SOURCE:    Vacation Tracker
TITLE:     Why Did My Leave Request Expire? Expiration Rules
URL:       https://vacationtracker.io/knowledge-base/why-did-a-leave-request-expire-leave-expiration-rules/
LANG:      en
PUBLISHED: 2023-08-15
UPDATED:   2025-10-10
READING:   2 min
SUMMARY:   A leave request expires if nobody approves or denies it before the leave ends or within 7 business days. See which rule applies and how to turn it off.
Why Did My Leave Request Expire? Expiration Rules
Vacation Tracker
English
Go to vacationtracker.io vacationtracker.io
Back to The Essentials Back to Performance & Recharge

The Essentials

Step-by-step guides for configuring your space, customizing your rules, connecting your tools, and managing your account.

Performance & Recharge

Leverage Recharge Energy Levels and PTO analytics to keep your team performing at Peak Energy.

Configuring Your Space Customizing Your Rules Your Connections Account Management
Powering Performance Rest-Performance Correlation

Last updated on October 10, 2025

Why did a leave request expire? (Leave Expiration Rules)

An Expired status means the request was never approved or denied in time. Vacation Tracker auto-expires requests under two specific conditions — knowing which one applies makes it easy to fix.

The Two Expiration Triggers

A leave request expires if either of these is true:

  • The end date of the requested leave has passed without approval or denial.
  • 7 business days have gone by since the request was sent, with no approval or denial.

Whichever happens first wins. Once expired, the request can't be re-opened — the User has to submit a fresh request.

Want to disable this?
If you'd rather Approvers have unlimited time to respond, the 7-business-day rule can be turned off workspace-wide. See How to Enable or Disable Leave Request Expiration.

Example 1 — The Leave's End Date Has Passed

  • Monday, June 5 — User submits a request for Wednesday, June 7.
  • Approver gets the notification but doesn't respond.
  • End of day on Wednesday, June 7 (00:00) — the request auto-expires.

Example 2 — 7 Business Days Have Passed

Vacation Tracker also sends automatic reminders to keep Approvers in the loop before the request hits the cutoff:

  • Monday, June 5 — User submits a request for July 12.
  • Tuesday, June 6 — first reminder sent (next business day).
  • Thursday, June 8 — second reminder (3 business days after submission).
  • Monday, June 12 — third and final reminder (5 business days after submission).
  • Wednesday, June 14 — request auto-expires (7 business days after submission, 2 business days after the final reminder).

Past-Dated Requests Follow the Same Flow

If your workspace allows past-dated leave requests, those follow the same 7-business-day reminder and expiration cycle from the date they're submitted, not the leave's start date.

What to Do When a Request Expires

  • User: submit a new request for the same dates and notify your Approver directly.
  • Admin or Approver: add the leave on the User's behalf instead of asking them to re-submit. See How Do I Add a Leave for a User?
  • To prevent it next time: turn off the 7-business-day rule, or assign a Substitute Approver so requests don't pile up while someone is away.

What's Next?

Disable Leave Request Expiration Reminder Schedule Flow Assign a Substitute Approver
Need help?
Regular Users: If you have any questions, email us anytime at hello@vacationtracker.io.
Admins and Approvers: You can reach us via live chat Monday to Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM EST, or email us anytime at hello@vacationtracker.io.

Was this article helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

On this page

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