?

"Brought Forward" is Vacation Tracker's term for rollover — the number of unused leave days or hours that carry over from one year to the next. Without it, any leave your employees don't use by year-end is lost. With it, they can bank some (or all) of their unused balance.

Think of it like unused mobile data rolling over to next month. Some plans let you keep all of it, others cap it, and some don't roll over at all. Brought Forward works the same way, but for leave.

How to Configure Brought Forward

  1. Sign in at app.vacationtracker.io.
  2. In the left-hand menu, expand Leave Setup and click Locations.
  3. Click Edit Leave Policies on the Location you want to configure.
  4. Click the edit icon next to the leave policy you want to update.
  5. Scroll down to Brought Forward Settings.
Brought Forward Settings section showing the Brought Forward drop-down, expiry toggle, and Negative Brought Forward option

Brought Forward Settings

Once you're in the Brought Forward section, you'll see several settings to configure. Click any setting below for details.

Rollover is disabled. Any unused days or hours are lost at the end of the year. Employees start fresh with their full quota.

Marco had 5 unused PTO days on December 31st. On January 1st, they're gone — his balance resets to his yearly quota.

Caps the number of days or hours that carry over. If the employee's unused balance exceeds the limit, only the capped amount rolls forward — the rest is lost.

Alex has 15 unused days, but the rollover limit is 10. He carries forward 10 days; the remaining 5 are forfeited. His new-year balance would be his yearly quota plus 10 carried-over days.

The full unused balance carries over with no cap. Nothing is lost at year-end.

Astrid has 20 unused days on December 31st. All 20 carry forward. If her yearly quota is 25, she starts the new year with 45 days available.
  1. Click Update to save your changes.
Tip
Brought Forward settings apply per Location and Leave Type. If you have multiple locations, configure each one separately. Need to apply a rollover policy retroactively? See How Can I Apply the Brought Forward/Rollover Policy to the Previous Year?

Common Questions

What's Next?

How Do I Create and Configure Leave Policies? How Do I Set Up and Configure Accruals? How Do I Set Up an Accrual Cap?
Need help?
Contact our Support team via email or chat, Monday to Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM EST.

On this page

Still have questions? Let us show you how Vacation Tracker can help.