SOURCE:    Vacation Tracker
TITLE:     How Can Users Request a Past Leave?
URL:       https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/how-can-users-request-a-past-leave/
LANG:      en
PUBLISHED: 2022-05-19
UPDATED:   2026-01-27
READING:   1 min
SUMMARY:   Since we all know that sick days and leaves could have been previously taken, we've allowed you to set the option for Users to request past leaves :)

# How Can Users Request a Past Leave?

# How Can Users Request a Past Leave?

Sick days don't always get logged in advance. Neither do last-minute family emergencies. The Edit & Request Leaves In The Past setting lets regular Users submit leave requests for dates that have already passed — no cap on how far back they can go.

## How to Turn On Past-Date Requests

The setting sits on each leave policy, which means you configure it per Location, per Leave Type. You can allow past-dated Sick Day but not past-dated Vacation, for example — the toggles are independent.

- Sign in at app.vacationtracker.io (https://app.vacationtracker.io/signin).

- In the left-hand menu, expand Leave Setup and click Locations.

- On the Location you want to configure, click Edit Leave Policies.

- Find the leave policy you want to update and click the edit (pencil) icon on its row.

- In the policy editor, tick the Edit & Request Leaves In The Past checkbox.

- Click Update at the bottom of the page to save your changes.

![Leave policy editor with the checkbox for requesting leaves in the past highlighted](https://cms.vacationtracker.io/uploads/helpdesk_artikal_how_can_users_request_a_past_leave_first_image_place_d477e02b09.png)

Direct from the app

The in-app tooltip spells out exactly what this controls: "Choose whether you want to allow regular users to edit or request leaves in the past."

## What Users Will See

Once the setting is on for a given leave policy, Users in that Location can submit past-dated requests from any of three places:

#### The Dashboard

On the Request Leave form, past dates in the date picker become selectable. Users pick a past start and end date, add a reason if required, and submit — exactly the same flow as a future request.

#### Slack

The Vacation Tracker Slack bot accepts past dates when the setting is on. Users run the leave-request command and pick a past date the same way they'd pick an upcoming one.

#### Microsoft Teams

The same applies inside Teams — the bot's leave-request flow exposes past dates once the policy allows them.

Approvers and Admins

This setting is about regular Users self-requesting past leaves. If you're an Admin or Approver and you need to add a past leave on behalf of someone else, use the Add Leave flow instead — see How Do I Add a Leave for a User? (https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/how-do-i-add-a-leave-for-a-user/)

## Common Questions

Is there a limit on how far back a User can go?

No. Once the setting is on, the date picker accepts any past date — last week, last month, last year, or further. There's no hard cap in the system. The only practical limit is your own leave balance on the date range you're requesting.

Does this apply to every leave type?

No — the setting is per leave policy. You can enable it on Sick Day (where backdating is common) and leave it off on Vacation (where it usually shouldn't be needed). Each leave policy's setting is independent of the others.

Does a past-dated request still go through approval?

Yes — past-dated requests always go through approval, regardless of the leave policy's Approval Required setting. Even on a leave type where future requests would be auto-approved, a past-dated request is still routed to the configured Approver(s) and only counts against the balance once approved. This way the Approver can still review and confirm whether the past leave should be added to the user's record.

### What's Next?

How Do I Add a Leave for a User? (https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/how-do-i-add-a-leave-for-a-user/)
How Do I Create and Configure Leave Policies? (https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/how-do-i-create-and-configure-leave-policies/)
How Can I Apply the Brought Forward Policy to the Previous Year? (https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/how-can-i-apply-the-brought-forwardrollover-policy-to-the-previous-year-the-past/)

Need help?

Contact our Support team via email (mailto:hello@vacationtracker.io) or chat (#), Monday to Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM EST.